Forty interesting facts about Australia
Australia was the richest country on earth, per capita, for decades. After the 1850s gold rush, up until the 1890s depression, Australia had the highest per capita income in the world. In 1850, probably only the United Kingdom and the Netherlands sat above Australia, by about 20 per cent, with the United States 9 per cent […] The post Forty interesting facts about Australia appeared first on…
1. For many decades, Australia was the wealthiest country per capita in the world, surpassing even the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. Even the United States trailed behind by 9 percent.
2. During the 1850s gold rush and until the 1890s depression, Australia held the highest per capita income globally. By 1850, only the UK and the Netherlands were above Australia by approximately 20 percent.
3. After the massive gold discoveries, Australia's per capita income outpaced that of the United States by 25 to 30 percent between 1860 and 1890.
4. In 1796, a cow cost as much as £84, an amount equivalent to several years' wages for an English laborer. Government, military, or civil officers were the only entities that owned cattle and horses in 1796, given the difficult and costly process of importing livestock from South Africa or India.
5. John Stuart Mill and his wife Harriet Taylor contemplated leaving England for Australia. Mill, an ardent supporter of the movement that established South Australia, was active in the South Australian Association. Harriet's brother, Arthur Hardy, migrated to South Australia and became a successful pastoralist and politician.
6. South Australia became the first self-governing jurisdiction worldwide to grant women the right to vote and stand for parliament, taking place in 1895.
7. Australia's economic downturn during the 1890s was more severe than the Great Depression of the 1930s. Real GDP per capita dropped around 20 percent during the 1890s, compared to a decline of roughly 10 percent during the 1930s.
8. Unlike the American banking system, Australia's banking sector remained largely intact during the 1930s depression. This resilience can be attributed to the lessons learned from the disastrous banking collapse of the 1890s, exacerbated by excessive credit growth and lax lending standards, particularly in Victoria.
9. Out of the 64 deposit-taking financial institutions in Australia in 1891, 54 were closed by 1893 due to the financial turmoil.
10. A severe drought further complicated economic recovery efforts in Australia.
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