McIntyre sites SITE NO. & NAME: 29.0 MATRIX REEF WORKINGS 29.1 NO. 1 GULLY DIGGINGS 29.2 NO. 2 GULLY DIGGINGS 29.3 NO. 3 GULLY DIGGINGS 29.4 ST. JOHN’S PATCH DIGGINGS LOCATION: MCINTYRES, NEAR RHEOLA HI NO: 29.0 H7624-0167 29.1 H7624-0168 29.2 H7624-0169 29.3 H7624-0170 29.4 H7624-0171 DIRECTIONS: McIntyres is located 4.6 km south-south-west of Rheola. Matrix Reef and No. 1 to 3 Gullies are on the north side of Dunolly-Wedderburn Road. St. Johns Patch is on the south side of the same road. MUNICIPALITY: Loddon Shire LAND STATUS: Sites 29.0 to 29.2--Unreserved Crown Land/Historic Reserve Sites 29.3 and 29.4--Freehold Land HISTORY: April 1853 to 1857. McIntyres Diggings. These goldfields (McIntyres-Rheola-Orville) spread out along the north- south road between Kingower and Mt. Moliagul ... originally opened by diggers from Korong soon after the discovery of gold at Moliagul at the end of 1852. Kingower Diggings began in the spring of 1853, but what became known as McIntyre’s Wet Diggings, about seven miles south of Kingower, was almost certainly opened before this, and a newspaper note in April 1853 read “A large number of diggers at McIntyre’s, are said to be doing tolerably well”. A notice in The Melbourne Herald in 22 July 1854 said “Parties are doing well at McIntyre’s Two Mile Hut, about seven miles from here (Kingower), on Moliagul Road. These are the “Old McIntyre Diggings”, very wet, with a granite bottom and requiring chain pumps”. The “Old McIntyre Diggings” suggest, as a number of vague, early reports do also, that the place has been worked since 1853, if not earlier ... A note in June 1855 said that 800 ounces of gold had been found in a chain of nuggets in shallow sinkings at McIntyre’s, but otherwise the field, which Fraser’s survey, January 1856, shows as about a mile of workings along the Orville Creek at what was later St. John’s Patch, received little attention until some large 1 nuggets were found in 1857. March 1857. McIntyres. 801 ounces found in a small neck of gully leading from the Granite Hill to the old Wet Sinkings (almost certainly No. 2 gully, one of three or four coming down from the high hills on the west side of the 2 road). March 1857. Discovery of 805 ounce nugget by Charles McCartin and Patrick Mulcahy at a depth of one foot in No. 3 1 Gully, McIntyres (Wet Diggings). March 1857. Discovery of the McEnvoy nugget (1068 ounces (or 810 ounces)) on the surface near Matrix Reef at McIntyres by Nicholas McAvoy and Walter Palmer; 20,000 pounds worth of gold obtained from shallow sinkings on 4 the reef where it outcropped on the surface including 227, 136, 107, 57 and 26 ounce nuggets found near the reef. May 1857. McIntyres. Large gold specimen weighing 1848 ounce, and another of 1284 ounces, on top of the main 5 hill at McIntyre’s, in what was later called the Matrix Reef ... also large nugget found in No. 3 Gully. 1858. McIntyres. These discoveries brought a large population to McIntyre’s, other places were opened in the vicinity, and the area about two miles north of the station, then as later called Rheola was prospected. Bonnar and party in 1858 sank holes without result in what was later called Clelland’s Gully, and in the following year Paper Gully, an eastern tributary of Rheola Flat, was opened. The first and only gold workings on Berlin Flat was the 6 Man-o-War Rush in 1861, and it was seven years before this field was opened. 90 McIntyre sites December 1859. Korong Division The population is as follows: Location Alluvial Quartz Trade European Chinese Korong 1650 50 160 1560 300 Kingower 258 66 46 370 - Jordan’s and Jericho 66 100 26 180 12 Synnotts 86 - 3 25 - Fenton’s 22 - 3 25 - M’Intyre’s 222 4 4 50 180 Totals 2304 220 243 2215 55 The following table shows the machines at work (W) and idle(I): Location Puddling (W) (I) Steam engine (W) (I) Crushing (W) (I) Korong 30 12 1 2 1 2 Kingower 8 1 2 - 1 - Jericho - 1 1 - 1 - Synott’s 1 - - - - - M’Intyres 2 2 - - - - M’Intyres. Here a good deal of excitement was lately caused, owing to one party having obtained about 20lb. weight of gold (including a nugget weighing 10lb) in a shallow hole in No 3 Gully. The old ground is being well worked by 7 Chinese. The Amalgamated Company on Marshall’s Reef is now down 100 feet, but has not yet struck the reef. March 1860. From McIntyre Diggings I have received several notifications of ground having been taken up that was abandoned more than twelve months previous, and which is supposed to have been very superficially worked in the 8 first instance. May 1860. McIntyre’s. The Eclipse and Marshall’s Reefs are both being prospected. The latter yielded stone about seventeen months ago, seldom, if ever, equalled in richness; since which time it has been regularly prospected, without the shareholders meeting with any encouragement. In alluvial mining nothing worthy of note has been discovered for a 9 considerable period. January 1861 (Korong Division): Locality Entire Popn Alluvial Quartz Sq miles Puddling Steam Horse Chinese Miners Miners occupied machines crushing power miners mining machines Inglewood 10,500 1,000 3,000 11-1/2 32 9 128 - Glenalbyn 1,700 900 100 1 16 wkng/ - - {In all 5 idle {about Kingower 400 120 100 2 - 1 crshng/ 17 {50 but 1 pumpng {very Korong 1,500 400 100 6 scattered 26 wkng/ 2 wkng/ 32 {much 24 idle 1 idle {scattered Fenton’s & Sinnot’s 50 20 - 1/2 1 - - { McIntyre’s 200 28 10 3 3 - - { Jericho & Jordan’s 150 80 40 1-1/2 1 wkng - - { Total 14,500 2,548 3,500 25-1/2 108 14 177 50 McIntyre’s. The registration of the reefs at this place has not expired. I have therefore nothing new to report on this 10 part of the division. April 1861. At McIntyre’s, some of the quartz reefs which had been previously abandoned, and which are now held as extended claims, give very fair promise of proving remunerative, although they have not, as yet, had time to have 11 the stone properly tested. May 1861. At McIntyre’s the claimholders I spoke of in my last on Marshall’s Reef are still persevering in their attempt to discern the lost run of the gold, which, some time ago, was found on the surface in such extraordinary quantities, but abandoned in consequence of the original finders being unable, after considerable labour, to trace its 12 course. 91 McIntyre sites March 1864 (Korong Division): The total number is thus distributed: New Inglewood 4,500 Old Inglewood 150 Korong 1,500 Jericho 250 Kingower 750 McIntyre’s 300 Sinnott’s 100 Burke’s Flat 100 Loddon 600 13 Total 8,250 September 1864 (Korong Division): The total number is thus distributed: New Inglewood 1,500 Old Inglewood 20 Korong 400 Jericho 50 Kingower 250 McIntyre’s 20 Sinnott’s 20 Bourke’s Flat 70 Loddon and Kingarra 400 Caledonian Flat 70 McIntyre’s is almost deserted. No one working there except the men on the ground which was reserved from sale at 14 the last Government auction. September 1865 (Korong Division): The total number of miners is thus distributed: New Inglewood 550 Old Inglewood 50 Korong 425 Jericho 75 Kingower 205 McIntyre’s 50 Sinnott’s 50 Bourke’s Flat 70 Caledonian Flat 45 Commissioner’s Flat 65 15 Loddon and Kingarra 100 December 1866 (Korong Division): The total number of miners is thus distributed: New Inglewood 510 Old Inglewood 45 Thompson’s Gully 12 Korong 430 Jericho 75 Kingower 120 McIntyre’s 35 Sinnott’s 60 Bourke’s Flat 48 Commissioner’s Flat 10 16 Loddon and Kingarra 70 92 McIntyre sites March 1867 (Korong Division) The total number of miners is thus distributed: New Inglewood 400 Old Inglewood 30 Thompson’s Gully 10 Korong 400 Jericho 50 Kingower 80 McIntyre’s 20 Sinnott’s 100 Bourke’s Flat 30 Commissioner’s Flat 5 17 Loddon and Kingarra 50 September 1875 (Inglewood Division). There have been several small rushes to the belt of made ground on the Hard Hills, between McIntyre’s and Berlin, and some nuggets weighing from 6 oz to 30 oz have been discovered ... The 18 mining population in this division is steadily decreasing, and the majority of miners are not making wages. December 1878. Inglewood Division. At McIntyre’s, the Dalmatia Gold Mining Company is erecting machinery, 19 and the Maximilian Gold Mining Company is still sinking the shaft. March 1879. McIntyre’s. The Dalmatia Company has erected machinery and raised some quartz, but is unable to 20 crush from want of water. On the adjoining claim the Maximilian Company is still sinking. June 1880. Inglewood Division. The Dalmatia Gold Mining Company, at McIntyre’s, was obliged to stop sinking 21 on account of water becoming too heavy. They have, however, commenced to cross-cut at the 136-foot level. December 1880. Inglewood Division. The Dalmatian Company, at McIntyre’s, has stopped work (the mine being on 22 the market), owing, it is said, to want of adequate pumping machinery. 1910. The Matrix Mine, at McIntyre’s Hill, has extended the main tunnel to 465 feet, and won 538 oz.