Lazarus' diary
Samuel Lazarus' diary contains one of the few eyewitness accounts of the Eureka uprising at Ballarat, Victoria in December 1854, in which at least 20 miners died.
Measuring 12cm x 18.5cm, the diary is a vellum-bound octavo stock notebook containing 168 handwritten pages. Lazarus' entries span 16 months, from 24 September 1853 to 21 January 1855. They recount many of the key events associated with the uprising, from the burning of the Eureka Hotel to the bloody aftermath of the storming of the stockade.
Lazarus was an articulate, intelligent and lively diarist, who had strong opinions and a wry turn of phrase. His diary not only provides an important insight into a pivotal moment in Victorian history, but also vividly depicts the life of an enterprising young man during the colony's gold rushes. Lazarus was more often an observer rather than a participant in the events leading up to, and including, the Eureka uprising. Only 19 years old at the time, he was a meticulous, yet judicious observer. While his sympathies were mostly with the diggers, he was also able to objectively assess both the events and diggers' demands.
Samuel Lazarus was born around 1835 in Liverpool, England and emigrated to Victoria as a teenager. An entrepreneurial figure, he ran a confectionery business on Sydney Road, Brunswick and by the end of 1853 had established his Criterion Auction Mart beneath the miner's camp at Eureka. During this period Lazarus was also a partner in a printing office, and even tried his luck at digging for gold.
Much later, in 1880, Lazarus again witnessed an important moment in Victorian history - as foreman of the jury that convicted Ned Kelly. The year of Lazarus' death is unknown.
The diary was virtually unknown until it came to the attention of a librarian at Cann River in 1982. The original diary was sold to a private collector in 1996. The Library acquired it in 2006.
