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Cooee - Australia in the 19th Century

Work

Australians had to work hard in the 19th century, and many images emphasise the arduous acts of cutting, clearing, felling and planting. ‘Work’ was seen as part of a nation-building exercise, but there are fewer accounts of the domestic toil of women and, until railways were photographed later in the century, little to suggest the growing industrial nature of the Australian economy.

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George Hamilton (1812–1883)
Cattle on journey from Port Phillip to South Australia 1839
pencil drawing; 17.7 x 26.8 cm
Rex Nan Kivell Collection NK705/8
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As townships expanded alongside Sydney Harbour, the Derwent River or Port Phillip, the outback was developing too. ‘Overlanding’—moving stock long distances, often through remote areas—was a part of this process. George Hamilton, in a witty series of drawings, describes one such journey from the 1830s.

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George Cobley
Harvesting in Australia, 1855

watercolour; 34.2 x 51.5 cm
Rex Nan Kivell Collection NK3838
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Nineteenth-century watercolours depict the tranquil sense of prosperity which prevailed once agriculture was well-established, as seen here in the rich grazing lands of the Darling Downs, Queensland.

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Unknown photographer
Pure ewes and lambs, Coree 1890s
albumen photograph; 14.2 x 37.5 cm
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Presented by Lady McCaughey

An album of photographs of properties owned by Samuel McCaughey reminds us of the wealth created by Australia’s wool industry.

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Henry Winkles (1800–1860)
General view of the diggings, Ballarat c.1853
watercolour; 53 x 76.5 cm
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Mining, too, was important, ever since
Lieut. Shortland first found coal at Newcastle in New South Wales. It often required organised finance and a base of stock-holders, but the discovery of gold in 1851, triggering the first of many ‘rushes’, was a celebration of individual enterprise.

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John Watt Beattie (1859–1930)
Bush log hauler, saw mills, Geeveston, Tasmania
1890s
albumen photographs; each 17.4 x 22.3 cm
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Australia became a leader in the protection of workers rights, with many workers joining trade unions. The Eight Hour Day became a popular rallying cry, and was widely-established by the close of the century.