Historical information

A brief gold rush starting in 1858 led to the opening up of the Emerald district. While short lived (and not very successful,) the influx of people led to the early timber and farming industries that built the communities that now exist.
The image on the postcard shows typical working conditions on more advanced operations, using significant diversions of creeks to provide water for sluicing while the creek bed below the diversion would be dried and exposed to allow workers to remove the material for processing in the hydraulic sluice.
The correspondence on the postcard, whilst sometimes difficult to read, helps to paint a picture of life in the district, and how people communicated in this earlier period.
The recipient of the postcard is a prominent member of the early Gembrook community, John Ure, who ran various businesses including a cheese factory in Silver Hills/North Gembrook.
The lack of legible postage date opens up many mysteries about this item,
as well as different references to the person in the sluice being "Tom Collins"

Significance

The record shows strong significance, depicting working conditions and technology of early gold mining in the Emerald area. Even more-so, the personal/commercial correspondence depicts a customer ordering cheese from the local cheese factory, presumably before electric communication.

Physical description

Black and White rectangular postcard printed on laminated card stock, personal correspondence. This postcard depicts hydraulic sluicing in the Emerald area of Victoria. Two bearded workers, one wearing a hat, are posing in the mid ground. One is standing in the sluice itself and one standing above on the embankment with shovel in hand. Native forest surrounds the workings with roots exposed, while the sluice itself runs vertical through the frame, roughly cut into the ground. Eagle eyes may notice the missing hat sitting on part of the woodwork towards the foreground.

Inscriptions & markings

Obverse:

Hydraulic Sluicing, /
Emerald near Gembrook /

Reverse:

Printed:
Printed in Prussia /
[Print torn off]orne /

Handwritten Message:

ohn Ure /
Dear Sir /
Will you kindly send /
a loaf of old cheese for /
about si ound /
Station on Sunday next /
will be up there if fine /
kindly remember me /
to all /
Bill Atz /

Handwritten Address:

Mr John Ure /
orth Gembrook Post Office /
Gembrook /

Handwritten Note:
ho Collin /
Menzies creek sluicing race /
Prospect Bend area /

Postmarks:
Unintelligible except for Victoria and AP 9
May likely say Gembrook, year unknown

Pencil Marks:
5
VEMUP1039