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The History of Victoria, Melbourne
7
Travelling through Victoria's History
Take a Look
Gold Rush
Melbourne is a unique, liveable and young city, but beyond the surface are many layers of history that have shaped the city into what it is today.
The purpose of this stop:
- to understand the economic, political and social causes of the establishment of British colonies in Australia after 1800
Now, it's time to travel back to the 1800's!
Take a look
Did you know?
Melbourne started as an illegal settlement.
In May 1835, Indigenous leaders allowed John Batman and his group permission to explore the land in exchange for blankets, knives, clothes and other goods.
What the Indigenous leaders didn't know was that Batman would take this as an exchange to 'claim' the land.
From there, a flood of people began to do the same, settling against all rights which forced the governer to accept the fast growing township.
Did you know?
Gold Rush
- 1830's - 1840's - European settlement in Melbourne
- 1850's - 1860's - Gold was discovered in Victoria and many British immigrants began to desperately make their way over to Melbourne to become rich.
- Melbourne became the most visisted place in the world because of the gold rush.
- Growing population meant a growing police force that roamed the city day and night to fight against the chaos that began to happen because of greed and wealth.
Video Time
Class discussion at the end
Melbourne Museum -Virtual Tour
Questions
Time to Explore
It's time to explore further through Melbourne's History.
In order to do this, you must go through the following steps:
Step 1: click this link - https://museumsvictoria.com.au/melbournemuseum/resources/marvellous-melbourne/
Step 2: Read through from the 1830's to the 1900's and answer the following questions to the right.
Step 3: Utilise the virtual tour, along with the descriptions on the previous Melbourne Museum page to answer all relevant questions.
The purpose of this stop:
- to examine the development of the economy during the 1800's, including the involvement of the First Nations Australians.
Questions
1. What did john batman claim to have signed to give him ownership to 250,000 acres of land?
2. What name did "the yarra" famously get misinterperated for?
3. When was the first cable tram operated in victoria?
4. Why was Melbourne nicknamed Smellbourne at one point?
5. When did Melbourne host the first telephone exchange?
6. When did the great depression happen in Melbourne?
7. When did Melbourne have it's largest Police strike and why?
Victoria's Prisons
Let's Dive Deeper
In the 1800's, it was believed that by making the prisons as run down and unpleasant as possible that it would turn people away from committing crimes.
It was grim once people were inside. Prisoners were forced to kept silent with masks that prevented them from seeing and speaking properly. They weren't able to connect with anyone or anything. The only thing that they were allowed to do was eat, sleep, sit in their assigned seats and complete hard, boring tasks - only rarely seeing the sunlight.
All kinds of criminals were kept together and many went mad, often becoming worse than they already were.
The purpose of this stop:
- to understand the establishment of different colonies in Australia, such as overcrowded cities, high crime rates and overflowing prisons.
What was considered a crime?
Quiz
Overcrowded prisons and high Crime Rates
Criminal Life
Victorians were worried about the rising crime rates in the 1800's.
Crimes per year went from 5000 per year in 1800 to 4 times as much at 20,000 per year in 1840.
This was an issue due to prisons being small, old and terribly run. Regular punishment procedures included getting transported to America and Tasmania for their crimes and the death penalty was introduced for more crimes.
Making up the rules
Money bought privileges
Interestingly, each prison had their own set of rules. It all depended on the prisoner officer in charge. Some prisons had a 'pay for your priveliges' rule where if you paid enough money, you could keep pets inside your cell. You could get private rooms, extra books to read, better food and extra visiting hours.
Money was so big back then that prisoners had to pay their way out of jail, even when their sentence was done.
There have been numerous reports on how many prisoners back then lost their minds. It wasn't a place for getting better, it was a place of torture and it just taught them to be 'better criminals'.
BLOOKET QUIZ
For when you're ready to put your knowledge to the test!
https://dashboard.blooket.com/set/64599fe188672ee1048b852c
Crimes
Here are a list of things that were considered a crime in the 1800's:
1. Assaulting, cutting or burning clothes
2. Stealing letters or fast-tracking postage
3. Secretly getting married
4. Stealing fish from a pond or river
5. Stealing someone's clothes from a grave
6. Stealing plants, trees, or roots from the ground
7. Impersonating an Egyption
https://journal.media-culture.org.au/index.php/mcjournal/article/view/2737
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Old Melbourne Gaol
Excursion
Cell 17
Old Melbourne Gaol
Before we embark on an excursion to the Old Melbourne Gaol, let's quickly run through it's history and facts.
- The first Gaol's cellblock was opened in 1845
- The second cellblock wasn't completed until 1853, which meant a very crammed and suffocating environment for a lot of the prisoners
- Between 1842 and 1929, there were a total of 133 hangings, including infamous Bush Ranger, Ned Kelly.
Who was Ned Kelly?
Cell 17
- Many people believe that the Old Melbourne Gaol is haunted because of the many horrific events that occurred inside the prison.
- Cellblock 17 in particular has an eerie feeling to it and is often described as "chilling" and "surreal" when people step foot inside. Others have claimed to have seen ghosts.
- Nobody knows what happened inside cellblock 17 for it to be so creepy, however many people have the belief that it was a spot where many incidents took place.
Bush Ranger Ned
Ned Kelly fought off corrupt British Colonists. To some, he was heroic and to others, he was a ferocious thug.
He murdered 3 Police officers with his gang while on the run for stealing a horse.
There are two sides to viewing this story. Was he just trying to protect himself from the corrupt officers, or was he corrupt himself?
He wore an infamous suit of armour that protected him from his final battle with Police.
He was soon captured and hung on the 11th of November, 1880 in the Old Melbourne Gaol.
Time to be creative
Creative Writing
It's your turn
Now that you've got some background knowledge of the 1800's - it's time to put it to good, creative use!
The purpose of this stop:
- to demonstrate your understanding of the Old Melbourne Gaol and what it was like to be a prisoner in the 1800's
- to reference ideas, viewpoints from letters, graphs, tables, timelines, photographs and pictures, in descriptions and explanations
Venn Diagram
Short Paragraph
Drawing on the experiences that you've had at the Old Melbourne Gaol - you are going to put together a short paragraph that will list the things that you saw, heard, felt and touched while you were there.
It can be done from your perspective OR a prisoners perspective.
Aim: be as descriptive and creative as possible. You may also add your own illustrations.
Down below are a range of descriptibe words that can be utilised for your paragraph:
- eerie, intriguing, surreal, thought-provoking, captivating, convict, inmate, dingy, gloomy, mysterious
Venn Diagram
Compare and Contrast
1845
2023
Using a Venn Diagram - you are going to list the key differences between 1845 and 2012 prisons.
Think about what the prison cells looked like at the Old Melbourne Gaol and conduct your own research to find what they look like now.
How has the behaviour of prisoners changed?
Has the environment played a part in this?
What approaches and plans have been put in place over the years to change/help the behaviour of the prisoners?
List all of the key differences.