The three transcribed letters, numbers five, six and seven, are from a series of letters written by John Heithfield Wroth Pettit, 1852 - 1868, to his father in England. Letters five, six and seven are written mainly from the Forest Creek diggings at Castlemaine but also describe his time on the Bendigo goldfield. The full set of Pettit's letters describe his journey out to Australia on the 'Atrevida', his arrival, journey to the diggings, tools and methods used to search for gold during 1853 and his later life experiences working with roads and bridges, primarily in Gippsland area. In October 1854 John Pettit settled at Tarraville where he was employed as a superintendent of works connected with Roads and Bridges, later he set up privately as an architect, builder, land surveyor until September 1856, when he was appointed Assistant Surveyor in the Survey Department in which capacity he selected up a new line of road to the Omeo diggings and laid out townships. In 1862 he set up a business in Sale, Gippsland, as an architect/surveyor (Gippsland Times, 5th September, 1862, page 3). Letters from October 1854 to September 1856 give some information on the people, social life, opossum and kangaroo hunting, mustering cattle etc. Letters after 1856 mainly describe the country, methods of work and life led. Vocabularies of the Omeo, Norradyeree and Gippsland tribes c 1859 and a list of names of places, rivers and more, in the language of various un-named tribes in Gippsland c1857 occupy pages 148 – 162. (Source: https://indigenous.sl.nsw.gov.au/collection-items/john-h-w-pettit-letters-his-father-england-illustrated-sketches-writer-1852-1868#&gid=1&pid=3) Albert Richardson, the transcriber of the letters, was a long time member of the Bendigo Historical Society. He was particularly interested in the mining history of the region and wrote extensively on the mines on the Bendigo field. Thirty seven page handwritten transcription on lined foolscap paper by Albert Richardson of three of John Pettit's letters, numbers five, six and seven. The letters describe John's experiences on the Castlemaine, Bendigo and Ballarat goldfields. Extract from letter number five: 'We have been sinking sev'l holes about have obtained gold enough to pay the expenses of living up here perhaps a little more - it is hard work we usually rise with the Sun and keep at it until dark' John Pettit written in capitals in blue pen, top right hand corner of front pagejohn h.w. pettit, gold, goldmining, castlemaine, forest creek diggings, bendigo, gippsland