Land of vision and mirage : a history of Western Australia since 1826

A Long-awaited Short History Of Western Australia From 1826 To The Present. Vibrantly Narrates The Social, Cultural, Political And Economic Development Of The Most Geographically Isolated Area In The World. A Shabby-genteel Society, 1826-1850 -- Convictism And Its Legacy, 1850-1879 -- 'at Last She Moves', 1879-1894 -- The Golden West, 1895-1905 -- Optimism Dismayed, 1905-1918 -- A Fine Country To Starve In, 1919-1933 -- Recovery And War, 1935-1951 -- The Coming Of The Iron Age, 1951-1971 -- The Gilded Age, 1971-1992 -- Happily Ever After? 1993- Geoffrey Bolton. Reprinted July 2008. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 233-242) And Index. History Book Cover 1 Title 1 Copyright 2 Contents 3 List of illustrations 5 Abbreviations 11 Conversions 12 Acknowledgments 13 Introduction 15 1 A shabby-genteel society, 1826–1850 19 2 Convictism and its legacy, 1850–1879 39 3 ‘At last she moves’, 1879–1894 59 4 The Golden West, 1895–1905 79 5 Optimism dismayed, 1905–1918 101 6 A fine country to starve in, 1919–1933 121 7 Recovery and war, 1935–1951 141 8 The coming of the iron age, 1951–1971 163 9 The gilded age, 1971–1992 183 10 Happily ever after? 1993– 201 Abbreviations used in Notes and Select Bibliography 221 Notes 223 Select bibliography 247 Index 257 This short history of Western Australia from 1826 to the present vibrantly narrates the social, cultural, political, and economic development of the most geographically isolated area in the world. Informative and analytical, the author's wry observations about mirages as a major theme in Western Australia's history will stimulate public debate. It covers such topics as the evolution of popular Western Australia institutions, the rise and fall of WA Inc. and associated personalities, the mining boom, indigenous history, isolation as fuel for parochial attitudes and stereotypes, and entrepreneurship.