150 Years of Riches:
The Central Otago Gold Rush, 1862–2012
Conference - 29-31August, 2012, Cromwell, New Zealand.

On August 22, 1862 New Zealand's pioneer history changed. 16 months after Gabriel Read found gold in the Tokomairiro, two Californian goldminers, Horatio Hartley and Christopher Riley lodged 87 pounds of gold wrested from the interior of the province of Otago with the Dunedin gold buyer's office.

This launched the Central Otago gold rush.

The University of Canterbury will play a lead role in the celebration of the Central Otago gold rush sesquicentennial by hosting a significant academic conference near where it began in Cromwell, Central Otago.

The “150 Years of Riches: The Central Otago Gold Rush, 1862 – 2012” will take a critical new look at this gold rush and the events surrounding it.

Call for Papers:

The University of Canterbury is well-known for its lead role in New Zealand’s academic world, for its consistently high standard of academic writing and for providing a platform for informed research on important topics. We therefore expect that the “150 Years of Riches: The Central Otago Gold Rush, 1862 – 2012” Conference will cast new light on this important period of our early history by taking a new, fresh look at the events, people, culture and places of Central Otago.

It is our intent to invite presenters at the conference to submit written research to support their presentations for an edited proceedings publication after the conference.

We are interested in receiving submissions which will build a critical dialogue beyond disciplinary boundaries and epistemologies. We therefore welcome papers focused on the Central Otago gold rush from a wide range of disciplines and fields including but not limited to: History, Archaeology, Maori Studies, Fashion, Literature, Heritage Studies, Tourism Theory, Sociology, Anthropology, Art History, Cultural Studies, Geography, Museum Theory, Cultural Geography, Landscape Studies, Political Sciences, and Urban Development.

A very high academic standard will be expected of papers, however we invite submissions of abstracts from non-academic researchers who have work which is germane to the conference topic.

Keynote Speakers:

We will have two keynote speakers. The first to accept is Dr Warwick Frost of LaTrobe University. Dr Frost brings considerable Goldfields History, Heritage Tourism and Australian Studies expertise and publication experience to the conference. Having been heavily involved in the 150th celebrations of the gold rushes in California in 1998 and Victoria in 2001, he declared "With Otago, I'll have the complete set!" We are very pleased with the global perspective Dr Frost brings to our conference.

We are delighted to announce that Professor Tom Brooking of the Department of History and Art History at Otago University will be our second keynote speaker. Professor Brooking brings a wealth of knowledge and an extensive of academic publications to his contribution to our conference.

Abstract Submission:

Please submit a 300 word abstract including title and full contact details as an electronic file to lloyd.carpenter@pg.canterbury.ac.nz. You may submit your abstract as soon as possible but no later than March 16, 2012.

The University of Canterbury will determine the abstracts of papers to be presented at the “150 Years of Riches: The Central Otago Gold Rush, 1862 – 2012” and will advise acceptance or otherwise by March 31, 2012.

Conference Location:

The Conference will be based at the Golden Gate Lodge in Cromwell, and a preferential rate which includes breakfast has been offered to Conference attendees. Please quote the “150 Years of Riches: The Central Otago Gold Rush, 1862 – 2012” in your booking enquiry to access this deal. Their website may be found here.

There is also a wide range of Motel and Hotel accommodation available within walking distance of the conference centre in Cromwell. Other nearby towns are Alexandra (45 minutes), Clyde (35 minutes) and Wanaka (40 minutes).

The nearest international airport is at Queenstown (45 minutes driving time).
For other centres: Cromwell is 2 hours, 45 minutes from Dunedin; 5 hours, 15 minutes from Christchurch.

Conference Fees:

Fees (including all meals and conference dinner):
Central Otago Residents: $395
Student and Early-bird Registrations (last day to qualify 28/02/2012): $425
Full Conference Fee: $475

Registration form (PDF, 1.38 MB)