How did population change in gold rush Australia?

Answer 1

The discovery of gold was crucial to the development of Australia, culturally, economically and politically. As more people left the Australian colonies to join the gold rush in California in the 1850s, it became apparent that the outward tide of manpower would need to be stemmed. The government began to seek experts who could locate gold in Australian countrysides. After gold was "officially" discovered in Australia in 1851, not far from Bathurst, New South Wales, many people flocked to the goldfields. Immigrants, particularly Chinese, brought the influence of their own culture. One of the main effects of the gold rushes were the social effects on families. Many men who worked on farms, or in paid employment in towns, downed their tools and left. Often women were left to tend the stations their husbands left behind, or find another means of financial support. Aboriginal labour became more popular. The goldrushes saw the rise of loyal Aboriginal stockmen and jackaroos who were willing to work long and hard for perhaps less pay than their predecessors. The wealth generated by the discovery of gold in Victoria, soon after its separation from New South Wales, also helped transformed Melbourne from a small colonial outpost to the fourth largest city in the British Empire. Gold enabled the growth of small towns wherever it was found. The diggers needed supplies, so demand generated business, and towns grew from this need as people moved in to supply all the tools and other equipment required by the miners. On the whole, the discovery of gold gave Australia new status in the eyes of Britain, and the impetus to push for independence from England's control. Also see the question http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_did_the_discovery_of_gold_affect_Australia