NORTH CENTRAL GOLDFIELDS PROJECT HISTORIC MINING SITES IN THE HEATHCOTE (WARANGA SOUTH) MINING DIVISION PART TWO: SITE GAZETTEER David Bannear Department of Conservation and Natural Resources North West Area May 1993 Heathcote Division Site Gazetteer INDEX TO SITE GAZETTEER No. Site Map Reference Page No 1.1 Old Alison, Lower Costerfield Costerfield 1:50,000 - 039.146 1 1.2 New Alison, Lower Costerfield Costerfield 1:50,000 - 039.148 2.1 Tait’s Shaft, Lower Costerfield Costerfield 1:50,000 - 039.148 8 3.1 Robinson’s Reef, Lower Costerfield Costerfield 1:50,000 - 058.151 11 4.1 Minerva Mine Site, Upper Costerfield Costerfield 1:50,000 - 034.163 14 5.1 Bombay mine site, Upper Costerfield Costerfield 1:50,000 - 033.162 19 6.1 Main shaft, Upper Costerfield Costerfield 1:50,000 - 033.167 31 7.1 Mundy’s Gully, Tooborac Tooborac 1:25,000 - 999.021 46 8.1 Ford’s Gully Tooborac 1:25,000 - 004.006 50 8.2 Ford’s Gully Tooborac 1:25,000 - 004.006 9.1 Butler’s Reef mine site Heathcote 1:25,000 - 972.075 52 9.2 Caledonia Reef mine site Heathcote 1:25,000 - 969.069 9.3 Caledonia Gully Reservoir Heatchote 1:25,000 - 970.060 61 9.4 Caledonia Gully puddler site Heathcote 1:25,000 - 972.068 9.5 Caledonia Gully puddler site Heathcote 1:25,000 - 971.073 9.6 Caledonia Gully puddler site Heathcote 1:25,000 - 970.071 10.1 Long Gully Reef mine Heathcote 1:25,000 - 965.081 65 10.2 Cosmopolitan mine site Heathcote 1:25,000 - 965.081 10.3 Hedley’s dam & assoc. water race Heathcote 1:25,000 - 968.066 69 10.4 Alluvial sinkings in L Gully Heathcote 1:25,000 - 968.067 10.5 Long Gully puddler Heathcote 1:25,000 - 962.075 11.1 Bald Hill, Heathcote Heathcote 1:25,000 - 944.123 74 12.1 One-Eye diggings, Wild Duck Heathcote 1:25,000 - 908.149 76 13.1 Peters Gully fluming Heathcote 1:25,000 - 984.050 78 13.2 Peters Gully mine site Heathcote 1:25,000 - 989.067 14.1 Pink Cliffs, McIvor Creek Heathcote 1:25,000 - 955.102 82 15.1 Sawpit Gully Heathcote 1:25,000 - 922.136 88 16.1 Redcastle Creek cyanide works Redcastle 1:25,000 - 023.265 90 17.1 Empress/Union Mine, Redcastle Redcastle 1:25,000 - 029.265 92 18.1 Beautiful Venice Reef, Redcastle Redcastle 1:25,000 - 035.265 95 19.1 Curly Dog Gully puddler Redcastle 1:25,000 - 038.262 97 19.2 Puddler, dam and camp sites Redcastle 1:25,000 - 064.261 19.3 Puddler and dam Redcastle 1:25,000 - 064.260 19.4 Reef workings Redcastle 1:25,000 - 064.258 20.1 Welcome dam puddler Redcastle 1:25,000 - 061.271 100 20.2 Welcome Reef mine site Redcastle 1:25,000 - 062.272 20.3 Williams Gully puddler Redcastle 1:25,000 - 063.271 21.1 Why Not Reef battery site, Redcastle Redcastle 1:25,000 - 065.275 107 22.1 Happy Jack’s or Mullocky Reef, Redcastle Redcastle 1:25,000 - 054.281 110 23.1 New Why Not Co. dam, Redcastle Redcastle 1:25,000 - 054.280 112 23.2 Why Not Gully, Redcastle Redcastle 1:25,000 - 054.279 24.1 Redcastle Reservoir, Native Gully Redcastle 1:25,000 - 031.262 114 25.1 Clarke’s Dam, Graytown Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 181.274 115 25.2 Puddler Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 181.274 26.1 Surface Hill Dam, Graytown Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 181.260 117 27.1 Tooborac to Heathcote water race 118 28.1 Forestry Camp, Graytown Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 168.235 124 28.2 POW camp, Graytown Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 170.235 28.3 Graytown School site Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 170.234 28.4 Battery site, Graytown Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 172.240 28.5 Puddling machine site, Graytown Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 174.240 28.6 Graytown cemetery Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 176.241 28.7 Historic Reserve - township site Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 165.234 28.8 Spring Creek Deep Lead mine Costerfield 1: 50,000 - 155.215 i Alison mine site SITE NO. & NAME: ALISON MINE SITE 1.1 Old Alison shaft 1.2 New Alison Mine LOCATION: Lower Costerfield HI NO: 1.1 H7824-0025 1.2 H7824-0026 DIRECTIONS: Site 1.1. W side of the main Road, near the boundary of State Forest and private land, Lower Costerfield Site 1.2. Located approx 200 m N of Alison’s shaft MUNICIPALITY: Greater Bendigo City LAND STATUS: Unreserved Crown Land HISTORY: Pre-Alison Mining Company 1860-1869. 1860. Encouraged by the successes at Upper Costerfield (Coster and party were then obtaining as much as 4 oz of gold per ton). W. Morris, of Heathcote, as one of a Melbourne syndicate, essayed to locate the southern extension of 1 the reef at Lower Costerfield (now South Costerfield) about 1 mile away on the southern side of Tin Pot Flat. Early 1861. Morris continued his trench [at South Costerfield] and at the end of the following month (early in 1861) was rewarded by striking the covered outcrop of the vein ... The stone (15 cwt) broken from a shaft sunk 45 feet on this yielded 7 oz 7 dwt of gold. The vein increased in width with depth, and at 70 feet (water level) below surface was 8 inches wide and averaged 8 oz of gold per ton. Other parallel veins were discovered in what is now [1926] known as the Alison ground and 600 feet westward Tate’s line was unearthed and worked more or less profitably to a 2 depth of 200 feet. September 1861. A 15 cwt parcel of ore, obtained by Morris and Co. from a depth of 45 ft on the Kilburn reef, 3 averaged 9 oz 16 dwt per ton. August 1862. Great impetus by the introduction of capital and energy from Melbourne. Splendid, continuous gold yields from the claim of Messrs Coster, Field and Co., at Costerfield and Messrs Morris and Co. at Lower Costerfield. Comparatively small operating costs of small companies, with less overhead expenses, attract new capital. Purchasing out original claim holders and applying for new leases. Whole of ground has been pegged off. 4 Machinery is being introduced. Early 1860s. All was plain sailing at both ends of the field until the sulphide zone was reached and the metallurgical problem of the recovery of the gold from the stibnite presented itself. That the earliest method of treatment, which did not aim at the recovery of the antimony after the ore was crushed, was primitive is shown by the fact that the 5 tailings when recrushed--and still without giving up their all--yielded as high as 3 oz per ton. February 1863. Morris and Co., Lower Costerfield. 17-1/2 tons yielded 158 oz gold. Reef steadily increasing in richness. Exploitation on a much larger scale after completion of own machinery. 6 McDougall and Co. have nearly completed machinery. March 1863. Upper Costerfield has about 120 population. Here is Youle, Coster and Field’s machinery ... Stewart 7 Town, 1 mile nearer Heathcote, 200 population, Morris and 3 other claims. April 1863. Costerfield and Stewarton. Considerable activity. Dalsiel and Allen’s reef lately discovered south of Morris and Co.’s claim ... traced through Hay and Hoskin’s lease and Argo Mining Company’s ground. McDougall and Co. crushing. Two more machines being erected. 8 New Antimony Reef between Costerfield and Stewartown, half mile west off the road. April 1863. Stewarton. Morris and Co.’s new engine nearly ready, the largest and most up-to-date in the antimony district. Ripple boards covered with copper plates to save quicksilver; besides blankets are used. Yield estimated: 10-12 oz per ton. 9 McDougall and Co. also prepare to start engine operations. April 1863. Stewartown. Morris and Co. about to start machinery. McDougall and Co. started pumping. Allen and 10 Dalziel sunk 25 feet. Reef 18 inches thick of pure antimony. 2 Alison mine site July 1863. Lower Costerfield [Stewartown] looks deserted. Morris and Co. crushed 25 tons of stone yielding 120 11 oz. March 1864. Some Bendigo miners have taken two of Messrs McDougall and Co.’s leases on tribute. They altered the copper plates, put down blanket tables, and find that their speculation will pay them very well. It appears that the machinery was very imperfect before. Morris and Co. Crushing from 130 feet. Messrs Morris and Co., on the Kelburn Reef, Lower Costerfield ... are not doing so well as hitherto; they require to sink their shaft deeper. They have of late been crushing most surface refuse and tailings. From the pyrites, with which these lodes are so highly charged, they obtained some cheering results; they roasted several hundredweight, and after passing it through a Berdan basin got 12 oz 5 dwt, or at the rate of 35 12 oz to the ton. April 1864. New antimony smelting process. Patent by Rev. Edward Hughes of McIvor, taken out for separating antimony from other metals ... Work at Costerfield under the name “Victorian Antimony Smelting Co.” ... could also 13 be exported for conversion into white paint. June 1864. Morris and Co., Kilburn Reef, Lower Costerfield, crushing from 167 feet. Morris and Co. have been idle for some time. They have raised but 8 tons of stone during the 3 months. Their mine is said to be failing. Kenny and Co., Murray Reef, Lower Costerfield, crushing from 50 feet.