O is for Overland Journey from South Australia to Forest Creek

When Hezekiah Bennetts and his family arrived in South Australia aboard the Australia on 22 January 1856, a journey that I spoke of at great length here, they may have already been planning the next stage: reaching the goldfields of Victoria.

This post is part of my A to Z Challenge series on migration, in this post, I delve into the possible overland journey of the Bennetts family from South Australia to the Colony of Victoria.

The Absence of Official Records

Despite careful searches, no definitive passenger list exists for the family’s journey from South Australia to Victoria. While there are several arrivals recorded under the surname "Bennett/s," none match the details of Hezekiah’s family. This absence suggests they may have taken the overland route rather than a documented coastal steamer journey. Many families moved between colonies without formal records, especially those travelling by land. Land travel often involved informal arrangements with no centralized record-keeping.

The Overland Route

Travelling to the Diggings, the Keilor Plains. Victoria by John AlexanderGilfillan, 1793-1864, (artist.), published 1853, (accessed https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/167145263 downloaded 17 April 2025) Out of Copyright

For a family with young children, the overland journey from Adelaide to the goldfields was arduous but not uncommon. The alternative, a sea voyage to Melbourne followed by an inland trek, was often costly and still required difficult travel once in Victoria. Instead, many newly arrived migrants took established routes overland, either on foot, by bullock dray, or in wagons, often joining larger groups for safety.

Many migrants took advantage of cheaper passage schemes to South Australia, knowing that they could make their way to Victoria overland or via coastal shipping. This was sometimes easier and cheaper than paying for a direct passage to Melbourne.

The most common path from Adelaide to the Victorian goldfields followed a route via Mount Gambier and Portland before heading inland. Travellers would stop at key settlements such as Bordertown, Apsley, and Hamilton, resting at staging posts and refuelling at small inns along the way. Distances travelled per day varied depending on the method of travel: bullock drays laden with supplies typically covered 8–10 miles (13–16 km), but travellers on horseback or lighter carts could cover greater distances. This journey could take several weeks, especially for families with small children, depending on the availability of transport, supplies, and weather conditions.

By early 1852, government officials such as Commissioner Alexander Tolmer were exploring more direct overland routes to the diggings at Mount Alexander, recording their journeys in detail. Tolmer described travelling alongside 

“numerous parties, travelling overland in almost every description of vehicle; many were on foot, advancing with a firm step, and head erect, as if determined to face and surmount whatever hardships might cross their path.” 

In one month alone, over 1,200 people and more than 1,200 horses and bullocks were recorded crossing the Murray River ferry, a clear indication of the mass migration eastward.

These reports offer vivid glimpses into the world the Bennetts family would soon step into: campsites marked by sheoaks and pigeon-filled wells, dense scrub that required backtracking, and long stretches of sandy plains. Despite the challenges, the route was actively encouraged—South Australia wanted to retain its population and benefit from returning gold. New roads, police escorts, and supply plans were all part of the effort to make the journey more appealing and safer for families like the Bennetts.

Hezekiah’s death record statesⁱ he had been in Victoria for about 43 years by 1900, that suggests he arrived around 1857. Given that the family landed in Adelaide in January 1856, they likely spent only a few months at most in South Australia before making their way to Victoria. They may have paused in Adelaide long enough to recover from the journey, gather supplies, or earn a little money before moving on.

The Realities of Overland Travel

Travelling with a young child like Mary Bennetts,^ii iii iv who was just two years old, would have presented additional challenges. Dusty roads, extreme summer heat, and the risk of illness or injury were constant concerns. Families often had to ration food and water carefully, and nights were spent in makeshift camps or roadside huts. The roads themselves were generally in a 'state of nature,' with tracks created by usage over time, and travellers often followed signs nailed to trees or blazed marks to navigate. Despite the hardships, the promise of gold and a better future drove thousands to attempt the journey.

Arrival in Forest Creek

By the time the Bennetts family reached Forest Creek, they joined thousands of other miners and their families living in tents and rough dwellings scattered across the diggings. The area, bustling with Cornish and other migrant miners, offered a sense of community despite the harsh conditions.

While their exact route may never be fully known, Hezekiah Bennetts and his family’s journey reflects the resilience of gold rush-era migrants, who crossed vast landscapes in search of a new life.

Blog Post Meta Data: 

The URL for this post is https://ancestralresearchjournal.blogspot.com/2025/04/o-is-for-overland-journey-from-south.html originally published on 17 April 2025

Author 2025, Sandra Williamson

📚 Sources

• Overland route to Mount Alexander – Trove List – [Explanation: curated collection of newspaper articles detailing the early 1850s overland journeys from South Australia to the Mount Alexander diggings.]

• Cornish Association of Victoria, Overland Gold Website, : https://www.cornishvic.org.au/overlandgold/index.shtml [Explanation: Detailed routes, travel conditions, migrant experiences]

  • Overland Gold : Overland from South Australia to the Victorian goldfields 1851-52; routes taken, modes of travel, conditions experienced, (accessed at https://www.cornishvic.org.au/overlandgold/setting-the-scene.shtml : 15 April 2025)

  • Locations mentioned in ‘early’ journeys between South Australia and the Victorian goldfields with references to old & modern name - at 28 Feb 2013, (accessed at https://www.cornishvic.org.au/overlandgold/downloads/Travel-location-details.pdf : 15 April 2025)

• Transport, State Library of Victoria, (accessed at https://ergo.slv.vic.gov.au/explore-history/golden-victoria/impact-society/transport : 15 April 2025)

• Stories of the Chinese on the goldfields, Victorian Collections [Explanation: overland route details, travel hardships, group journeys]

  • Many Roads: Stories of the Chinese on the Goldfields, (accessed at https://victoriancollections.net.au/stories/many-roads-stories-of-the-chinese-on-the-goldfields : Accessed 15 April 2025)

  • Walking to the Diggings: (accessed chinese-on-the-goldfields/walking-to-the-diggings : 15 April 2025)

Footnotes

i Death Certificate Hezekiah Bennetts (1900), Victoria, Australia

ii Baptism: "Cornwall Online Parish Clerks Database" Baptisms database, Perranzabuloe Cornwall OPC (accessed 9 May 2024) Mary Ann Bennetts baptism on 2 Mar 1854, child of Hezekiah & Mary, in Perranzabuloe, Cornwall, England.

iii Birth Registration: "England & Wales General Register Office" GRO Online Indexes - Birth (accessed 30 May 2023) Bennetts, Mary (Mother's maiden name: Nance). GRO Reference: 1853 Jul-Aug-Sep in Truro Volume 05C Page 174.

iv TheShipsList by Robert Janmaat, Adelaide, from a variety of sources (https://web.archive.org/web/20090215041034/http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/australia1856.htm : accessed 11 March 2025)