Historical information

Taken in the 1950s, depicted is a crowd of men, women and children in a mine cutting at the Three Mile Mine, Baarmutha. The majority of the crowd do not appear to be mine workers. Some appear to be inspecting or interacting with the equipment.

Three Mile was a part of the Beechworth Mining District which was established in 1858. The District contained seven divisions: Spring Creek, Snake Valley, Three Mile Creek, Buckland, Woolshed, Yackandandah and Omeo. Over time the role of Mining Districts was reduced until the Beechworth Mining District, and other Mining Districts in the area, was put under the administration of the Mines Department in 1975.

Water races were commonly used in gold mining as the miners require large volumes of water to separate the gold from the dirt. Beechworth was the site of many firsts in Victorian colonial goldfield water management. Laws and regulations for water management and the control of water rights were established at Beechworth. The first Victorian water permits were also issued there, and the first sales of water for mining.

Significance

This photograph is historically significant as an example of the importance of the gold rush in Beechworth. The photograph also depicts water infrastructure which has a significant history regarding usage and policy development within the Beechworth Mining District.

Physical description

Black and white square photograph printed on matte photographic paper.

Inscriptions & markings

Reverse:
SW-50-1 / 1997 3140 /
unreadable pencil markings