Grampians halls Gap at Stoney Creek Dredge. The site of the Stoney Creek diggings was in the upper catchment area of the creek, beside Silverband Road. For further information see: 'Bridging the Gap' by Ida Stanton, p. 49 and 'Victoria's Wonderland' by Halls Gap and Grampians Historical Society, p. 41.Photo shows eight men seated, two standing, 3 tents in background. 2nd right Alfred D'Alton 4th Right James Oliverwater supplies, d'alton, water supplies, channels

Murray Comrie Collection. Monochrome photograph depicting three wagons loaded with logs, being driven by three unidentified men. The photograph appears to be taken in Gladstone Street, Tarnagulla. The wagons are carting five-foot firewood billets to the Tarnagulla Gold Estates hydraulic dredge operation.. This photograph is a fair copy of an older original, probably made in the late 1960s. tarnagulla, timber, haulage, transport, horses, wagons, industry, people

Colour aerial photograph showing view of entrance to Gippsland Lakes from Bass Strait Reeves Channel Rigby Island and township of Lakes Entrance Victoriaaerial photograph, historic site, dredging, waterways, lakes entrance

Second copyColour photograph of the south eastern shore of Rigby Island, Gippsland Lakes. It shows the scrub covered hummocks in the background, Hopetoun Channel, dumped sand which connects Snake Island and Rigby Islands, groynes into Narrows from Rigby Island. Fishing boat with scallop dredge moored in sheltered bay inside a groyne. Lakes Entrance Victoriaocean, waterways, topography, fishing industry

Mr.and Mrs Don Jessup and Mr.and Mrs.Ted Jessup presented the teaset to the then President of the Bright and District Historical Society, Mrs. Gwyneth Millar. The trophy was won by their uncle, Charles Jessup, in 1909 for cycling at the Bright Easter Sports Meeting.00053.1 Silver tray with ornate handles and holly decoration. 00053.2 Teapot. Spherical shape with attached lid. 00053.3 Two handled sugar bowl. 00053.4 Milk jug 00053.1 Presented by the, Tewksberry \ Amal. Gold Dredging Co. \ to the \ Bright \ Easter Sports Club \ Won by \ G. Jessup \ Easter 1909 00053.2 Lily E.P.N.S. A1 00053.3 Imperial A1 E.P.N.S. Hand soldered. 14 00053.4 26 A1 Imperial E.P.N.S. Hand soldered silver, teaset, jug, teapot, sugar bowl, tray, tewksberry gold dredging, jessup, sports, easter, cycling

Date April 1985Color photograph of an arm of the boat harbour and the Western Wharf, known coloquially as the Post Office Jetty. It shows fishing boats private vessels and the tourist launch Lenna Bird moored at the jetties. In the foreground the recently dumped dredged sand has been compacted behind a retaining wall to form a new pathway beside the lake. Lakes Entrance Victoriaroads and streets, waterfront, boats and boating

Colour photograph of the lake. It shows a fishing boat with scallop dredge moving up the lake opposite the artificial entrance, grassy edge of Jemmy's Point in foreground above highway guard fence, rock groyne at entry to North Arm, sandy shallows at entry to Hopetoun Channel, scrub covered hummocks of south shore and Bass Strait in distance. Lakes Entrance Victoriaislands, waterways, topography, township

Blue/black hard covered book of 234 pages including index and photographic reproductions. Contents include Uses of Water in Mining; Geology of Placer Deposits; Gold Recovery; Flumes, ditches, dams, pipes; Giants, valaves, gates, weirs, miner's inch, pressure box, dams; gravel elvators; exploiting. mining, hydraulics, water, dredge, dredging, gold mining

Black and white mounted photograph of a dedge floating on a body of water which has a creek flowing into it, and rolling hills in the background. The buildings associated with a mine or factory are shown on the top left hand side. Signed "Martin ?ish Victoria St" verso "R.H. Brooke, "Callantina Villa", Glenferrie Rd Sthdredge, dredging, mining, river, callantina villa, gold mining

Also enlargement 17 x 23 cmBlack and white photograph showing view from Jemmys Point of the entrance to the Gippsland Lakes from Bass Strait. Pioneer dredge in centre foreground, and steamer JCD. Cottages and works buildings including Rocket shed on eastern dunes, Schnapper Cottage on far right western dune. Rock groynes and tip of Bullock Island centre left. Vegetation in foreground. Lakes Entrance VictoriaLAKES ENTRANCE Segerberg and Bulmerships and shipping, topography, jetties, houses

This navigation cart of Lady Bay and Warrnambool Harbour was originally surveyed in 1870 but this version includes the update for magnetic variation in 1893. Since the printing of the chart several annotations have been added. These include an additional stamp dated 15-8-1910, a handwritten comment across the top of the page dated August 1910, and another handwritten comment regarding the ‘Proposed Extension of Dock’ dated 19-2-1925, plus connected drawings, notes and figures. The 1925 proposal on this chart may have been a reaction to the Royal Commission of 1923, when the damaged stonework on the seaward side of the Warrnambool Breakwater, caused by the action of the sea, was the subject of enquiry. A conference between the Public Works, Water Commission and the Harbour Trust concluded that it would less costly to make repairs to prevent further damage rather than replaced the damage portion of the wall. A contract was raised in late 1924 to deposit rubble on the damaged side of the breakwater to minimise the Southern Ocean’s destructive action and work had started by August 1925. The Breakwater construction had begun in 1874 and was completed in 1890. The Victorian Government had commissioned Sir John Coode, a British harbour engineer, to present a plan to complete the Warrnambool Breakwater but his original plan was too expensive. He prepared a revised plan for a shorter structure. The construction proved to be too short to protect adequately from the weather and didn't allow enough depth for larger vessels to come into port. The decreasing trade was further affected by siltation in the bay due to the breakwater, and the completion of the railway line. The situation of the harbour became a real problem by 1910 and required continuous dredging. In 1914 the Breakwater was extended but proved to be a failure because the work began to subside and by 1920 about two thirds of the harbour was silted up. Alterations made in the 1920's increased the silting problem and by the 1940's the harbour was no longer used. More alterations were made in the 1950's and 1960's. This chart is significant for its strong connection to the maritime history of Warrnambool Harbour and Lady Bay and the Warrnambool Breakwater. The Warrnambool Breakwater is registered as a place of significance on the Victorian Heritage Database (VHR H2024). The Warrnambool Breakwater is one of the most important late 19th century maritime engineering projects in Victoria and significant in the development of Victorian coastal shipping. It is also significant for its connection with British harbour engineer, Sir John Coode. The chart is a historical record of structures existing in 1893; the Warrnambool Jetties, Warrnambool Breakwater in Lady Bay, the leading lights (lighthouses), streets, roads, bridges and many buildings. It also shows the lay of the land and seabed. Navigation Chart: Lady Bay and Warrnambool Harbour, Australia - South Coast - Victoria. Surveyed by Nav. Lieut. H.J. Stanley, R.N., 1870. Updated for Magnetic Variation, 1893. The rectangular chart is printed on heavy cream paper. Stamps are shaped rectangular, oval and round. Around the Breakwater and Jetty area are handwritten notes, dotted and joined lines, numbers and signatures, and shading of red and green. The chart shows the surrounds of Warrnambool Harbour, Lady Bay, the Breakwater and Jetty, roads, bridges and the streets in Warrnambool. It has sounding details, and angles of line from the leading lights.Stamp, rectangular, including "AUG 1910" Stamp, double oval " - - - -CHART" Stamp, hand drawn, red circle, with "B" inside Hand written note "22-8-1910 - - - - - of surveying C. Ca - - - request of 15-8-10 [initials] " Notes and lines in red pen, including a grid of sounding numbers: "1300" "1050" "1200" "Possible Extension of Dock" "19-2-25" "Dock Dredged to 20 Ft" Notes and lines in blue pen "Extension of Dock to accommodate vessels drawing 20 Feet" and "Light not visible south of this line" Red dots (4) with yellow highlight at both leading lights, breakwater and jettyflagstaff hill, warrnambool, flagstaff hill maritime museum & village, maritime museum, maritime village, shipwreck coast, map, chart, navigation chart, plan, lady bay, warrnambool harbour, port of warrnambool, breakwater, jetty, pier, dock extension, proposed extension, vhr h2024, 1870, 1893, 1910, 1925, warrnambool town late 1800s, warrnambool streets late 1800s royal commission, 1923, public works, water commission, harbour trust, victorian harbours, sir jon coode

Brown soft covered book. Contents include: Winning Brown Coal at Yallourn Dredge Operation for Overburden Removal Boiler Plant at the Yallourn Power Station Electrical Equipment at the Yallourn Power Station Steam Plant at the Yallourn Power Station Yallourn-Melbourne High Tension Line Yarraville Terminal Station Transmission distribution High Transmission Towers for River Crossing Sugarloaf-Rubicon Hydroelectric Development Briquette factory Subsidiary Activities at Yallourn Future Developments thompson's engineering & pipe co. ltd, briquettes, electricity, power generation, yallourn, yallourn briguetting works, transmission lines, high tension switchgear, insulators, australian porcelain company, substation, brown coal, high tension line, sugarloaf-rubicon, plans, suspension tower, transposition tower, yarraville terminal station, condenser, newport power station, gippsland, hydroelectric

Table of Contents: Editorial, Quick combination methods in smelter assays, Twelve health precepts, News and notes, Correspondence, A neglected path of duty, Past students, A friendly castigation, Scientific brotherhood, The material constituents of a student, Henry Sutton, Old companions, Rapid methods for proximate analyses, Football, Temperance, Gas in the mine, The steam shovel at Panama, Physical properties of iron in relation to its chemical composition, The smallest engine on record, The diesel engine, Bendigo's rich goldfields, Concrete and steel, Dredging in Brazil, Editorial notes.Green booklet of 24 pageseditorial, quick combination methods in smelter assays, twelve health precepts, news and notes, correspondence, a neglected path of duty, past students, a friendly castigation, scientific brotherhood, the material constituents of a student, henry sutton, old companions, rapid methods for proximate analyses, football, temperance, gas in the mine, the steam shovel at panama, physical properties of iron in relation to its chemical composition, the smallest engine on record, the diesel engine, bendigo's rich goldfields, concrete and steel, dredging in brazil, editorial notes., alumni, f. brindsren, b .h. bennets, e. bleske, j. r. booth, a. s. coyte, h. b. cooke, t. a. couper, t. e. copeland, l. j. coulter, j. dickinson, g. h. davenport, w. e. eyres, e. fraser, a. a. gibson, g. govet, j. a. grant, e. c. hurdsfield, h. a. krause, w. kingston, h. r. kofoed, f. a. marriot, h. s. martin, d. m'dougall, c. w. nash, j. a. reid, j. sutherland, g. sides, e. trend, r. m. vaughan, s. b. vial, c. h. vale, o. c. witherden, e. m. weston, l. a. westcott, j. watson, j. worthington, j. adam, wilfred avery, h. baxter, h. caulfield, a. cropper, e. b. crossley, w. currie, dave don, hilary dowling, chas. fraser, a. d. galloway, w. geldard, hubert hall, g. s. hart, w. b. hirt, h. e. hawksworth, carl janssen, w. t. lakeland, l. j. lambert, c. lund, k. bryon moore, f. a. moss, jack orr, d. a. bunting, l. seward, h. s. sheppard, c. e. sands, n. stuckey, r. vale, r. watts, reg. williamson, wm. blythe, l. w. g. buchner, thos. davis, w. e. figgis, e. o. gregory, jack grieves, a. s. leathes, dave lilley, wm. macartney, guy ramsay, carl. moore, vic. nicholls, garnet nightingale, g. m. roberts, r. r. robin, len. seal, h. valentine, r. g. walker, n. buley, a. campbell, h. cornell, a. guy, h. hull, o. e. jaeger, m. mitchell, r. i. moore, j. r. sides, h. j. whittingham, c. s. whykes, colin c. corrie, h. miles, vic. milington, r. a. j. roberts, john r. booth, w. l. allen, f. c. hall, v. m. booth, e. s. anderson, r. blight, b. serjeant, m. williamson, fred j. martell, editorial, quick combination methods in smelter assays, twelve health precepts, news and notes, correspondence, a neglected path of duty, past students, a friendly castigation, scientific brotherhood, the material constituents of a student, henry sutton, old companions, rapid methods for proximate analyses, football, temperance, gas in the mine, the steam shovel at panama, physical properties of iron in relation to its chemical composition

Built in 1914 by Fleming and Ferguson in Paisley Scotland as Sir William Matthews for the Ceylon Government, she was a twin screwed steam bucket dredge. She was purchased from the Western Australian Government by the Melbourne Harbour Trust on 10 October 1941. After an extensive overhaul, the vessel was renamed the George Kermode and commenced operation in Victorian waters on 22 June 1942. The George Kermode was scuttled by the Department of Conservation, Forests and Land off Phillip Island on the 1 April 1976 as part of an artificial reef program. This vessel was used to dredge the Port Phillip channels from 1942 and is of cultural significance to Queenscliffe.Binnacle compass from the 'George Kermode'Compass No. 3127N Sestrel Type 89098bucket dredge, port phillip, melbourne harbour trust

Two red covered auction catalogues with black printing for an auction at the Fryerstown Creek Dredging Syndicate, Fryerstown on 8th February, 1945 comprising 52 H.P. Ruston & Hornsby Diesel Engine, 35 H.P. McDonald Super Diesel Engine, 8 in. Class G Thompson Water Pump, 6 in. Thompson gravel Pump, thousands of feet of Piping, Tanks, corr. Iron Buildings, Tools, Belting and Equipment. Contains descriptions of some of the lots. J. H. Curnow & Son were the auctioneers.business, auctioneers, j h curnow & son pty ltd, ian dyett collection - auction catalogue - fryerstown creek dredging syndicate, j h curnow & son, j l jamieson & co, national security (general) regulations, the cambridge press, w g wedd

Red covered auction catalogue for a sale held on the 26th February, 1936 by Order of The State Rivers and Water Supply Commission at Clyde and the Main Depot at Narre Warren. For sale was Dredging,Mining and Contractors' Machinery, Plant and Equipment, Steam Winches, Boilers, Rails, Roadmaking & Farmers' Implements, Scrap Iron, Rolling Stock, Harness and Sundries. Columns to write prices on the right side edge of the pages. Hand written Supplementary List for Narre Warren Depot machine sewn inside the back cover. J. H. Curnow & Son were the auctioneers and the catalogue was printed by Boltons Print, Bendigo.business, auctioneers, j h curnow & son pty ltd, ian dyett collection - auction catalogue - the state rivers and water supply commission, j h curnow & son, boltons print bendigo

The photo from 1907-8 is a sepia print, depicting a small valley with building at base. There are flumes visible above areas of water, trees on hills and a few small cottages on the hillside. Cock's Pioneer Gold & Tin Sluicing Co NZ No 2 Site. The photo was taken of Matthews Gully looking west. Sluicing was undertaken in the area from 1900 to 1942 with some short breaks between these periods. The image depicts a location mined by Cocks Pioneer Gold and Tin Sluicing Company (as recorded on the annotation on the card mount) The Cocks Pioneer Gold and Tin Mines N.L was one of El Dorado's two largest open cut sluicing mines of the 20th Century. The other was named the Cocks El Dorado Gold Dredging Company. The Cocks Pioneer Mines operated from 1901 until 1941 and found a total of 117,378 ounces of Gold and 1,673 tones of tin concentrates over these years. The Cocks company was formed in 1898 and operated until 1941. Open cut sluicing involved the use of high-powered hoses which used the centrifugal sand pump system (known as hydraulic sluicing) which broke down the soil which was then processed for gold and other precious metals. From 1914 , four years after this image was captured, the company reformed to Cocks Pioneer Gold and Tin Mines NL (previously it was known as Cocks Pioneer Sluicing Co) and undertook large scale sluicing operations until 1929 and then 1934-1941. El Dorado is located on Reedy Creek and is surrounded by forested country to the north and east. It is 20 km east of Wangaratta in Victoria's regional north-east. John Cock was the son of a Cornish minor who arrived in El Dorado in 1858. Cock founded his gold and tin mining company which ran successfully for many years in the El Dorado region. It was an open cut sluicing company because of the abandonment of underground mining after this was deemed too dangerous. In 1935 Cock's El Dorado Company commissioned the floating dredge which is still visible in El Dorado today. The dredge was built by the Thompson engineering works, Castlemaine, and weighed over 2,000 tones and today has a place on the Victorian Registers of historic buildings. Interestingly, the name El Dorado does not derive from the gold in the region, but from the Barambogie pastoral run completed by William Baker in 1840-1841. Gold was discovered in El Dorado 1854 but the gold was too deep for individual prospectors to find, it required the use of heavy machinery.The search for gold is ingrained into the history of Victoria and therefore, images like this one which portray an open cut sluicing site can reveal important information for society and technology for the date when the photograph was taken. This image is of important historical significance for its ability to convey information about sluicing and the methods used to find gold in 1910. It also shows a location where sluicing was undertook which provides insight into the impact of sluicing on the environment at a time when it was done. This image is important for current research into the history of El Dorado, a small regional location near Wangaratta in Victoria's North East. Therefore, this image has the capacity to be beneficial for research into society and the motivations of those living and working in this region during this period and therefore, has social significance. The Beechworth Burke Museum has additional images relating to gold sluicing and El Dorado which can be analysed and studied alongside images like this one.Sepia coloured rectangle photograph printed on gloss photographic paper Reverse: 1997. 2613/ A02613/ No2 site/ Matthews Gully/ Cocks Pioneer G&T. ?? Co NZ/ No2 Site looking West/ 1907-8/ (7)sluicing, hydraulic sluicing, 1907, 1908, mining, cock's pioneer gold & tin sluicing co nz, nz, site no 2, matthews gully, west, valley, building, cottages, hillside, trees, water, gold and tin mine

Roy Phillips was born in 1907 in Yackandandah and moved with his family to Beechworth when he was five years old. His father was involved in dredging operations at Lake Sambell but his parents also had other family living in Beechworth, with whom they lived. Dr Phillips tells vivid stories about life in Beechworth in the first half of the Twentieth Century, from the daily lives of young children of the time to the town's relationship to the local Chinese community. He discusses features of the landscape such as 'The Rock' at which community concerts were held and 'The Echo' (an echo-sounding point over a nearby gully) which he states are no longer used in the same way. He also discusses changing community attitudes to various issues, for example, 'not being coddled' as a child but living in a town with very strict rules about people of different religions mingling. This oral history recording was part of a project conducted by Jennifer Williams in the year 2000 to capture the everyday life and struggles in Beechworth during the twentieth century. This project involved recording seventy oral histories on cassette tapes of local Beechworth residents which were then published in a book titled: Listen to what they say: voices of twentieth century Beechworth. These cassette tapes were digitised in July 2021 with funds made available by the Friends of the Burke.Dr Roy Phillips' account of his life in Beechworth in the early part of the 20th Century is historically and socially significant to the cultural heritage of the region. He describes town life from a child's point of view during a time of transition to life after the Gold Rush era, including social tensions existing between cultural groups such as the Chinese community and European-heritage townspeople and between people of different religious groups in Beechworth. This oral history account is socially and historically significant as it is a part of a broader collection of interviews conducted by Jennifer Williams which were published in the book 'Listen to what they say: voices of twentieth-century Beechworth.' While the township of Beechworth is known for its history as a gold rush town, these accounts provide a unique insight into the day-to-day life of the town's residents during the 20th century, many of which will have now been lost if they had not been preserved.This is a digital copy of a recording that was originally captured on a cassette tape. The cassette tape is black with a horizontal white strip and is currently stored in a clear flat plastic rectangular container. It holds up 40 minutes of recordings on each side.Dr Roy Phillips /beechworth, yackandandah, wangaratta, mining, dredging, 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, chinese community, typhoid, lake kerferd, reminiscences, memories, childhood, lake sambell, alcoholism, new year celebrations, transport, horses, foresters lodge, oddfellows lodge, funeral practices, child-rearing practices, star hotel, the rock, racism, chinese dragon, benevolent society, star lane coach building factory, outdoor concerts, gold, jimmy ingram, kelly gang, kelly family, churches, catholic, methodist, protestant, anglican, confuscionist, buddhism, women's christian temperance association, hotels, twentieth century, coronation of king george iv, echo point, the echo, tippany cat, marbles, children's games, cornish, cornwall, listen to what they say, oral history

This is a photograph of the ship, 'Speculant' at the Warrnambool Breakwater. There is another ship alongside the 'Speculant' and the dredge, 'Pioneer' is in the background. The 'Speculant' was a three masted barquentine of 412 tons built in Scotland in 1895. It was purchased by P. J. McGennan in 1902 and wrecked at Cape Patton, near Apollo Bay, in 1911. It was one of the few ships to be registered at the Warrnambool port. Peter John McGennan (1844-1920) was a cooper by trade, initially operating a shop in Warrnambool making cheese vats, churns, coolers and tanks. He then opened a factory in South Warrnambool making butter boxes, nails and barbed wire. He owned several ships, using them to import material for his businesses, especially white pine timber from New Zealand, and to export his own products. He was a Warrnambool Councillor from 1885 to 1891.This photograph is of interest as a reminder of the importance in the late 19th century and early 20th century Warrnambool of Peter McGennan and his industries and community work.This is a black and white photograph of three ships. It is enclosed in glass with a varnished wooden frame with an ornate edging. The photograph shows one ship in the background and two at the Warrnambool breakwater with some railway cartage trucks in the foreground.ship 'speculant', dredge 'pioneer', p.j. mcgennan

This photograph depicts Cock's Pioneer G & T Sluicing site No. 4 in El Dorado. Looking eastwards, the photo captures a wooden and tin building with various mining equipment strewn in the foreground. Underneath the verandah, figures can be seen. These are believed to be a Mr. Hollister (left), Mrs. Breustedt (4th from left), children Min and Chris Breustedt, and Kate Timmons holding a girl's hand. The Cocks Pioneer Gold and Tin Mines N.L was one of El Dorado's two largest open-cut sluicing mines of the 20th Century. The other was named the Cocks El Dorado Gold Dredging Company. The Cocks Pioneer Mines operated from 1901 until 1941 and found a total of 117,378 ounces of Gold and 1,673 tones of tin concentrates over these years. The Cocks company was formed in 1898 and operated until 1941. Open cut sluicing involved the use of high-powered hoses which used the centrifugal sand pump system (known as hydraulic sluicing) which broke down the soil which was then processed for gold and other precious metals. From 1914, four years after this image was captured, the company reformed to Cocks Pioneer Gold and Tin Mines NL (previously it was known as Cocks Pioneer Sluicing Co) and undertook large-scale sluicing operations until 1929 and then 1934-1941. The Cocks Pioneer was an extremely successful mining company during the 20th century. In the Annual Report of the Secretary for Mines for the year 1915, the Cocks Pioneer was the largest producer of gold and tin collecting 5,535 ozs. of gold and £7,500 of tin. Twenty years later in 1935, Cocks Pioneer was still one of the most profitable mines in Victoria, ranking as the second-highest dividend paying mine. The company produced a total of 3,650 kg of gold. El Dorado is located on Reedy Creek and is surrounded by forested country to the north and east. It is 20 km east of Wangaratta in Victoria's regional northeast. John Cock was the son of a Cornish miner who arrived in El Dorado in 1858. Cock founded his gold and tin mining company which ran successfully for many years in the El Dorado region. It was an open-cut sluicing company because of the abandonment of underground mining after this was deemed too dangerous. In 1935 Cock's El Dorado Company commissioned the floating dredge which is still visible in El Dorado today. The dredge was built by the Thompson engineering works, Castlemaine, and weighed over 2,000 tones and today has a place on the Victorian Registers of historic buildings. Interestingly, the name El Dorado does not derive from the gold in the region, but from the Barambogie pastoral run completed by William Baker in 1840-1841. Gold was discovered in El Dorado in 1854 but the gold was too deep for individual prospectors to find, it required the use of heavy machinery.The search for gold is ingrained into the history of Victoria and therefore, images like this one which portray an open cut sluicing site can reveal important information for society and technology for the date when the photograph was taken. This image is of important historical significance for its ability to convey information about sluicing and the methods used to find gold in 1910. It also shows a location where sluicing was undertook which provides insight into the impact of sluicing on the environment at a time when it was done. This image is important for current research into the history of El Dorado, a small regional location near Wangaratta in Victoria's North East. Therefore, this image has the capacity to be beneficial for research into society and the motivations of those living and working in this region during this period and therefore, has social significance. The Beechworth Burke Museum has additional images relating to gold sluicing and El Dorado which can be analysed and studied alongside images like this one.A black and white copy of a sepia coloured rectangular photograph printed on matte photographic paper mounted on boardObverse: COCKS PIONEER G + T SL CO, N.L. / 1910 - 11 / NO 4 SITE LOOKING EAST / 4 Reverse: 1997.2508 / AUG 29 1909cocks pioneer gold and tin sluicing company, el dorado, mining, sluicing, hydraulic mining, hollister, breustedt, timmons, gold, tin, gold rush, victoria

This photograph dating to 1910 depicts an open cut sluicing site located in El Dorado captured looking east up the open cut from the number 3 Barge site. Sluicing was undertaken in the area from 1900 to 1942 with some short breaks between these periods. The image depicts a location mined by Cocks Pioneer Gold and Tin Sluicing Company (as recorded on the annotation on the card mount). It portrays open cut rocks with a crevice in the center of the image where the sluicing was being undertaken. There is a small timber structure on the right of the image which could be an entrance to a mine or supports made of wood to prevent a cave in at the open cut site and above the cut rock there is bush. The timber structure has rail tracks on top of the bridge which could suggest the identification of this structure as a mine entrance. The rail tracks were used for little carts which hauled soil from the mine. The Cocks Pioneer Gold and Tin Mines N.L was one of El Dorado's two largest open cut sluicing mines of the 20th Century. The other was named the Cocks El Dorado Gold Dredging Company. The Cocks Pioneer Mines operated from 1901 until 1941 and found a total of 117,378 ounces of Gold and 1,673 tones of tin concentrates over these years. The Cocks company was formed in 1898 and operated until 1941. Open cut sluicing involved the use of high-powered hoses which used the centrifugal sand pump system (known as hydraulic sluicing) which broke down the soil which was then processed for gold and other precious metals. From 1914 , four years after this image was captured, the company reformed to Cocks Pioneer Gold and Tin Mines NL (previously it was known as Cocks Pioneer Sluicing Co) and undertook large scale sluicing operations until 1929 and then 1934-1941. El Dorado is located on Reedy Creek and is surrounded by forested country to the north and east. It is 20 km east of Wangaratta in Victoria's regional north-east. John Cock was the son of a Cornish minor who arrived in El Dorado in 1858. Cock founded his gold and tin mining company which ran successfully for many years in the El Dorado region. It was an open cut sluicing company because of the abandonment of underground mining after this was deemed too dangerous. In 1935 Cock's El Dorado Company commissioned the floating dredge which is still visible in El Dorado today. The dredge was built by the Thompson engineering works, Castlemaine, and weighed over 2,000 tones and today has a place on the Victorian Registers of historic buildings. Interestingly, the name El Dorado does not derive from the gold in the region, but from the Barambogie pastoral run completed by William Baker in 1840-1841. Gold was discovered in El Dorado 1854 but the gold was too deep for individual prospectors to find, it required the use of heavy machinery.The search for gold is ingrained into the history of Victoria and therefore, images like this one which portray an open cut sluicing site can reveal important information for society and technology for the date when the photograph was taken. This image is of important historical significance for its ability to convey information about sluicing and the methods used to find gold in 1910. It also shows a location where sluicing was undertook which provides insight into the impact of sluicing on the environment at a time when it was done. This image is important for current research into the history of El Dorado, a small regional location near Wangaratta in Victoria's North East. Therefore, this image has the capacity to be beneficial for research into society and the motivations of those living and working in this region during this period and therefore, has social significance. The Beechworth Burke Museum has additional images relating to gold sluicing and El Dorado which can be analysed and studied alongside images like this one.Sepia coloured rectangular photograph printed on gloss photographic paper mounted on board.Obverse: COCKS PIONEER Q + T SL CO, N.L. / 1910 / LOOKING EAST UP OPEN CUT / FROM NO3 BARGE SITE / Reverse: 1997 . 2611 / A02611el dorado, north east gold, sluicing, gold sluicing, hydraulic sluicing, 1910, gold and tin mine, open cut mining, mining, gold mining, north-east victoria, beechworth, burke museum