Location 490
Location #490 - Gold Mine
Map 1
Address

Area

Pipeclay Gully

Description

Location #490 - Gold Mine Pipeclay Gully, in the side gully below and south of Stewart Town, west of Pipeclay Gully Road


Still Standing

No



Construction Details


Location Type

Mine


View Location on Map

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Interested Parties

The table below shows the groups of people that had an interest in this property, either as owners, residents, tenants or shareholders. Clicking on the 'Details' link will display a list of the individuals in the group along with any known historical information about them.

Group Date Description
1 c1934 R J Short and A Gilchrist Details
2 c1934 - 1937 A Gilchrist Details
Notes

The table below shows any historical notes about the location.

Note Date Short Description Note Text
3536 c1934 General notes. Archie Gilchrist lived in dwelling #41 - and was an old man. Dick Short lived in dwelling #28 and was a young man in his 20s. Archie thought he could divine for gold and divined the site for the shaft. The shaft was dug to about 20 feet to the schist bottom. There is no blacksand or clay, just rubble on a broken bottom of schist. The gold was found in a patchy thin layer of red wash. A number of small drives were dug off the shaft. The bottom appeared to be dipping downhill and upstream. A curved drive was dug running downstream. Good gold was found in this section - flat pennyweight size. It was a very slow job, advancing about 1-2 feet a day, getting the material was very slow. It was decided to construct the whinze in the next downstream gully and work back to the shaft. This made for easier spoil removal. Wooden rails were used with a small trolley. Once at the base of the whinze the trolley was turned on a large steel plate, then winched up the whinze on rails.The steel plate is now at the whinze portal. The spoil was stockpiled. The gully below the winze was lined with flat rocks then sacking and more flat rocks. A small dam was built some distance above the whinze. An old water race was upgraded and water was stored in the dam. The water was then turned down a race to the rock tailrace and the spoil was ground sluiced. The pair spent about seven months working this claim, then Dick decided to go back to his previous job as a wool classer. Archie continued on, extending the whinze with small drives and lowered - steepened up the whinze, but did not do very well. The pair used small coal miners picks - short handles. Archie had been a blacksmith and he would point and temper the picks in a forge at Angus Crabbes place. Murray Dennisons woolshed (#48).
3537 1934 - General notes (cont) The shaft is overgrown with briar and hawthorn. It has loose protruding rocks and requires a rope to enter safely. The whinze entrance is partially blocked with a steel plate and tin, but is easily entered. A small amount of material has fallen off the roof but it is still quite sound. Dick's tunnel shaft to the whinze is very soundly constructed, and is narrow and tall. Archies tunnels are wide and 'U' shaped. Some large rocks have fallen off the roof (doesn't look too safe). These tunnels may be too wide. James Stewart's drive is still in good condition - narrow and tall.
Images

The table below shows a list of images related to the location. Click on 'View Image' to display more details about the image, and to view the image.

Image Id Source Date Short Description
1750 Paul Crump - Bannockburn c1934/37 Location #490, looking north to Stewart Town. View Image
1751 Paul Crump - Bannockburn c 1934/37 Location #490 looking north to Stewart Town View Image
1752 Paul Crump - Bannockburn c 1934/37 Location #490, looking north to Stewart Town View Image
2380 Paul Crump - Bannockburn 2016 Aerial photo of Menzies Terrace - taken by Kevin Jones c2001 View Image
2381 Paul Crump - Bannockburn (surveyed) c1990 Details of location #490 - Gold mine at Stewart Town View Image