As soon as it was possible for Britishers, Europeans and Americans to land on Australian shores, thousands began arriving monthly to try their fortunes. All were "new chums" eager to peg their claims in the great bonanza.

Bendigo (or Sandhurst as it was then known) was the second largest goldfield in Australia and by far the largest in Victoria. In the decade following the first discovery of gold in 1851, a staggering 5.8 million ounces was produced.

1857 marked the beginning of mechanisation as local companies were formed to sink shafts and to crush the auriferous rock. Each new company required capital to purchase equipment and build structures to work the mines. This intensive need for capital quickly stimulated the development of a local stock exchange.



Formed in the 1860's, the Sandhurst Mining Exchange (as it was initially known) occupied the historic Beehive building in busy Pall Mall, Bendigo's main street. Around 50 stock and share brokers along with managers of mining companies were housed in offices on the upper storey of the building.

The Sandhurst Mining Exchange reached its peak in the 1870's. Well known local historian George MacKay tells how '...mining companies were being floated on Sandhurst at the rate of half-a-dozen a day. Gaslights glimmered all night in the brokers' offices as staff struggled to cope with the deluge of business. In the latter half of 1870 some three hundred new companies registered and there was little abatement of the fever in the months that followed.'

In July 1871 Sandhurst was proclaimed a city, with a population of around 32,000. Thousands flooded to the region lured by the prospect of finding their fortune. The city of Sandhurst flourished.

For the first time in the rapidly developing Victorian colony, special trains brought investors from Melbourne to buy scrip at the Beehive Mining Exchange (as it was by then known), returning only when the exchange closed for trading late at night. The exchange also attracted much interest from Melbourne sharebrokers who rushed to set up offices in Sandhurst during this buoyant period.

Foreign money, particularly from Britain, was being fed into the Victorian colony at an unprecedented rate. Developments which had taken decades and centuries in other countries, happened in years. It meant too, of course, that there was plenty of money for investment in new mining ventures in places like Bendigo.



'Thousands of people blocked the path and roadway outside the Exchange and traffic was carried on under great difficulties in the main thoroughfare. The speculation in stocks and shares was extraordinary, fortunes being made and lost in a few hours. From early morning 'til late at night people dealt in shares, and went to bed to dream about them.' wrote George MacKay.

However, disaster was just around the corner. On the morning of the 25 August 1871, around 6am, a fire was noticed on the first floor of the Beehive building. Within an hour the fire had engulfed both floors from end to end. The fire brigade were unable to bring the fire under control and the building was completely destroyed.

The setback was only temporary, however, as the brokers and legal managers wasted no time in moving into the nearby Shamrock Hotel where trading continued unabated.
These became the golden days of the Bendigo Stock Exchange. By November 1871 the number of companies listed has increased to 1,310, with over 18,000,000 shares registered. The collective value of Sandhurst's mining stocks approached £10,000,000.
The Bendigo goldfield became world famous during the exciting decades leading up to the turn of the century. 1900 to 1920 also saw large amounts of gold produced, although increasing costs coupled with the fixed price of gold during and after the first World War led to a general decline in the market during this period.

A mining revival occurred during the depression years of the 1930's and the increased price of gold saw several mines and new companies operating. During this time the Bendigo Stock Exchange operated by holding 3 calls a day, morning, noon and high (around 4pm). Clients could buy and sell shares at fixed brokerage rates, with trading between brokers attracting no brokerage fee. Membership of the Bendigo Stock Exchange was set at £50.



By this time the Bendigo Stock Exchange was operating from first floor offices at Charring Cross in the centre of Bendigo. This photograph shows the members of the Exchange in 1932. (left to right around the table) L L Dungey (father of current Bendigo Stock Exchange member Rob Dungey), T Williams, M P Kelly, E Hummoloff, R Kelly, J H Busst, T Hall, R Trembath, (seated back left) E Woolcock - Secretary, (centre back) C Burridge - Chairman.

Practically all mines closed during the second World War and by 1954 the price of gold was pegged at $31.25 an ounce, effectively drawing to a close over one hundred years of successful mining in Bendigo. The total production of gold during this period exceeding 20 million ounces.

With the resurrection of the Bendigo Stock Exchange (BSX), history is now repeating itself. And like the 1850's the need has again been brought about by the demand for capital to grow new businesses, particularly in rural and regional Australia.

The new BSX's mission is to assist small and medium sized enterprises gain better access to growth capital.

BSX acknowledges with thanks, permission from Rob Dungey to reproduce a number of the above photographs.

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