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The Rush That Never Ended: A History of Australian Mining
Forget about Ned Kelly and the bushrangers: for my money if you want a really romantic and exciting saga of Australia, take a look at our mining history. It's a turbulent, dramatic story with enough material for a bookshelf full of best-sellers ... a saga of tough men, iron-nerved gamblers, violence, death and glittering riches set against the backdrop of some of the most awful country on earth. And never has the story been better told than by Geoffrey Blainey. —Trevor Sykes Australia is one of the world's great sources of mineral treasure. Out of the ground, on land and at sea, has come wealth to create a host of lucrative industries. Our landscape is littered with mines bearing evocative names like Rum Jungle, Noble's Nob, Broad Arrow and Siberia, and stories abound of fortunes won and lost. The Rush That Never Ended tells the story of these mineral discoveries, describes the giants of Australia's mining history and records the tremendous influence that mining has had on Australia's attitudes to unionism, religion, law and politics. The first edition of The Rush That Never Ended was a publishing sensation. It stayed on the best-seller lists for several months, and won the Gold Medal of the Australian Literature Society. Reviewers described it as 'a compelling book', 'readable and exciting history', 'full of anecdotes and unforgettable characters'. This classic history of Australian mining now appears in its fifth edition, updated to bring the story up to the twenty-first century.
464 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1969
4 people are currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
Geoffrey Blainey
78 books80 followersGeoffrey Blainey, one of Australia's most eminent historians, was appointed the foundation Chancellor of the University of Ballarat (UB) in 1993 after an illustrious career at the University of Melbourne. He was installed as UB Chancellor in December 1994 and continued until 1998. The Blainey Auditorium at the Mt Helen Campus of UB is named in his honour. Blainey, always a keen exponent of libraries and the acquisition of books, has donated part of his extensive book collection to the UB library. In 2002 the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters was conferred on Blainey in recognition of his contribution to the University of Ballarat and to the community in general.
Educated at Ballarat High School, Blainey won a scholarship to Wesley College, before attending Melbourne University where he studied history. He worked as a freelance historical author writing mainly business histories such as The Peaks of Lyall; Gold and Paper; a History of the National Bank of Australasia; and Mines in the Spinifex. Blainey accepted a position at the University of Melbourne in 1962 in the Faculty of Economics and Commerce. He held the positions of Professor of Economic History (1968-77); Senior Lecturer 1962; and from 1977-1988 he occupied the Ernest Scott Chair of History at Melbourne University. Professor Blainey also held the chair of Australian studies at Harvard University.
As an economic historian, Blainey challenged the conventional view, questioning accepted contemporary understandings of European settlement of Australia as a convict nation, Aboriginal land rights, and Asian immigration. He is described as a 'courageous public intellectual, a writer with rare grace and a master storyteller'. In a reassessment of the life of Blainey, 'The Fuss that Never Ended' considers his ideas, his role in Australian history, politics and public life, and the controversies that surrounded him.
He was always popular with students. According to the Melbourne University home page 'When Geoffrey Blainey spoke to final-year students in the Friends of the Baillieu Library HSC Lectures in the 1970s, the Public Lecture Theatre was packed to capacity and his audience carried copies of his books to be signed, a tribute to what Geoffrey Bolton characterised as his "skills in interpreting technological change in admirably lucid narratives that appealed to both specialist and non-specialist audiences".
Among his most popular works are the 'The Rush that Never Ended: A History of Australian Mining'; 'The Tyranny of Distance'; 'A Shorter History of Australia'; 'A Short History of the World'; and 'The Origins of Australian Football'.
In 2000 Professor Blainey was awarded the Companion of the Order of Australia for service to academia, research and scholarship, and as a leader of public debate at the forefront of fundamental social and economic issues confronting the wider community. At that time the University's Vice-Chancellor Professor Kerry Cox said 'Geoffrey Blainey guided the new and inexperienced university through its first four years with a benevolent but firm hand. This time was challenging as the university strove to make a place for itself in higher education, grappled with funding cuts and the eventual merger with neighbouring TAFE institutes. For those at the university fortunate enough to work with Geoffrey Blainey during his time as Chancellor, they witnessed first hand his humility, and we are proud of his role in our history.'
In 2002 the degree of Doctor of Letters was conferred on Professor Blainey in recognition of his contribution to the University of Ballarat and the community in general. The same year Blainey donated a collection of material to the University of Ballarat. Included in this collection are historical books, papers and other material relating to the early history of mining and the central Victorian goldfields. A second generous donation of material was received in 2005. 'The Geoffrey Blainey Mining Collection' is l
Educated at Ballarat High School, Blainey won a scholarship to Wesley College, before attending Melbourne University where he studied history. He worked as a freelance historical author writing mainly business histories such as The Peaks of Lyall; Gold and Paper; a History of the National Bank of Australasia; and Mines in the Spinifex. Blainey accepted a position at the University of Melbourne in 1962 in the Faculty of Economics and Commerce. He held the positions of Professor of Economic History (1968-77); Senior Lecturer 1962; and from 1977-1988 he occupied the Ernest Scott Chair of History at Melbourne University. Professor Blainey also held the chair of Australian studies at Harvard University.
As an economic historian, Blainey challenged the conventional view, questioning accepted contemporary understandings of European settlement of Australia as a convict nation, Aboriginal land rights, and Asian immigration. He is described as a 'courageous public intellectual, a writer with rare grace and a master storyteller'. In a reassessment of the life of Blainey, 'The Fuss that Never Ended' considers his ideas, his role in Australian history, politics and public life, and the controversies that surrounded him.
He was always popular with students. According to the Melbourne University home page 'When Geoffrey Blainey spoke to final-year students in the Friends of the Baillieu Library HSC Lectures in the 1970s, the Public Lecture Theatre was packed to capacity and his audience carried copies of his books to be signed, a tribute to what Geoffrey Bolton characterised as his "skills in interpreting technological change in admirably lucid narratives that appealed to both specialist and non-specialist audiences".
Among his most popular works are the 'The Rush that Never Ended: A History of Australian Mining'; 'The Tyranny of Distance'; 'A Shorter History of Australia'; 'A Short History of the World'; and 'The Origins of Australian Football'.
In 2000 Professor Blainey was awarded the Companion of the Order of Australia for service to academia, research and scholarship, and as a leader of public debate at the forefront of fundamental social and economic issues confronting the wider community. At that time the University's Vice-Chancellor Professor Kerry Cox said 'Geoffrey Blainey guided the new and inexperienced university through its first four years with a benevolent but firm hand. This time was challenging as the university strove to make a place for itself in higher education, grappled with funding cuts and the eventual merger with neighbouring TAFE institutes. For those at the university fortunate enough to work with Geoffrey Blainey during his time as Chancellor, they witnessed first hand his humility, and we are proud of his role in our history.'
In 2002 the degree of Doctor of Letters was conferred on Professor Blainey in recognition of his contribution to the University of Ballarat and the community in general. The same year Blainey donated a collection of material to the University of Ballarat. Included in this collection are historical books, papers and other material relating to the early history of mining and the central Victorian goldfields. A second generous donation of material was received in 2005. 'The Geoffrey Blainey Mining Collection' is l
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 15, 2007
Before the review, some context for my opinion:
- read this for a university course on the resource industry
- I have worked and currently work around the mining industry in Australia
- I am from Western Australia. For those non-Australians, this means a unique parochialism resulting from clinging to the western edge of the continent, isolated from the rest of Oz by a vast desert that has become the nation's quarry. This produces a certain bipolar character.
- I think Geoffery Blainey (once the country's most soundbite friendly historian) a dill.
The rush that never ended attempts to provide a history of Australia's most significant industry - mining/ exploitation of minerals. Beginning with the quirks of colonial rule that discouraged gold exploration and the role of cornish migrants in kicking of the tin industry, the story attempts to cover the significant finds/ rushes/ metals in all states. Along the way, key events such as the Eureka Stockade and the rise of BHP are explored to highlight the impact mining had on the development of Australian society, identity and politics.
As a book, its an easy read as it roars along like a Contiki tour through 200 years of mining history. No time to stop! Get the photo and move on!
As a record of history it is limited at best. Granted it is mostly likely done as an overview but there are glaring omissions and limited analysis for industry that has had a massive impact on Australia's development. As a 'sandgroper' (westralian) the east-coast-centric nature of the story is laughable. It would be even more myopic if not for his coverage of Queensland's Mt Morgan. The significance of the Kalgoorlie goldfield's in the success of Australia's Federation vote is largely missed; the role of the Pilbra iron ore boom of the 60s is covered in a page, insufficient for an event that drove post WWII economic changes and shaped the city of Perth (sadly it was a crap period in architecture, so we endure a glass and aluminium sterile centre); little mention of the behemoth that is Olympic Dam. Interesting tales such as the dedicated hunt for diamonds that found Argyle and sorry tale of the disaster of Wittenoom.
Sure its an obscure book that few will come across but the way I figure it, someone should review these ones....... there are a thousand other people to write lines on Tom Clancy, the Brontes and Harry Potter.
- read this for a university course on the resource industry
- I have worked and currently work around the mining industry in Australia
- I am from Western Australia. For those non-Australians, this means a unique parochialism resulting from clinging to the western edge of the continent, isolated from the rest of Oz by a vast desert that has become the nation's quarry. This produces a certain bipolar character.
- I think Geoffery Blainey (once the country's most soundbite friendly historian) a dill.
The rush that never ended attempts to provide a history of Australia's most significant industry - mining/ exploitation of minerals. Beginning with the quirks of colonial rule that discouraged gold exploration and the role of cornish migrants in kicking of the tin industry, the story attempts to cover the significant finds/ rushes/ metals in all states. Along the way, key events such as the Eureka Stockade and the rise of BHP are explored to highlight the impact mining had on the development of Australian society, identity and politics.
As a book, its an easy read as it roars along like a Contiki tour through 200 years of mining history. No time to stop! Get the photo and move on!
As a record of history it is limited at best. Granted it is mostly likely done as an overview but there are glaring omissions and limited analysis for industry that has had a massive impact on Australia's development. As a 'sandgroper' (westralian) the east-coast-centric nature of the story is laughable. It would be even more myopic if not for his coverage of Queensland's Mt Morgan. The significance of the Kalgoorlie goldfield's in the success of Australia's Federation vote is largely missed; the role of the Pilbra iron ore boom of the 60s is covered in a page, insufficient for an event that drove post WWII economic changes and shaped the city of Perth (sadly it was a crap period in architecture, so we endure a glass and aluminium sterile centre); little mention of the behemoth that is Olympic Dam. Interesting tales such as the dedicated hunt for diamonds that found Argyle and sorry tale of the disaster of Wittenoom.
Sure its an obscure book that few will come across but the way I figure it, someone should review these ones....... there are a thousand other people to write lines on Tom Clancy, the Brontes and Harry Potter.
June 18, 2011
A wonderful book, dense with information. Deserves a second reading to glean it all. But what can you expect from a history of mining in a major mining country done in under 400 pages? Well written and entertaining. My only beef with it, is that if you read the back cover you will get something different than you were expecting (expecting somewhat more modern coverage). Over ~95% of the book covers mining history up through 1930...with the majority of that being the in the 1800's. Only the last 20 pages or so really touch on more modern deposits, and very brief coverage is given to each site. My desire to learn more about Australia is blooming, especially as we consider going there to work. Thanks for great maps on the front and back covers, I feel pretty decent in Australian geography now....should be a requirement for all books! Excellent book, highly recommend.
June 19, 2019
Blainey is one of Australia's best historians in my view and the story of Australian mining, up until the time of writing in the 60s is fascinating for someone who works as closely with mining as I do. Since his grandfather worked in mining, it seems Blainey caught his fascination from association with the industry also. It does strike me, however, that the writing in this book is not as clear as others of his that I've read, by virtue I presume of the fact he was earlier in his career at this point. Not that the writing is poor.
Perhaps my favourite section concerned Broken Hill. Not only is the geology astounding (and understated in the book), it was the site of remarkable innovation as the idea of flotation was conceived, trialled and augmented. For the last century it has been critical to the profitability of mining. The factors which drove this technological innovation were many: technologically, multiplicity of companies, ores and tailings, individuals and techniques trialled at broken hill to refine the method and empirically, in the days before Ian Wark, understand the conditions needed for success. It spurs the imagination to consider if similar breakthroughs might be achieved again.
Points that I found interesting on a personal level...
1. Some of the first industrial scale mechanization in Australian mining came from Chile (pg 64, 71). I am working in chile as I read and think there is much happening here that offers benefit to Australian mining, albeit the trend is weighted in the opposite direction for now.
2. South Australia was the original home of Australian copper (p105) and has become the nations copper state, although it wouldn't have been expected when Blainey was writing. Olympic dam was yet to be uncovered since wombats tend not burrow deeply enough into the desert regolith.
3. The concept of geometallurgy has been around since the early days. The tribute get system of the moonta mine (p122) used a tendering system to classify the pockets of ore which were sold to mining parties. Both the owners and the miners made their evaluation of profitability based on perceived grade and extraction cost (hardness) in pricing and/or buying ore lots.
4. Low grade options for copper seem to have not changed much. A Scottish company employed vat acid leaching with distilled sulphate emissions from the sulphide furnaces and salt (for chlorine) for the declining Kapunda mine (p125-6). Attempts were also made at open pits to increase throughput on lower grade material. Neither appeared to break even.
5. The constraint of water (chapter 26) - a key to opening the goldfields of WA again in the 1930's when soil sampling to target hidden gold lodes introduced modern scientific approaches to prospecting. And as in the previous rush and ones that were yet to be seen, the speculation on WA gold seems a recurring theme.
The growth in mining has not declined since the 60s and there is much that seems to be similar. What is in stall for the future is a bigger question. Will circular economy, recycling and reduced consumption, along with increased difficulty in getting metal out of rock, lead to a decline or eradication of mining in Australia and elsewhere? Perhaps there were club of Rome forecasters at the time Blainey was writing developing their argument, eventually to be proven wrong...and current projections will be likewise prove false and mining continue as a staple for Australia's economy into the next century. Either way, Australia's mining story is one that is a big part of our recent past and deserves to be known. I wonder if anyone has written the sequel?
Perhaps my favourite section concerned Broken Hill. Not only is the geology astounding (and understated in the book), it was the site of remarkable innovation as the idea of flotation was conceived, trialled and augmented. For the last century it has been critical to the profitability of mining. The factors which drove this technological innovation were many: technologically, multiplicity of companies, ores and tailings, individuals and techniques trialled at broken hill to refine the method and empirically, in the days before Ian Wark, understand the conditions needed for success. It spurs the imagination to consider if similar breakthroughs might be achieved again.
Points that I found interesting on a personal level...
1. Some of the first industrial scale mechanization in Australian mining came from Chile (pg 64, 71). I am working in chile as I read and think there is much happening here that offers benefit to Australian mining, albeit the trend is weighted in the opposite direction for now.
2. South Australia was the original home of Australian copper (p105) and has become the nations copper state, although it wouldn't have been expected when Blainey was writing. Olympic dam was yet to be uncovered since wombats tend not burrow deeply enough into the desert regolith.
3. The concept of geometallurgy has been around since the early days. The tribute get system of the moonta mine (p122) used a tendering system to classify the pockets of ore which were sold to mining parties. Both the owners and the miners made their evaluation of profitability based on perceived grade and extraction cost (hardness) in pricing and/or buying ore lots.
4. Low grade options for copper seem to have not changed much. A Scottish company employed vat acid leaching with distilled sulphate emissions from the sulphide furnaces and salt (for chlorine) for the declining Kapunda mine (p125-6). Attempts were also made at open pits to increase throughput on lower grade material. Neither appeared to break even.
5. The constraint of water (chapter 26) - a key to opening the goldfields of WA again in the 1930's when soil sampling to target hidden gold lodes introduced modern scientific approaches to prospecting. And as in the previous rush and ones that were yet to be seen, the speculation on WA gold seems a recurring theme.
The growth in mining has not declined since the 60s and there is much that seems to be similar. What is in stall for the future is a bigger question. Will circular economy, recycling and reduced consumption, along with increased difficulty in getting metal out of rock, lead to a decline or eradication of mining in Australia and elsewhere? Perhaps there were club of Rome forecasters at the time Blainey was writing developing their argument, eventually to be proven wrong...and current projections will be likewise prove false and mining continue as a staple for Australia's economy into the next century. Either way, Australia's mining story is one that is a big part of our recent past and deserves to be known. I wonder if anyone has written the sequel?
March 2, 2025
When the first edition of this book was published in 1961, export of iron ore from Australia was only just beginning, after the lifting of a ban imposed in 1938. The Rush that Never Ended was the first comprehensive history of Australian mining, which, given the place mining held in the formation and development of colonial Australia, is actually quite astounding. Since this third edition was published in 1978 mining in this country has moved to another level, but Blainey's book is still a worthwhile read, full of interesting facts about the development of the industry.
Blainey explains quite simply the differing rushes for metals throughout our white history... he doesn't quite call it out as greed, but essentially greed is the reason behind all the different phases of our mining history. Gold was "discovered" once the Crown no longer automatically owned what a prospector found, and all the metals were discovered as and when they became valuable and payable commodities - famously Lang Hancock knew about the huge Hamersley iron deposit but kept it secret from 1952 until 1961 when export markets finally opened up for that commodity.
Blainey starts at the beginning with the first and most precious metal sought by prospectors, gold. He clearly maps the incredible effect the gold finds, first in New South Wales and then in Victoria, had on the young colony: the population exploded, and huge economic effort went in to developing the industry. The romantic image of a prospector making it rich by panning some creek or digging up some quartz with a shovel has stuck in our collective memory, but in the history of gold mining in Australia, that era was quickly over, to be replaced by capital and large workforces.
This change was more painful than it had to be - mining law was skewed to support individual prospectors: mining leases were too small to be developed properly for deep mining. Once this was changed the drawback became the lack of experience of the miners in deep-lead mining. In fact a certain scorn for science and geology was the bugbear for Australian mining for a lot longer than it should have been.
After gold, the most-sought mineral was copper, which was being mined early on in South Australia. Blainey well describes the discovery and development of Broken Hill, with its massive lodes of silver and lead and the share frenzy that accompanied the discovery. To mine on such scale massive capital inflows are required - the various frenzies, scams and massive windfalls that washed over people who invested in mines are covered comprehensively by Blainey - money is just as important as metal in the ground for a successful mine.
As the gold-fields close to "civilization" were mined out, prospectors moved farther afield to try and make their fortune, Blainey describes the move north to the Queensland tropics, west to the bonanza of Kalgoorlie and surrounds, and all the trials and tribulations that went with prospecting in jungles and deserts. Again some people made a fortune, but most barely got by, and usually ended up working for a big company and hoping that they might make a bundle speculating in shares...most people didn't.
Let's not forget Tasmania - perhaps Australia's largest mine up until the 1970s, Mount Lyell and surrounds were a story of triumph over nature and finance to unleash a huge cache of wealth for savvy investors.
With a good bibliography and index, The Rush that Never Ended is a fine introduction to one of Australia's founding, and greatest industries.
Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au
Blainey explains quite simply the differing rushes for metals throughout our white history... he doesn't quite call it out as greed, but essentially greed is the reason behind all the different phases of our mining history. Gold was "discovered" once the Crown no longer automatically owned what a prospector found, and all the metals were discovered as and when they became valuable and payable commodities - famously Lang Hancock knew about the huge Hamersley iron deposit but kept it secret from 1952 until 1961 when export markets finally opened up for that commodity.
Blainey starts at the beginning with the first and most precious metal sought by prospectors, gold. He clearly maps the incredible effect the gold finds, first in New South Wales and then in Victoria, had on the young colony: the population exploded, and huge economic effort went in to developing the industry. The romantic image of a prospector making it rich by panning some creek or digging up some quartz with a shovel has stuck in our collective memory, but in the history of gold mining in Australia, that era was quickly over, to be replaced by capital and large workforces.
This change was more painful than it had to be - mining law was skewed to support individual prospectors: mining leases were too small to be developed properly for deep mining. Once this was changed the drawback became the lack of experience of the miners in deep-lead mining. In fact a certain scorn for science and geology was the bugbear for Australian mining for a lot longer than it should have been.
After gold, the most-sought mineral was copper, which was being mined early on in South Australia. Blainey well describes the discovery and development of Broken Hill, with its massive lodes of silver and lead and the share frenzy that accompanied the discovery. To mine on such scale massive capital inflows are required - the various frenzies, scams and massive windfalls that washed over people who invested in mines are covered comprehensively by Blainey - money is just as important as metal in the ground for a successful mine.
As the gold-fields close to "civilization" were mined out, prospectors moved farther afield to try and make their fortune, Blainey describes the move north to the Queensland tropics, west to the bonanza of Kalgoorlie and surrounds, and all the trials and tribulations that went with prospecting in jungles and deserts. Again some people made a fortune, but most barely got by, and usually ended up working for a big company and hoping that they might make a bundle speculating in shares...most people didn't.
Let's not forget Tasmania - perhaps Australia's largest mine up until the 1970s, Mount Lyell and surrounds were a story of triumph over nature and finance to unleash a huge cache of wealth for savvy investors.
With a good bibliography and index, The Rush that Never Ended is a fine introduction to one of Australia's founding, and greatest industries.
Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au
March 25, 2020
Enjoyed could picture areas of Australia, full of detail and history.
April 5, 2010
This must surely be so out of date as to be useless. It doesn't surprise me that it ignored much that was important in the first place.
January 28, 2010
The rush that never ended : a history of Australian mining by Geoffrey Blainey (1963)
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews