The Gold Rush

Life on the Gold Fields

Life on the gold fields was extremly harsh.

Miners had low rations, poor shelter and had to stay in a dirty, smelly environment.

They all worked hard, fighting against the weather, pain and exhaustion, but not all hit it lucky.

The people selling things, providing transport or giving food actually earned more than most of the diggers.

Shelter/Food

Diggers had to live closely packed in tents. There were hundreds and even thousands of tents huddled together. In Bendigo, for example, up to 40, 000 people lived close together in tents.

A miner's gunya- made of wood, bark and canvas.

Soon people began to build huts of wood, stone or mud, especially those with families. By the 1860s, proper towns began to form and people settled down, the wild frenzy of the gold rush gradually ceasing.

Food:

Miners could not afford good food, because prices were very high. This was because food had to be brought to the diggings by bullock teams, which was hard work. Also, sly traders knew that miners would have to buy food from them or starve, so they kept prices high.

Most people, who weren't rich, lived on mutton, damper, bread and tea. Often they became sick due to the bad quality of food they were given.

Bread Mutton Damper Tea

Hardship and Enjoyment

Life on the gold fields was not easy. There were tents and huts all packed together, making the air stuffy and smelly. Toilets were just holes in the ground, and garbage flooded the fields, so people had to cope with the awful pong.

Hygiene and smells wasn't the only problem on the gold fields. Many people became ill, or even died from diseases,especially children. They usually caught flus and fevers, and while today they are minor illnesses which we can easily cure, back in the 1800s many children died from them. People also got nasty illnesses from the bad food they ate. A lot of it went off very quickly, as there was no proper refridgeration. Miners had to buy meat everyday, because if they didn't finish fast enough the meat would rot. Miners also needed to watch out for bushrangers or highwaymen, who would hold them up and capture them to steal their gold.

On the other hand, there was also entertainment and enjoyment on the diggings. During the afternoons and weekends, miners played, drank or sang songs around fires. Entertainers like actors and actresses who entertained the miners were extremely popular.

It wasn't just men who lived in the gold fields. There were also women and children. Women either came with their husbands, friends or brothers, or came later on when the men had enough money to settle down. Women usually did cooking, washing, chopping wood and sometimes helped looking for gold.

Many children spent their childhood on the diggings. They mostly helped their parents, carrying wood, looking after the home, doing chores or even looking after the animals (donkeys, hores, dogs and other animals were kept by some).