Shire of Korong

r • SHIRE OF KORONG HERITAGE AND CONSERVATION STUDY APPENDIX 1 TO VOLUME 3: MINING SITES AND AREAS IN THE SHIRE OF KORONG A Report by Dr. Peter Milner Infrastructure Library A report f or Trevor Budge and Associates 720. 9945 1 00108489 KOR:T Shire of Korong heritage v.5 and conservation study Technology Report No. TR-91/l June 1991 INDEX Text Figures 1. The suggested pattern of gold discovery in the Korong division 2. Annual gold production in the Korong division 3. The areas of mining within the Shire of Korong 4. The boundaries of the proposed Thompson's Gully historic area 5. The boundaries of the proposed Wehla historic area 6. The boundaries of the proposed Langham Flat historic area 7. The boundaries of the proposed Mcintyre's historic area Tables 1. Significant mining sites classified by type 2. Sites ranked according to their levels of significance Lists 1. A chronology of gold discove ries within the Korong mining division Annexes 1. Criteria for signi ficance 2. A surrunary of all known mining sites within the Shire of Korong 3. Some significant mining sites within the Shire of Korong 4. Photographs of some of the significant mining sites Bibliography l l (j Ju u-~- The mining division of Ko rong, which is approximately contiguous with the Shire of Ko rong, was eventually found to contain 146 reefs, some of which proved to be very rich on the surface but much l ess payable at depth. In addition there was a very considerable area of alluvial ground, chiefly significant for t he size and distribution of the nuggets found there. The extent of this ground was variously estimated as between 11 and 54 square miles in extent, depending upon which mining registrar's figures are accepted as being the more accurate . The main centres, arranged according in order of their economic importance were: Inglewood, Korong/We dderburn , Berl in/Rheola, Bu rke's Flat, Kingowe r and Glenalbyn, Jericho/Wehla, Nine Mile, Mcintyre's and Possum Hill , Avoca Forest and Synnott's and Fenton's diggings , and Buggins Diggings/Garibaldi. The overall pattern of gold discovery within the division is indicated by the chronology displayed in List 1 and Figure 1. The Korong division was one of seven in the Maryborough mining district. In terms of the extent of auriferous ground, only the Maryborough division - with an area variously estimated as between 3 and 59 square miles in extent, was large r. At one time the Korong division had the largest recorded number of miners - 24,360 in March 1860 at the height of the rush to Inglewood; but it was, officially at least, considerably less productive than the divisions of Maryborough/Carisbrook (1,010,891 ounces to 1916), Dunolly/Tarnagulla (536,765 ounces), St. Arnaud North (512,229 ounces) and Amherst/Majorca (405 , 232 ounces) . In making these comparisons it should be noted that very little of the production from alluvial mining, and only a certain amount from quartz mining wa s ever reported prior to 1884, so that any field which had, for longer than most, more alluvial miners than quartz miners - as Korong certainly did - might be regarded as disadvantaged. Nevertheless, on other indicators this division appears to appropriately placed, for it was similarly ranked according to the value of the installed mining plant and machinery (fifth, with a maximum of 36,000 pounds worth in 1866), the number of steam engines in operation (fourth, with 26 in 1866). the installed steam power (third, with 700 horsepower in 1887) , the number o f stamp heads (third, with 202 in 1873) , and the number of puddling machines (fourth, with 10 6 i n 1860). In economic terms the Korong mining division was slightly less than average within a district which, on the same terms, was about average for the State. Although capitalization began as rapidly as elsewhere in the Ma ryborough district, and at a rate which perhaps justified the establishment at Inglewood by J . Horwood and Sons of a branch of their Bendigo foundry {between 1861 and 1864), this soon reached a plateau as the quartz mines reached the water line (about 100 f eet at Wedderburn around 1861/2, and 240 feet at Inglewood around 1866/7), and further development faltered. Indeed, as is clear from Figure 2, even if only in relative terms (as before 1884 only certain parcels of stone were ever recorded), gold p roduction from quartz mini ng between 1869 and 1883 wa s abnormally low. Many of t he mines which had been major producers in the early period prior to 1868 became idle, and production was sustained chiefly by the mines at Jericho/Wehla (up to 1868) and also at Burke 's Flat (up to 1884). The revival in 1883 was genuine enough, although i t hardly outlasted the decade. The extent of the change, though, is probably s lightly exaggerated, as from 1884 the figures r efer to total production rather than just to that coming from selected quartz parcels. LiuUu ~ Wedderburn Yorkshire Flat Wychitella 1852 1860 -------1883 ~ibaldi 1860 Mcintyre 's 1852 ~ Berlin/Rheola Possum Hill ~1856 ----------------------1876 Kingower Inglewood 1853 --------------- 1859 Synnott's 1856 Fenton~ Burke's Flat Nine Mile 1858 ---- 1861 Jericho/Wehla _,,,,,,. 1856 Figure 1: The suggested pattern of gold discovery in the Korong division uu uu .. ~ Annual gold production in the Korong division in ounces 19,000 18,000 * 17,000 * 16,000 * 15,000 * 14,000 * 13,000 * 12,000 * 11, 000 * * 10,000 **** 9,000 **** 8,000 **** * 7,000 ***** * 6,000 ***** * ** 5,000 * ***** * *** * 4,000 * ***** * *** **** 3,000 ** ****** * * * ******** 2 ,000 ** ****** * ** ** ** ********* 1,000 ** **************************** 0123456789012345678901234567890123456789 186 187 188 189 Year Figure 2: Annual gold production in the Korong Division Note 1: Only selected quartz parcels were recorded prior to 1884, and total production thereafter. Sources: Victoria , Department of Mines , Reports of the Mining Surveyors and Registrars {1859-1883 ), The Goldfields of Victoria (1884-1889), and Reports and Statistics of the Mining Department (1890- 1891) UJUUl The quite significant troughs in quartz mining production, between 1869 and 1883, 1913 and 1934, and from 1937 almost to the present has had a pronounced effect on the evidence which survives about this particular aspect of mining within the division. As the mines closed at the end of each phase of mining their plant and other machinery was sold off and removed. Consequently, when mining did revive, the sites were re-worked with little regard for what had been there formerly, and only the most permanent of features survived (e.g. the collaps.ed surface workings on the Prince of Wales Reef at Wehla). It is therefore necessary to be cautious about the age of artefacts which survive at these sites. On the other hand the relatively dry climate has provided the right conditions which would have allowed many pockets of the surface alluvial workings to survive as they had first been left. Unfortunately, many of these have since been ploughed up and smoothed over for eucalyptus plantations and other forms of agriculture (Scandinavian Lead, Inglewood, and Garibaldi Diggings), for housing (Main and Nursery flats, Wedderburn), or for small holdings (Green Gully, Rheola). Alternatively, they have been altered almost out of all recognition by more modern methods of gold extraction (Avoca Forest and Synnott' s Diggings) or by conversion to tailings dumps (Psalm Singing Gully, Inglewood) . Although all mining began in each division with shallow alluvial workings, it soon developed characteristics which were particular to those div is ions. After 1883, when it became possible for the first time to determine for each division which form of mining made the major contribution to gold production, it is clear that Maryborough/Carisbrook had become essentially deep lead mining centres, St. Arnaud North had become a quartz mining centre, Redbank and St. Arnaud South were moving from a dependence on alluvial mining to one based on quartz mining, whereas only in the Dunolly/Tarnagulla and Korong (or I nglewood/Wedderburn divisions ) did alluvial mining continue to make a major contribution to production. In many respects these last two divisions are very similar: both have quite extensive areas of shallow alluvial workings and some sections of deep lead mining, as well as some areas of payable quartz mining. In the Dunolly /Ta rnagul la div is ions the aur ife rous ground was less extensive than in Korong, and al though in both div is ions some quite substantial nuggets had been found in relatively shallow ground, it is in the Korong division where they have been concentrated, and it is this which chiefly distinguishes it from all the other divisions in the district. According to Dunn's list (39] fully 25 per cent. of the nuggets above a weight of 300 ounces which have been found in Victoria have come from within the Korong mining division, and of the 1,358 nuggets which have been recorded 305 (or 22.5 per cent) were found within that division; chiefly from Berlin/Rheola (197), Wedderburn (57), Kingower (27) and Mcintyre' s (14), in that order. Whilst this has been a significant feature of mining within the division, and one which is not found to such a degree elsewhere in the State, it has left little in the way of distinguishing surface features. On the contrary, both recent and earlier nugget discoveries have subsequently resulted in the complete obliteration of former features in their inunediate vicinity, as has occurred chiefly at Berlin/Rheola, Wedderburn and Kingower. As a consequence, these area do not feature highly in this survey, which has focus sed attention upon surviving historic mining features on the ground.

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