Smashing, golden tales of quartz mining

HISTORIAN, Doug Bradby has published the third volume of his book series, The Astonishing History of Ballarat, unpacking the stories of the area’s quartz mining endeavours between 1851 and 1878.

He said this period was one of great difficulty for miners trying to make a living in Ballarat, with the press describing the local industry as being “on its last legs.”

“This is when they know the alluvial gold in the buried rivers will run out and they’ll have to make a painful transition to an industrial, complex quartz mining system,” Bradby said.

“They know at some point, they’ll have to go back to finding where the quartz came from, smashing it, and getting the gold out.

“Ballarat in the 1870s was in diabolical trouble, in a depression. They struggle, and struggle and struggle, and by 1878, they haven’t succeeded, although there’s persistence and resilience from four mines that get better and better.”

He said the three decades were packed full of conflict.

“There’s a big riot in Lydiard Street South, with thousands of men involved, laws are broken and shafts filled in. Another interesting story is a tar and feathering at the Temperance Mine in Little Bendigo.”

All volumes of The Astonishing History of Ballarat have been timelessly and whimsically illustrated by Carson Ellis, a former history student of Bradby’s at North Tech.

“He does a fantastic job. The cartoons bring out the seriousness of the situations, instantaneously and affectively summarising what’s going on,” Bradby said.

“The cartoons are fun, and miners weren’t deadly serious every moment of their lives for 70 years, they did enjoy life too.”

The first volume, released in December of 2017 shares the discovery of gold in Ballarat East and the challenges of chasing buried rivers from 1851 to 1855, while volume two, released in December of 2018 looks at Ballarat West’s mining and development and the arrival of industry between 1856 and 1883.

The fourth and final book of the series is in the works, as Bradby has had plenty of time in isolation at home in Scotchmans Lead, right near the old Buninyong Gold Mine.

Bradby is personally distributing his books within the district throughout the COVID-19 period. Call 5341 3954 or email [email protected].