95-525: Alexandra Fountain is a fountain in the Australian city of Bendigo , Victoria . It is regarded as one of the city's most prominent landmarks and monuments. The fountain is located in Bendigo's Charing Cross area at the intersection of View Street and Pall Mall. Charing Cross effectively stands at the centre of the city and is one of Bendigo's busiest and most prominent intersections. The fountain stands opposite
190-546: A humid subtropical / cold semi-arid transitional climate zone ( Cfa/BSk ), due to its location being on the boundary of the hot, sultry inland areas to the north and the cool, damp Southern Ocean to the south. Bendigo gets 109.9 clear days annually. The mean minimum temperature in January is 14.4 °C (57.9 °F) and the maximum 30.3 °C (86.5 °F), although temperatures above 35 °C (95.0 °F) are commonly reached. The highest temperature officially recorded
285-654: A Land Convention in Melbourne during 1857 recorded demands for land reform. By 1854, Chinese people were contributing to the gold rushes. Their presence on the goldfields of Bendigo, Beechworth and the Bright district resulted in riots , entry taxes, killings, and segregation in the short term, and became the foundations of the White Australia policy . In short, the gold rush was a revolutionary event and reshaped Victoria, its society and politics. There were rumours abroad about
380-537: A daily newspaper in Melbourne, described the growing Chinese population within Victoria as an "invading army" whose presence will "subject the community to the demoralizing influence of their ideas". In June 1855, the Victorian government passed 'an act to make provision for certain immigrants'. The act sought to limit the number of Chinese immigrants that a vessel could carry to one for every ten tons of shipping and required
475-509: A downturn in Victoria's mining population. The increasing presence of Chinese miners on Victorian goldfields eventually resulted in anti-Chinese riots taking place on several Victorian goldfields. On 8 July 1854, an estimated 1500 European miners meeting at a hotel in Bendigo planned a riot to drive the Chinese out of Bendigo. This riot was however brought to a stop by the arrival of police. The worst attack on Victoria's Chinese miners occurred at
570-622: A gold rush town—as well as the Gold Museum. Bendigo has a large operating gold mine system which also functions as a tourist attraction. The rushes left Victorian architecture in towns in the Goldfields region such as Maldon , Beechworth , Clunes , Heathcote , Maryborough , Daylesford , Stawell , Beaufort , Creswick , St Arnaud , Dunolly , Inglewood , Wedderburn and Buninyong whose economy has differing emphases on home working, tourism, farming, modern industrial and retired sectors. With
665-674: A hobby in Victoria for decades mainly because of the depth and cost of pumping. The First World War also drained Australia of the labour needed to work the mines. More significantly, the prohibition on the export of gold from Australia in 1915 and the abolition of the gold standard, winding down stockpiling of gold and production of sovereigns throughout the Empire saw Australian gold towns shrink, in some cases, being totally abandoned. The slump in gold production never recovered. Gold mining ceased in Stawell in 1920, but recommenced in 1982 and continued into
760-620: A plan of the Mount Alexander gold workings, and his order that he mark out a reserve at the junction of Golden Gully with Bendigo Creek, and the camp on the west side of the creek below the junction. In late August La Trobe wanted him to report urgently on the best reserves for agriculture in the district. By 26 November he had mapped Bendigo Creek and Myers Creek, and his survey of the Bendigo Valley and environs marked township reserves at Bullock Creek, Ravenswood and Happy Jack where settlement
855-668: A range of reforms gave miners a greater say in resolving disputes via Mining Courts, and extended electoral franchise to them. As gold-rush immigrants flooded into Victoria in 1852, a tent city, known as Canvas Town , was established at South Melbourne . The area soon became a massive slum, home to tens of thousands of migrants from around the world who arrived to seek their fortunes in the goldfields. Significant Chinatowns became established in Melbourne , Bendigo and Castlemaine. At Walhalla alone, Cohens Reef produced over 50 tonnes (1.6 million tr oz) of gold in 40 years of mining. News of
950-478: A rush to the Mount Alexander or Forest Creek diggings, centred on present-day Castlemaine , claimed as the richest shallow alluvial goldfield in the world. These discoveries were soon surpassed by Ballarat and Bendigo . Further discoveries including Beechworth in 1852, Bright, Omeo , Chiltern (1858–59) and Walhalla followed. The population of Melbourne grew swiftly as the gold fever took hold, as did
1045-498: A style that was soon adopted across the state of Victoria. Vahland also designed more than 80 buildings, including the Alexandra Fountain , arguably the most prominent monument in Bendigo, with its granite dolphins, unicorns, nymphs and allegorical figures. A tram network was established by 1890, some of which is still in operation as a tourism service currently. After a temporary drop in population, renewed growth occurred from
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#17328513548071140-437: A tent city, the boomtown grew rapidly into a major urban centre with many grand public buildings. The municipality became a borough in 1863, officially known as Sandhurst until 1891, but always unofficially as Bendigo. The railway had reached Bendigo by 1862, stimulating rapid growth, with flour mills, woollen mills, tanneries, quarries, foundries, eucalyptus oil production, food production industries, and timber cutting. When
1235-416: A well-educated Englishman, as prominent members. A deputation of three men waited on Governor Hotham to demand the release of the prisoners, but he refused and had already sent additional troops to Ballarat, which gave considerable offence by marching through the town with fixed bayonets and by other exasperating conduct. On 29 November, Black, Humffray, and Kennedy reported to a mass meeting held at Bakery Hill
1330-574: A year it was noticed the plant was becoming scarce. Squatters in the area included: Donald Campbell at Bullock Creek in Ravenswood ; J & R Bakewell to the north of Bendigo; Heap & Gryce to the north-west; Archibald McDougall to the west; Joseph Raleigh and James Robinson along the Campaspe River to the south; and Thomas, Jones, and William Barnett to the east. The Ravenswood "Mount Alexander North run", occupied from c.1840 by Donald Campbell,
1425-420: Is 2 feet (0.61 m) deep. It is made from 20 tonnes (22 tons) of Harcourt granite, cast iron and painted stone. Decoratively the fountain includes lion head spouts, four allegorical female figures, spouted bronzed mer-horses and dolphins, medallions of seashells, dolphins and tridents also decorate the fountain. The pool is bordered by a decorative cast-iron fence and lit with four cast-iron lamps. Historically
1520-683: Is built on top of a wide bridge that spans the viaduct . The park elevates toward Camp Hill, which features a historic school and a lookout – a former mine poppet head . Further from the city is Lake Weeroona , a large, ornamental lake adjacent to the Bendigo Creek. The Bendigo Botanic Gardens , which opened in 1869, are further downstream. Major redevelopment of the gardens has taken place in recent years. The gardens are home to many native species of animals, including brushtailed and ring-tailed possums, ducks, coots, purple swamp hens, microbats (small insect-eating bats), several species of lizards, owls,
1615-599: Is currently banned. Bendigo was affected by the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009. A fire to the west of the city burned out 500 hectares (1,200 acres). The fire broke out at about 4.30 pm on the afternoon of 7 February, and burned through Long Gully and Eaglehawk, coming within 2 km (1.2 mi) of central Bendigo, before it was brought under control late on 8 February. It destroyed about 58 houses in Bendigo's western suburbs, and damaged an electricity transmission line, resulting in blackouts to substantial parts of
1710-424: Is likely due to a decrease in the number of new gold discoveries in Victoria during this period. Like European gold diggers, the majority of Chinese miners in Victoria worked either independently or with a partner upon arrival. As gold however became harder to find in Victoria's goldfields the Chinese population of Victoria began to form their own mining cooperatives and companies. An unofficial 1868 census on
1805-548: Is located next to the art gallery in View Street and hosts performing arts and live music. It also hosts the annual Bendigo Writers Festival which was founded in 2012. The Ulumbarra Theatre was opened on 16 April 2015. It was originally the Sandhurst/Old Bendigo Gaol. The new theatre which seats nearly 1,000 people sits within the walls and structure of the gaol and retains some original architectural features of
1900-416: Is now a performing-arts centre. Bendigo's Joss House , a historic temple, was built in the 1860s by Chinese miners and is the only surviving building of its kind in regional Victoria, which continues to be used as a place of worship. The historic Bendigo Tram Sheds and Power Station (1903) now house Bendigo's tramway museum . The Queen Elizabeth Oval still retains its ornate 1901 grandstand. The central city
1995-400: Is skirted by Rosalind Park , a Victorian-style garden featuring statuary and a large blue stone viaduct . The main entrance corner of the park is on the intersection known as Charing Cross , formerly the intersection of two main tram lines (now only one). It features a large statue of Queen Victoria . The Charing Cross junction features the large and ornate Alexandra Fountain (1881) and
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#17328513548072090-644: Is the Midland Highway, the section running through the CBD is also known as Pall Mall , while the main shopping area is centred around Hargreaves Mall. The contiguous urban area of Bendigo covers roughly 82 km of the local government area's 3048 km . Generally the suburbs occupy the catchment of the Bendigo Creek and its tributaries. Bendigo has several suburbs, some of which (such as Eaglehawk) were once independent satellite townships and many that extend into
2185-571: The Bendigo Box-Ironbark Region Important Bird Area , identified as such by BirdLife International because of its importance for swift parrots and other woodland birds. A dozen species of insect-eating bats and the pollinating grey-headed flying fox inhabit the area. Bendigo has a relatively dry temperate climate with warm, variable summers and cool winters. Under the Köppen-Geiger classification , it lies on
2280-570: The Buckland Riot . The conditions which led up to the Eureka Stockade arose mainly from the actions taken by the Government in supervising the various goldfields. To meet the expense of securing order and to restrain unauthorised mining on Crown land, a local Act of January 1852 imposed on all diggers a licence fee of 30 shillings per month, the penalty for mining without a licence being £6 for
2375-521: The California Gold Rush . At its peak, some two tonnes of gold per week flowed into the Treasury Building in Melbourne . The gold exported to Britain in the 1850s paid off all of Britain's foreign debts and helped lay the foundation of her enormous commercial expansion in the latter half of the century. Melbourne was a major boomtown during the gold rush. The city became the centre of
2470-471: The Coliban River . The architect William Charles Vahland (1828–1915) left an important mark on Bendigo during this period. He is credited with the popular cottage design known as a Vahland House. The cottage design that has vastly been customised shares a common theme of a central door, a sash window either side, a central hallway that runs the entire length of the house and verandahs ordained in iron lace,
2565-500: The Jade Buddha for Universal Peace , the world's largest gem-quality jade Buddha statue. As of 2016 , Buddhism was followed by 1.4% of Bendigo people, and Islam by about 0.5%. In 2019, despite protests by several far-right and anti-Islam organisations, construction began on Bendigo's first mosque and Islamic community centre. The central area (CBD) of Bendigo consists of around 20 blocks of mixed-use area. The main street
2660-654: The Ravenswood run, earlier known as the Mount Alexander North run, in October 1851. The creek had been named "Bendigo Creek" after a local shepherd and employee of the Mount Alexander North run nicknamed for the English bare-knuckle prizefighter William Abednego "Bendigo" Thompson . The area was transformed in less than a year as tens of thousands of people arrived during the great gold rush in 1852. Widespread gold mining caused environmental devastation and permanent damage in
2755-605: The 1930s, as the city consolidated as a manufacturing and regional service centre, though gold mining continues. Recent growth has been most heavily concentrated in areas such as Epsom, Kangaroo Flat, Strathdale, and Strathfieldsaye. On 28 March 2013, the Dja Dja Wurrung people were formally recognised as the traditional owners for part of Central Victoria, including the land on which the City of Greater Bendigo sits. In 1994, under municipal reforms of Victoria's Kennett government ,
2850-518: The Chinese population in Victorian gold districts suggests that 660 out of the 765 Chinese miners in Daylesford and half of the 4000 Chinese miners in the Oven District had "form[ed] themselves into small companies" by 1868. A minority of Chinese miners in Victoria were also employed by European mining companies. The 1868 census on the Chinese population in Victoria suggests that 700 Chinese miners in
2945-669: The City of Bendigo was abolished and merged with the Borough of Eaglehawk, the Huntly and Strathfieldsaye shires, and the Rural City of Marong to form the larger City of Greater Bendigo. The population of the city increased from around 78,000 in 1991 to about 100,617 in 2012. Bendigo is currently one of the fastest-growing regional centres in Victoria. The city is surrounded by components of the Greater Bendigo National Park , as well as
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3040-455: The Commissioner of the situation and about 4.30 a.m. on Sunday morning (3 December) a troop of 276 men was marched silently to the stockade. Inside the stockade only 50 diggers had rifles; there was also a troop of Californian diggers armed with revolvers and another of Irishmen with pikes. Many of them were asleep when the signal gun was fired and a storming party of 64 'rushed' the stockade. In
3135-822: The Institute of Technology, and the Memorial Military Museum (1921), all in the Second Empire style. The architect William Vahland encouraged European artisans to emigrate to the Sandhurst goldfields and so create a "Vienna of the South". Bendigo's Sacred Heart Cathedral , a large sandstone church, is the third-largest cathedral in Australia and one of the largest cathedrals in the Southern Hemisphere . The main building
3230-526: The Oven District were working for European companies which were paying their employees £1 to £2 per week. Smaller numbers of Chinese miners were also reported to be working for European companies in Maryborough , Ballarat and Daylesford . The rapid influx of Chinese migrants into the Colony of Victoria aroused large amounts of anxiety within Victoria's European population. On April the 14th 1855, The Argus ,
3325-461: The Southern Cross the assembled diggers swore 'to stand truly by each other and fight to defend our rights and liberties.' An area of about an acre on the present Eureka site was hastily enclosed with a pallisade and a deputation was sent to the military camp demanding the release of the morning's prisoners and the cessation of licence-hunting. The Commissioner flatly refused the request, saying that
3420-489: The Victorian Goldfields has converted a remote dependency into a country of worldwide fame; it has attracted a population, extraordinary in number, with unprecedented rapidity; it has enhanced the value of property to an enormous extent; it has made this the richest country in the world; and, in less than three years, it has done for this colony the work of an age, and made its impulses felt in the most distant regions of
3515-612: The Victorian government passed 'an act to regulate the residence of the Chinese Population in Victoria'. This act required all Chinese residing in Victoria to obtain a £1 license which had to be renewed every two months for an additional £1 in order to remain in the Colony of Victoria. The residence tax was however reduced in February 1859 and repealed in 1862 due to Chinese protests against the legislation, increasing levels of tax evasion, and
3610-400: The agitation was 'only a cloak to cover a democratic revolution.' On 1 December the occupants of the stockade were hard at work by 5 a.m. drilling and improving the barrier, and a German blacksmith was fashioning pike-heads. But neither food nor ammunition was available within the stockade, so that by the evening of the 2nd after a very hot day, not more than 200 remained within. Spies informed
3705-471: The alluvial gold ran out, extraction of quartz-based gold continued in deep shafts using industrial systems. Selection in the future county of Bendigo (created in 1869) commenced under the Land Act of 1865, with most settlement occurring around Sandhurst and Eaglehawk . Bendigo was declared a city in 1871. Rapid population growth brought a water shortage, partially solved with a new viaduct that harnessed
3800-563: The annual Groovin' the Moo music festival. It is held at the Bendigo Showgrounds and is usually held in late April or early May. The festival regularly sells out and brings many Australian and international acts to the city. It also attracts thousands of people from around Victoria to the city for the weekend. The Bendigo Blues and Roots Music Festival has been taking place each November since 2011. With over 80 artists from all over Australia,
3895-458: The apprehension of Vern, and £200 each for Black and Lalor. Australia's population changed dramatically as a result of the rushes. In 1851 the Australian population was 437,655, of which 77,345, or just under 18%, were Victorians. A decade later the Australian population had grown to 1,151,947 and the Victorian population had increased to 538,628; just under 47% of the Australian total and a seven-fold increase. In some small country towns where gold
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3990-473: The area are the Dja Dja Wurrung (Djaara) people. The discovery of gold on Bendigo Creek in 1851 transformed the area from a sheep station into one of colonial Australia's largest boomtowns . News of the finds intensified the Victorian gold rush , bringing an influx of migrants from around the world, particularly Europe and China. Bendigo became Eastern Australia's largest 19th-century gold-mining economy, and
4085-493: The area of Bendigo, and although rare, the 2003 Bendigo tornado passed through Eaglehawk and other parts of the city, causing major damage to homes and businesses. Bendigo was in severe drought from 2006 to 2010, and during this time, the city had some of the harshest water restrictions in Australia, with no watering outside the household. Heavy rains from the middle to later months of 2010 filled most reservoirs to capacity and only wasteful water use (e.g. hosing down footpaths)
4180-481: The arrival by white settlers , who established the first of many vast sheep runs in 1837. The Djadjawurrung peoples experienced two waves of settlement and dispossession: from the south from 1837 and from the north from 1845. The marked decrease in Dja Dja Wurrung population was also due to the arrival of non-indigenous animals; they use their noses to ‘root up’ the nutritious moon-nar tuber (yam daisy); after just
4275-541: The benefit of the church which, in 1897, enabled the construction of Sacred Heart Cathedral . Completed in 1977, it is the largest church building in provincial Australia. As of 2016, Catholicism is still practised by 22% of the population. In the 2016 census, 36.2% reported having "no religion". The Sandhurst Methodist Circuit (1854) serviced five Wesleyan churches which had been built in previous years. There were several church schools, but they were attended by one-fifteenth of Bendigo's school children. The Chinese, who in
4370-513: The city's annual rainfall of 510.0 millimetres (20.08 in) falls between June and September as cold fronts. Snowfalls are rare; however, sleet occurs and rain commonly falls at temperatures below 5 °C (41 °F) on account of the city's exposed location. Frosts are a common occurrence during the winter and spring, though hampered by the frequent cloud cover. A series of great floods occurred in Bendigo in 1859. Substantial flooding also occurred in 1903. Tornadoes have been seen around
4465-516: The city. One fatality from the fire occurred. Flash floods occurred across Bendigo during 2010, the first in March and the most severe at the beginning of September. The region also has had flooding events in October of 2022 and January of 2024. According to the 2016 census of population, 92,379 people were in Bendigo Urban Centre. According to the City of Greater Bendigo Community Profile,
4560-553: The colony with rail networks radiating to the regional towns and ports. Politically, Victoria's gold miners sped up the introduction of greater parliamentary democracy in Victoria, based on British Chartist principles adopted to some extent by the miners' activist bodies such as Bendigo's Anti-Gold Licence Association and the Ballarat Reform League . As the alluvial gold dwindled, pressures for land reform, protectionism and political reform generated social struggles, and
4655-502: The colony's total population: from 1851 to 1861, it grew from 75,000 to 500,000. Surface alluvial gold was the first to be exploited. It is reported that in 1851, when the first miners arrived on the Mount Alexander goldfield, near Castlemaine , nuggets could be picked up without digging. Then followed the exploitation of alluvial gold in creeks and rivers, or deposited in silt on river banks and flats. The gold-seekers used pans , sluice boxes and cradles to separate this gold from
4750-495: The completion of the Calder Freeway linking Melbourne and Bendigo in 2009, and the region's proximity to Melbourne, Bendigo has become one of the fastest-growing regional centres in Victoria. The traditional owners of the Mount Alexander , traditionally named Leanganook, area that includes Greater Bendigo , are the Dja Dja Wurrung (Djaara) people. They exploited the rich local hunting grounds from which they were displaced by
4845-401: The dirt. As surface alluvial gold ran out, gold seekers were forced to look further underground. Miners discovered so-called deep leads, which were gold-bearing watercourses that had been buried at various depths by centuries of silting and, in some Victorian goldfields such as Ballarat, volcanic action . They also began to exploit the underground gold reefs which were the original sources of
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#17328513548074940-455: The district, decimating and displacing the Dja Dja Wurrung and destroying the infrastructure they created over generations to maximise seasonal drainage patterns; the channels and weirs they built out of timber stakes, to slow receding summer flows, were wrecked; water holes where the people gathered in smaller groups during periods of scarce rainfall and from which they transported water in skin bags when moving, were muddied, polluted and drained;
5035-516: The earth. With the exception of the more extensive fields of California, for a number of years the gold output from Victoria was greater than in any other country in the world. Victoria's greatest yield for one year was in 1856, when 3,053,744 troy ounces (94,982 kg) of gold were extracted from the diggings. From 1851 to 1896 the Victorian Mines Department reported that a total of 61,034,682 oz (1,898,391 kg) of gold
5130-445: The exception of Ballarat and Bendigo, many of these towns were substantially larger than they are today. Most populations moved to other districts when gold played out in a given locality. At the other end of the spectrum ghost towns, such as Walhalla , Mafeking and Steiglitz exist. The last major gold rush in Victoria was at Berringa , south of Ballarat, in the first decade of the 20th century. Gold mining became nothing more than
5225-452: The first offence and afterwards imprisonment for terms up to six months. Clause 7 of this Act also appropriated half the fine to the use of the informer or prosecutor, a provocative and irritating provision. In December, 1853, an amending Act reduced the fee to £1 per month, but did not alter the diggers' greatest grievance, that they could be imprisoned for not having the actual licence on them, though their possession of one could be proved from
5320-569: The first volleys several men fell on both sides, but the line of advancing bayonets, flanked on both sides by cavalry and mounted police, was too much for the diggers. They turned to seek shelter and all was over. Of the military force Captain Wise and four private soldiers were killed, and about a dozen injured. Sixteen miners were killed, and at least eight others died of their wounds, 114 prisoners were taken, and Lalor, badly wounded, managed to escape; so did Black and Vern. The Government then offered £500 for
5415-424: The fountain is a monument to the success of the goldfields and the Bendigo region. Aesthetically the fountain is fairly typical of late Victorian monumental design but is unusual in that few fountains were built according to this theme. In 2017, a AU$ 350,000 refurbishment project was undertaken. The restoration project included repairs and repainting of the balustrade and masonry, including repainting and re-rendering
5510-532: The gaol. The venue hosts performing arts and live music. It also acts as a ceremonial and teaching space for local secondary schools and universities. The city hosts the Bendigo National Swap Meet for car parts every year in early November. It is regarded as the biggest in the Southern Hemisphere and attracts people from all over Australia and the world. The city hosts the Victorian leg of
5605-670: The gold discoveries in the colonies of New South Wales and Victoria in 1851 quickly arrived in the provinces of Southern China. By the end of 1855, more than 19,000 Chinese immigrants , particularly from the Guangdong province of China, were estimated to be working on the Victorian goldfields of Ararat , Ballarat , Ovens , Bendigo , Castlemaine and Maryborough . By 1858 this number increased to roughly 33,000 and Chinese miners were estimated to have made up approximately one fifth of Victoria's miner population. Figures suggest that Victoria's Chinese population began to dwindle after 1858. This
5700-544: The gold. Deep mining was more difficult and dangerous. Places such as Bendigo and Ballarat saw great concentrations of miners, who were forming partnerships and syndicates to enable them to sink ever-deeper shafts. Coupled with erratic and vexatious policing and licence checks, tensions flared around Beechworth, Bendigo and Ballarat. These frictions culminated in the Eureka Rebellion in Ballarat in 1854. Following that uprising,
5795-537: The goldfields of Buckland River on 4 July 1857. Following a group meeting at the Buckland Hotel, an estimated 100 European miners sought to expel all 2500 Chinese miners that occupied the goldfields of the Buckland River through the use of tent and store burning, robbery and beatings. Drowning and severe beatings are believed to have resulted in the death of several Chinese miners. This event has come to be known as
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#17328513548075890-723: The gully of the Buninyong ranges now bearing his name, on 8 August 1851, and he communicated the fact, with its precise locality, to the editor of the Geelong Advertiser on the 10th of that month. Dr. George H. Bruhn, a German physician, in the month of January, 1851, (i.e. before Mr. Hargraves' discovery at Summerhill) started from Melbourne to explore "the mineral resources of this colony'. During his lengthened tour, he found, in April, indications of gold in quartz about two miles from Mr. Barker's station, and on arriving at Mr. Cameron's station
5985-611: The main entrance of Rosalind Park . Alexandra Fountain was funded from the proceeds of the Bendigo Juvenile Industrial Exhibition (1879), a £500 gift from George Lansell and a further £700 from the Sandhurst City Council (now the City of Greater Bendigo ). The fountain was designed by William Vahland (1828–1915), a local architect responsible for some of the city's most prominent buildings. The fountain
6080-528: The mid-19th century constituted 20% of Bendigo's population, built the heritage-listed Bendigo Joss House Temple dedicated to Kwan Tai or Lord Guan , where they practised syncretic beliefs involving ancestor worship and the three main religions of China: Buddhism , Taoism and Confucianism . Bendigo is also home to the largest stūpa in the Western world, the Great Stupa of Universal Compassion , which houses
6175-484: The most domestic of the goldfields, was renowned for its peaceful progressiveness and quietness. On the night of 6 October, however, a Scottish miner named James Scobie was killed at the Eureka Hotel, near Ballarat, and the murdered man's associate blamed the murder on the proprietor, Bentley, a Tasmanian ex-convict. Bentley was brought up before a magistrate, who was alleged to be financially under Bentleys' thumb, and he
6270-520: The not-for-profit festival is hosted in many of the venues around Bendigo, and is headlined by a large, family-friendly, free concert held in Rosalind Park . The Bendigo Easter Festival is held each year and attracts tens of thousands of tourists to the city over the Easter long weekend. Attractions include parades, exhibitions, and a street carnival. Victorian gold rush The Victorian gold rush
6365-558: The official record. They were also unrepresented in Parliament, and in 1854 the population on the Ballarat goldfields was estimated at 20,000. Charles Hotham , who arrived in Victoria in June 1854, was alarmed at the depleted state of the Treasury and the growing expense of goldfields administration. He ordered the police to redouble their exertions in collecting the fees. To miners just scraping by,
6460-405: The payment of £12 per annum was impossible, and there is no doubt that hundreds did endeavour to evade payment, but the innocent suffered with the guilty. The police, too, had been largely recruited from Tasmania, and many were ex-convicts. These grievances were common to all the Victorian fields, and had under Latrobe's administration produced riots at Beechworth and Castlemaine, but Ballarat, always
6555-519: The plaster work as well as plumbing and electrical work. This article about a building or structure in Victoria (state) is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Bendigo Bendigo ( / ˈ b ɛ n d ɪ ɡ oʊ / BEN -dig-oh ) is a city in north-central Victoria , Australia , located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately 150 kilometres (93 mi) north-west of Melbourne ,
6650-459: The population estimate for 2019 for this area was 118,093 (0.39 persons per hectare ). In the 19th century, Catholicism was the predominant Christian tradition in Bendigo. Catholic priest and pioneer George Henry Backhaus established a site in 1852 for the first Masses at Golden Square and, by the end of the year, he was camping at the site of Bendigo's first church, St Kilian's Church, completed in 1858. A wealthy man, Backhaus left his estate for
6745-568: The presence of gold in Australia, but Government officials kept all findings secret for fear of disorganising the young colony. However the Colonial Secretary, Edward Deas Thomson , saw a great future for the country when Edward Hargraves proved his theory that Australia was a vast storehouse of gold. Hargraves had been in the California gold rush and knew gold country, when he first saw it, round Bathurst. The news spread like wildfire, and soon
6840-405: The race was on from coast to gold fields. Flocks were left untended, drovers deserted their teams, merchants and lawyers rushed from their desks and entire ships' crews, captains included, marched off to seek their fortunes. In March 1850, William Campbell of Strath Loddon, found on the station of his brother-in-law, Donald Cameron, of Clunes several minute pieces of native gold in quartz. This
6935-512: The result of their deputation to the Governor, and Vern proposed a burning of the hated licences, which was then carried out. Next day the police carried out a specially vicious and vigorous licence-hunt, and when the troops marched back to camp, the diggers hastened to a conference with the leaders of the Reform League. Peter Lalor was elected leader, and under a blue flag adorned with the stars of
7030-466: The riot, and they were sentenced to three, four, and six months' imprisonment. At an indignation meeting held on 11 November on Bakery Hill, the Ballarat Reform League was formed, with John Basson Humffray (a Welshman) as its first secretary, and Peter Lalor , Frederic Vern (a Hanoverian), Raffaello Carboni (an Italian teacher, of languages), Timothy Hayes (an Irishman), and George Black,
7125-440: The ship's master to pay a £10 poll tax for each Chinese passenger it carried. The act however failed to reduce the number of Chinese arriving on Victorian Gold Fields. By landing at the port of Robe in the colony of South Australia and travelling more than 400 km across country to the Victorian goldfields, Chinese gold seekers were able to successfully evade the restrictions of Victoria's immigration act. In November 1857,
7220-463: The soaks they had dug between banks into sandy sediment to tap into the water table were likewise obliterated. Some of their waterholes in rock platforms of creeks that they found or enlarged, then covered with slabs to protect them from animals, may still remain, unidentified. Gold was officially discovered in the area in October 1851, just after the other significant goldfields in neighbouring Castlemaine , from where many diggers migrated, bringing
7315-563: The spot to Dr. Webb Richmond, on behalf of the Gold Discovery Committee on 5 July. The third discovery was by Mr. Thomas Hiscock , a resident at Buninyong ; induced by the writings of the Rev. W. B. Clarke, and by the discovery of Brentani's nugget in the Pyrenees district two years before, he had kept a constant lookout for gold in his neighbourhood. He discovered an auriferous deposit in
7410-566: The state capital. As of 2022, Bendigo has a population of 103,818 making it Australia's 19th-largest city by population . Bendigo is the fourth-largest inland city in Australia and the fourth-most populous city in Victoria . Bendigo is administered by the City of Greater Bendigo , formerly the City of Bendigo . The council area encompasses roughly 3,000 square kilometres, the city is surrounded by smaller towns such as Castlemaine , Heathcote , Kyneton , Maryborough , Elmore , Rochester , Goornong and Axedale . The traditional owners of
7505-504: The substantial discoverer of the Ballarat deposits; £1000 to Campbell as the original discoverer of Clunes; £1000 to Esmond as the first active producer of alluvial gold for the market and £500 to Dr. Bruhn. On 20 July 1851 Thomas Peters, a hut-keeper on William Barker's Mount Alexander station, found specks of gold at what is now known as Specimen Gully. This find was published in the Melbourne Argus on 8 September 1851, leading to
7600-758: The surrounding bushland. As a legacy of the gold boom, Bendigo has many ornate buildings built in a late Victorian colonial style. Many buildings are on the Victorian Heritage Register and registered by the National Trust of Australia . Prominent buildings include the Bendigo Town Hall (1859, 1883–85), the Old Post Office , the Bendigo Law Courts (1892–96), the Shamrock Hotel (1897),
7695-460: The tawny frogmouth, and though not native to the area, a colony of endangered grey-headed flying foxes ( Pteropus poliocephalus ). The Bendigo Art Gallery is one of Australia's oldest and largest regional art galleries. In March 2012, it hosted a royal visit from Princess Charlene of Monaco at the opening of an exhibition about Grace Kelly . The Capital Theatre , originally the Masonic temple,
7790-493: The total population to 40,000 in less than a year. Many of these diggers were Chinese and their descendants still live in the region. During 1852, under the direction of Surveyor General of Victoria , Robert Hoddle , William Swan Urquhart was making a general survey of Mount Alexander and the surrounding ranges, and of the goldfields, and fixed the site of the township of 'Sandhurst', now Bendigo. On 13 July 1852 Hoddle passed on to Urquhart Lieutenant-Governor La Trobe's request for
7885-518: The wealth generated during this period is reflected today in the city's Victorian architectural heritage. From 1853 until 1891, Bendigo was officially named Sandhurst. Bendigo's boom period lasted until the early 20th century and after a temporary decline in population and employment, renewed growth occurred from the 1930s as the city consolidated as a manufacturing and regional service centre. Although gold mining continues, recent population growth has been most heavily concentrated in suburban areas. With
7980-608: Was 45.4 °C (113.7 °F), during the 2009 southeastern Australia heat wave . There is also a disputed recording of 47.4 °C (117.3 °F) (on 14 January 1862). Summers are also subject to cold weather: on 2 February 2005, the maximum temperature did not exceed 11.5 °C (52.7 °F) all day. The mean minimum temperature in July is 2.7 °C (36.9 °F) and winter minima below 0 °C (32 °F) are recorded on 26.1 nights per year on average. Mean maximum winter temperatures in July are 12.7 °C (54.9 °F). Most of
8075-402: Was a period in the history of Victoria , Australia, approximately between 1851 and the late 1860s. It led to a period of extreme prosperity for the Australian colony and an influx of population growth and financial capital for Melbourne , which was dubbed " Marvellous Melbourne " as a result of the procurement of wealth. The Victorian Gold Discovery Committee wrote in 1854: The discovery of
8170-455: Was acquired by brothers Stewart and Robert Gibson in 1848, with Frederick Fenton later replacing one of the Gibson brothers. After the discovery of gold in 1851, Fenton sold provisions to the miners and agisted their horses. Becoming the sole owner of the Ravenswood run in 1857, Fenton built its substantial homestead. Gold was officially discovered on Bendigo Creek at the north-eastern boundary of
8265-556: Was already taking place. His plan General Survey of the Bendigo Goldfields showing the proposed reserves for townships. Drawn by W.S. Urquhart, Melbourne, November 1852 recommended sites for national schools, churches, markets and other public purposes reserved from sale. In 1853, a massive protest called The Red Ribbon Rebellion was held over the cost of the licence fee for prospectors, though it passed off peacefully, due to good diplomacy by police and miners' leaders. From being
8360-468: Was completed between 1896 and 1908 and the spire between 1954 and 1977. Fortuna Villa is a large surviving Victorian mansion, built for Christopher Ballerstedt and later owned by George Lansell. Many other examples of Bendigo's classical architecture rank amongst the finest classical commercial buildings in Australia and include the Colonial Bank building (1887) and the former Masonic Hall (1873–74), which
8455-458: Was concealed at the time but on 10 January 1851, Campbell disclosed it. Others had found indications of gold. Dr. George H. Bruhn, a German physician, whose services as an analyst were in great demand, had been shown specimens of gold from what afterwards became the Clunes diggings. In spite of these and other discoveries, however, it was impracticable to market the gold, and James Esmond 's "find" which
8550-498: Was discharged. The miners were indignant; a meeting was called and a demand made for a fresh prosecution. The meeting itself was orderly, but towards the end of proceedings a cry was raised that the police (who had been ordered to protect the hotel) were trying to disperse the meeting, and the miners, becoming furious, swept aside the police, smashed the windows and furniture, and burned the building. The police arrested three men- who could not be proved to have been ringleaders or active in
8645-480: Was found abundantly, the population could grow by over 1000% in a decade (e.g. Rutherglen had a population of about 2,000. Ten years later, it had approximately 60,000 which is a 3000% increase). The rapid growth was predominantly a result of the gold rushes. The gold rush is reflected in the architecture of Victorian gold-boom cities like Melbourne, Castlemaine , Ballarat , Bendigo and Ararat . Ballarat today has Sovereign Hill —a 60-acre (24 ha) recreation of
8740-540: Was made on Creswick's Creek, a tributary of the Loddon River , at Clunes on 1 July 1851, was the first marketable gold field. A party formed by Mr. Louis John Michel, consisting of himself, Mr. William Haberlin, James Furnival, James Melville, James Headon, and B. Groenig, discovered the existence of gold in the quartz rocks of the Yarra ranges, at Andersons Creek , near Warrandyte , in the latter part of June, and showed it on
8835-536: Was mined in Victoria. Gold was first discovered in Australia on 15 February 1823, by assistant surveyor James McBrien, at Fish River, between Rydal and Bathurst (in New South Wales). The find was considered unimportant at the time and was not pursued for policy reasons. In the 1850s gold discoveries in Victoria, in Beechworth , Castlemaine , Daylesford , Ballarat and Bendigo sparked gold rushes similar to
8930-579: Was named in honour of Alexandra , Princess of Wales. Its grand opening on 5 July 1881 was attended by her sons Prince Albert and Prince George . Other than the Exhibition Fountain, built in 1880 and located in the Melbourne 's Carlton Gardens , the Alexandra Fountain is the largest and most ornate municipal fountain in Victoria. The fountain stands 28 feet (8.5 m) high and sits in a 50 feet (15 m) diameter circular pool which itself
9025-485: Was shown by that gentleman specimens of gold at what are now called the Clunes diggings. This information he made widely known through the country in the course of his journey, and communicated to Mr. James Esmond, at that time engaged in erecting a building at Mr. James Hodgkinson's station. Dr. Bruhn forwarded specimens, which were received by the Gold Discovery Committee on 30 June 1851. The Gold Discovery Committee awarded £1000 to Michel and his party; £1000 to Hiscock, as
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