This gold miner's pick from the Ballarat Goldfields c 1920 was donated by Mr David Hopcraft, a dealer at the Arkuna Market Berwick, Victoria in December 2010. When Gold was discovered in Victoria c1853 most of the labourers and some landowners left the market gardens and farms to try their luck on the goldfields. Local Blacksmiths made picks similar to this one for them. There was a great shortage of labour in Melbourne and at the same time, due to the huge influx of people lured by the Gold, there was an increased demand for food. The market gardeners were getting very good prices for their produce and many increased their wealth considerably and many of these tenant farmers were able to purchase their blocks of land and live a profitable life. There was such a shortage of labour that J.B.Were applied for Irish immigrants to work the farms. This pick is an example of the hand made tools many pioneers took with them when they abandoned their farms and market gardens in the District of Brighton to try their luck at prospecting when gold was discovered in Ballarat and Bendigo c1853. Some were successful , most were not and retuned again to the hard life of farming. A forged steel pick with a wooden handle. The steel pick-head was hand-forged by a blacksmith. This miner's pick was used on the Ballarat gold-fields c1920gold mining, ballarat, bendigo, early settlers, market gardeners, moorabbin, bentleigh, mining equipment, gold rush, immigrants, blacksmiths, forges, tools

Black and white photograph. Poppet head, winder house, chimney, overhead tramway, stack of wood, one male figure pushing one truck on overhead tramway. Mine office at front right. Inscriptions: On front - '26' at TL. On back - 'New Red, White and Blue Consolidated, Main Shaft (Big Blue). Rec'd photo 21/4/67.'mine, gold, big blue ( r.w.b.consolidated), bendigo, mines and mining, mines, mining, poppet head, mining equipment

Black and white photo: mine site with poppet head, mine buildings at rear right . Trestles and cables carrying rectangular bins across open land. Large mound of material behind main building. Trees and weatherboard building in foreground. On back written in ball point pen and underlined ' flying Fox' Central Blue Mine to Crushing Battery 1912 'mine, gold, central blue, bendigo, mines and mining, surface equipment, place, mining, surface equipment, flying fox, poppet head

Black and white photograph of sketch of workmen at mine site. Air ventilators on top of mine shafts to R. Wheelbarrow at R foreground. Wind socks or sails were used to ventilate the holes. History: 'Victoria Reef 1857, Frank Cusack after a photograph by Alex Fox.Alex Foxmine, gold, victoria hill, book 'bendigo, the german chapter' by frank cusack. p52., mines and mining, mine, place, workers, miners, mining equipment, equipment, frank cusack, history

Mining & Geological Journal Vol.2. No.3. September 1940. Published by the Department of Mines Victoria with articles on mining, photographs, maps & advertisements. Name on front A.Richardson 29 Harrison St Bendigo. Softcover.Department of Mines Victoriamagazine, organization, mining, mining, mines, mining equipment.

Mining and Geological Journal, Volume 4, No.4. September 1951. Published by Department of Mines Victoria with 65 pages of articles on gold, coal & oil mining, Illustrations, maps, photographs including photographs of Bendigo mines. Name noted on front A.E.Richardson 29 Harrison St Bendigo.Dept of Mines Victoriamagazine, organization, mining, mining - mines - mining equipment, bendigo mines.

Mining and Geological Journal, Vol.4, No.3. March 1951. Published by Department of Mines Victoria with articles on Mines & mining including Bendigo mines with Photographs, Illustrations, Maps & Advertisements. Name on front A.Richardson 29 Harrison St Bendigo.Dept of Mines Victoria.gold mines, mining, mining - mines - mining equipment, central deborah mine.

Mining & Geological Journal, Vol.2, No.6. March 1942. Published by Department of Mines Victoria, with articles on mines and mining including Bendigo mines, Photographs, Illustrations, Maps & Advertisements. Name on cover A Richardson 29 Harrison St Bendigo.Dept of Mines Victoriagold mines, mining, mining - mines - mining equipment. bendigo mines.

Mining & Geological Journal, January 1940, Vol.2, No.2. Published by Department of Mines Victoria, 136 pages of Mine Reports, articles on mines, photographs, illustrations, maps & advertisements. Name on cover A.Richardson 29 Harrison St Bendigo.Dept of Mines Victoriagold mines, mining, mining - mines - mining equipment, axedale - fletchers mine.

Mining & Gelogical Journal Vol.1, No.4. January 1939 published by the Department of Mines Government of Victoria, 72 pages with photographs, illustrations, maps & advertisements. Articles on mining including some Bendigo & district mines.Name on cover A.Richardson 29 Harrison St Bendigo.Department of Mines Victoria.magazine, organization, mining, mining - mines - mining equipment, bendigo mines.central nell gwynne.

Two page document ( carbon copy ) detailing report on inspection, mining machinery 17 November, 1971. Report states ' Met Mr. R. Barker, first to Nth Deborah met Frank Vincent at this mine. Inspected Great Southern engine. Other mines mentioned are South Deborah, Deborah Extended. Second page details tyhe mining machinery made and used in Bendigo such as R. Roberts' Winding Engine and Poppet legs at the Central Deborah Mine. Also a Thompson (Castlemaine) air compressor at this mine. Document signed by Albert Richardson 19.11.1971.bendigo, mining, mining equipment

Laminated, faded colour photograph. Image shows stope with air lines. On bottom of image: ' looking east towards main shaft No. 1 level, Wattle Gully Mine 1979'mining, equipment, wattle gully gold mine

Laminated faded black and white photograph of the Wattle Gully Gold Mine, Castlemaine. Image shows poppet head, mining shed. Written on back of photo ' Wattle Gully Mine from Fryers Road, 1979'mining, equipment, wattle gully gold mine

Hand written page of notes (incomplete) on Lansell's 222 Mine. Notes on the shaft, plant, winding engine, indicator, boilers and engine house. Yield 20,322 ounces of gold. Signed by A Richardson 3/1/68.gold mining, miners' safety cage, lansell's 222 mine, lansell's 222 mine, mining equipment, 'denis ' shaft, koch's & hildebrandt, fortuna battery, a harkness & co, victoria foundry, mines report 1884 page 49, a richardson

Rubber Stamps; - Cash Box, missing handle, no key, contains rubber stamps as per attached, some stamp impressions on piece of paper in box.see attached.mining, equipment, deborah mine, mccoll rankin & stanistreet

Document; Folder with documents about purchase of Battery Plant by North Virginia Co. & East Clarence Co. Supply agreement for electricity, correspondence, plans showing where battery to be installed.east Clarence Gold Mining Co. North Virginia Gold Mining Co. re purchase of battery.MCCOLL RANKIN & STANISTREETorganization, business, mining equipment, mccoll rankin & stanistreet

Clay crucible marked Battersea Round F Morgan England commonly used for melting gold.Morgan Englandmining, equipment, crucible

Clay crucible marked Battersea Round F Morgan England commonly used for melting gold.Morgan Englandmining, equipment, crucible

Clay crucible marked Battersea Round D Morgan England commonly used for melting gold.Morgan Englandmining, equipment, crucible

Clay crucible marked Battersea Round G Morgan England commonly used for melting gold.Morgan Englandmining, equipment, crucible

Clay crucible marked Battersea Round G Morgan England commonly used for melting gold.Morgan Englandmining, equipment, crucible

Clay crucible marked Battersea Round commonly used for melting gold.mining, equipment, crucible

Clay crucible marked Battersea Round E Morgan England commonly used for melting gold.Morgan Englandmining, equipment, crucible

Cardboard box with contents of Kentish's Miners Light Quick Cleanser, paper label, green with red & navy blue lettering, showing a depictions of a miner with light, directions printed on one side.Manufactured by W.M.Kentish & Son Bendigogold mining, mining equipment, miners' lamp cleaner, bendigo-business-mining-kentish

Black and white photograph. Image shows metal mine poppet head. Written on back ' Napoleon Reefs'gold mining, mining equipment, poppet head

Wooden model of a cyanide plant. A cyanide plant was used for dissolving gold from finely divided ores by means of dilute solutions of sodium or potassium cyanides. The model has five metal bins, there is some rust on the bins and scorch mark on the wooden base.mining, equipment, cyanide plant, gold cyanidation (also known as the cyanide process or the macarthur-forrest process) is a hydrometallurgical technique for extracting gold from low-grade ore by converting the gold to a water-soluble coordination complex. it is the most commonly used leaching process for gold extraction. the ore is comminuted using grinding machinery. depending on the ore, it is sometimes further concentrated by froth flotation or by centrifugal (gravity) concentration. water is added to produce a slurry or pulp. the basic ore slurry can be combined with a solution of sodium cyanide or potassium cyanide, however many operations utilize calcium cyanide, which is more cost effective. to prevent the creation of toxic hydrogen cyanide during processing, slaked lime (calcium hydroxide) or soda (sodium hydroxide) is added to the extracting solution to ensure that the acidity during cyanidation is maintained over ph 10.5 - strongly basic. lead nitrate can improve gold leaching speed and quantity recovered, particularly in processing partially oxidized ores.

Black and white photograph of poppet head and mine shed. Car parked on RH side, possibly 1920's to 1930's vintage. Possibly South New Moon mine, Eaglehawk.gold mines, mining equipment, poppet head

Black and white photograph. Mine shed constructed of timber, flat roof and on wooden stumps. Written on back '1940'. Possibly South New Moon Mine Eaglehawk.gold mines, mining equipment, south new moon mine site

Black and white photogrpah. Corrrugated iron shed, very large narrow rectangular opening in front. Smaller shed attached beside, ore tramway on LH side. Possibly South New Moon Mine site Eaglehawk.gold mines, mining equipment, south new moon mine site