Diary of Edmund Henry Peters kept on the Victorian goldfields
- Component identifier:
- File
- Content Summary:
-
Diary of Edmund Peters kept on the Victorian goldfields, at Melbourne, and on his return voyage from Melbourne to London, 25 October 1852 – 30 December 1853.
The diary, which is partly written in ink and partly in pencil, begins with Peters's disembarkation from the Windsor and arrival in Melbourne. It gives his unfavourable impressions of Melbourne and its residents and describes his departure for the diggings (21 November 1852), life on the Fryers Creek goldfields (near Castlemaine), encounters with diggers, purchases of stores, reports of gold discoveries, his return to Melbourne (7 January 1853) leaving his brother working on the goldfields, his prolonged poor health, the effects of opium treatment, rents and prices in Melbourne, the weather, his detestation of Melbourne, his move to Sandridge (Port Melbourne), lodging houses, his efforts to return to England as a ship's doctor, and the arrangements for his departure. The last part of the diary describes Peters's voyage back to England via Cape Horn on the and mostly deals with his ailments, the kindness of fellow-passengers, and the seas and weather. The diary ends with the ship's arrival at the Downs, near the entrance to the Thames Estuary. In addition to the diary, there is a miner's licence issued to Peters on 7 December 1852.
There are a number of gaps in the diary. For instance, there are no entries between 8 February and 13 March 1853. Dating can be difficult, as Peters usually just gave the day of the week, rather than the precise dates. Part of the first section of the diary (November – December 1852) is written on the blank facing pages, while there are three loose pages at the end of the volume also dating from the same period.
- Processing information:
- M830
Online content
Access and use
- Parent Restrictions:
- Available for Access.
- Parent Terms of Access:
- Many of the records digitised as part of the AJCP are still in copyright. Readers wishing to publish or reproduce documents should seek permission, in the first instance, from the owner of the original material.
- Location of this collection:
-
Parkes PlaceCanberra ACT 2600, Australia
- Contact: