Beaconsfield Gold
Jul. 9th, 2008 05:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
xenithA story of gold, and what people will do to get it. Mostly though, it's a story of numbers.
In writing this, I've relied on extracts from two books: Town With A History, by Coultman Smith, first published 1978 and Beaconsfield Gold, by Janet Kerrison, first published in 1963. (From now on, I'll refer to these as TWH & BG)
Boiler house
Early attempts at mining in the district were for iron, in the 1870s there were a number of small companies extracting iron. The quality wasn't sufficient to make it a viable long term proposition though. It's still there of course, and with modern methods, probably profitable but it doesn't have the same allure as that other metal.
The gold story starts in 1847 with James Gardner who was working for the Tamar Lime Works when he dug up a interesting bit of rock, but he didn't recognise what it was. Later, he runs off to the Victorian goldfields and here he realises what it was he threw away, so he comes back with some friends and they poke around a bit. "But water proved a difficulty and as they lacked the means to buy the necessary machinery, they abandoned the field and returned to Victoria."(BG) He returns a few years later and writes a letter to the Examiner, which stirs up interest in the area. Some alluvial gold is found, but "the wash was poor and some Chinamen in 1871 were the last persons to work the alluvial." There were a number of small claims around Brandy Creek in the 1870s, but nothing of any significance.
Then in 1877, it is reported in the Examiner that "A very rich quartz reef has been discovered at Brandy Creek by Mr W. Dally. The reef is about 18" thick and well defined gold is showing very freely in the stone" (BG). This was the mother lode -- the Tasmania Reef. A small rush started, although never on the scale of the Victorian fields, about 700 miners at the most, mostly for alluvial gold. And it didn't take long for the companies to get the advantage, with the financial backing needed for machinery.
"By 1878 many alluvial claims had suspended operations in consequence of the quantity of water. Many of the owners, finding capital necessary to erect pumping appliances, lost interest in their claims."(BG)
With the employment provided by the mines, the town, renamed Beaconsfield in 1879, prospered. However, right from the beginning, flooding was always a problem, and the equipment the mining companies had wasn't up to the task of handling it. "The directors of the four companies [with the biggest interest] realised that if the reef was to be mined below the 400 feet level now reached, they would have to amalgamate", which they did in June 1888, and the new Tasmania Co "now employed almost two-thirds of the men on the field" (BG). With the development work required to deal with the water, the company wasn't making money. To the annoyance of the shareholders, "no dividends were paid between May and October 1889" and in November "men were discharged and the main battery stopped work."(BG) "The slump which began in 1888 dragged on until 1894, and they were sad days for Beaconsfield. The company's work force was down to 72 men, and many left the district."(TWH)
But eventually mining resumed, and prosperity returned. In 1899, the population was "2,6999, with 7 hotels, eight boarding houses, five bakers, four blacksmiths, two doctors, two watchmakers, a solicitor, a tailor, 15 general stores, six greengrocers, five drapers, a state school, and four private schools." (TWH)
A little side note from Town With A History about workers stealing gold:
"The underground workers relied mainly on a wad of clay in the instep or a hollowed heel in which they imbedded a gobbet of golf or a fragment of rich quartz when coming off shift. The battery hands added a further refinement. In the stamper room at the battery, there was a gap between the top of the wall and the roof to allow the dust to escape. Through this gap suitable prizes were flipped with the assistant of a whippy stick and a ball of clay onto the slop outside. These would then be recovered on the boot at the end of the shift."
In 1905 police acted. "Clean-shaved Sgt Campbell, from Launceston, took to the bush to grow a beard, then arrived in Beaconsfield perhaps over-disguised as a miner. ... He arrived on a Saturday, put up at a boarding house, and that evening strolled down Weld St on his way to the pub to find what could he hear around the bar. Weld St was suspiciously busy, and as the sergeant proceeded the ladies bobbed and the gentlemen of the town raised their hats, and with one accord all the citizens greet him courteously : "Good evening, Sgt Campbell." He returned to Launceston the next day. (TWH)
The town's prosperity wasn't too last long though. Soon the company again needed better equipment to deal with the water problems, and they had "an English offer to purchase the mine". This was accepted in 1903, with the hope it would bring in more capital, to deal with the water problem, and better management.
"The Financier alone was critical of the Company because its mine already had the most extensive pumping machinery in the Southern hemisphere and a similar undertaking by John Taylor and Co. to unwater a Cornish tin mine had failed; investors in this waterlogged derelict at Beaconsfield were warned that they richly deserved to lose their money." (BG)
"The sinking of the new (Grubb) shaft was begun on March 23, 1905."(BG)
Grubb Shaft engine house
"As for surface work engine houses were built at Hart and Grubb Shaft and central boiler houses were erected. ... The policy of the Directors was to spend a large amount initially so that the mine could be worked on a large scale as cheaply as possible."
Hart Shaft winder house (The main shaft, and the one currently being worked -- you can see the top of the headframe just above the roof).
"The company blundered on. It had only $360,000 in working capital, and since 1904 had spent $502,000 on capital items. The shortfall came out of the profits. [In 1909] Shares were selling at 27 cents that had brought $4 six years before." (TWH)
"By early 1910 certain facts could not be overlooked. The working expenditure had reached the stage where it was greater than the value of the output."(BG) But the mine was too valuable to close down!
On 12th October 1912, came the Mt Lyell disaster, (which I can't find a good link for). At the mine near Queenstown (on the west coast) a fire trapped 90 miners underground for days, and 42 of them didn't come out alive. The worse mining disaster in the state, possibly the country -- imagine the impact it had on other mining communities. "Anxious people in Beaconsfield waited for news. Subdued and a little unnerved the miners went on with their work." Then, on the morning of October 17 the night shift workers were on their way out at the end of their shift. "As the cage was rapidly ascending there was the sound of an oilskin coat tearing. Almost instantly the men became aware that two of their number -- Thomas Floyd and Murdock Fraser Stewart -- had silently disappeared from the cage; to be crushed in the six inches between the cage and timber of their shaft. The cage was felt to sway as the crushed bodies of their mates were dashed to pieces at the bottom of the shaft some 900 feet below.
"The surface was reached; the story told. All Beaconsfield was soon aware that another tragedy had occurred. The doctor was called and with Spowart, the underground captain, and the sergeant, went below. As they descended in the shaft (in the capstan cage) they saw in the timber parts of boots, portions of clothing, fragments of flesh. At the bottom they found the naked dismembered bodies so horridly shattered that it took the three men over four hours to collect the pieces and bring them to the surface. Horror mingled with sympathy and panic. First Lyell -- then this. Some gave up mining; others left for a new field." BG
Also in 1912, came the unions. There were demands for higher wages, reduced hours, even though the company was already running at a loss. Miners held a protest meeting, and a strike was imminent. Miners' wives held an anti-protest meeting, and were told to mind their own business. The State government stepped in, a settlement was made and an increase in pay of 20% was decided on.
On top of this increase in wages, the company still had problems with water. "Because of the danger of a greatly increased influx of water, the Company found it impossible to continue sinking either of the two shafts. Another scheme and pumping plant estimated to cost over ₤90,000 was necessary if development was to continue." (BG)
"The company hadn't shown a profit since 1908. The grade of ore mined had fallen from approx 1 oz. per ton to approx half an ounce in 1913." (BG) An engineer was appointed, and he reported that "it was to be expected that for each foot in depth the mine was sunk, 21 million gallons of water would have to be pumped. With the present machinery this would mean at least three days' pumping for every foot sunk." (BG) Obviously not a viable proposition for a struggling company. So, "at the end of January, 1914 the Superintendent received instructions from the London directors to discontinue all developmental work and to extract the payable reserves of ore. This was to be finished by April." (BG)
And so the mine closed.
Beaconsfield Gold ends with the following lines:
"The legend of the overlooked asset still persists and the people of Beaconsfield still talk of the gold below. The mine closed despite the existence of a reef varying from 600-1200 feet long with a width of 4.5 to 7 feet, assaying from 6-13 dwt per ton ... There is a fascination about the future possibilities of the mine which grips the imagination of all who become interested in its history. The hope lingers that the struggle will be taken up again and the 'grand old Tassie' will live once more."
And a note that a company was created in 1938 to revive the mine using hydro-power and more modern machinery, with no luck.
For the current activity, this is from Wikipedia:
"By 1991 the old Hart Shaft collar had been re-established and water pumped out to 160 metres deep. The project was suspended until 1992 when the mine's owners changed. Deep drilling resumed in 1993 to review the resource estimates and, from 1994, the Beaconsfield Mine Joint Venture has carried out drilling of the depth extension of the Tasmania Reef. A permanent stage pumping station 181 m below ground has been lowering the water in the shaft since August 1995. The permanent winder and head frame were completed in January 1996 and the shaft finished in late 1996. An ore treatment plant was built during the 1999/2000 financial year."
Hart Shaft headframe
This is behind/below the fence in front of the boiler house (first photo), but I've forgotten what it is.
There are some photos from inside the museum on the Beaconsfield Gold website.
In writing this, I've relied on extracts from two books: Town With A History, by Coultman Smith, first published 1978 and Beaconsfield Gold, by Janet Kerrison, first published in 1963. (From now on, I'll refer to these as TWH & BG)
Early attempts at mining in the district were for iron, in the 1870s there were a number of small companies extracting iron. The quality wasn't sufficient to make it a viable long term proposition though. It's still there of course, and with modern methods, probably profitable but it doesn't have the same allure as that other metal.
The gold story starts in 1847 with James Gardner who was working for the Tamar Lime Works when he dug up a interesting bit of rock, but he didn't recognise what it was. Later, he runs off to the Victorian goldfields and here he realises what it was he threw away, so he comes back with some friends and they poke around a bit. "But water proved a difficulty and as they lacked the means to buy the necessary machinery, they abandoned the field and returned to Victoria."(BG) He returns a few years later and writes a letter to the Examiner, which stirs up interest in the area. Some alluvial gold is found, but "the wash was poor and some Chinamen in 1871 were the last persons to work the alluvial." There were a number of small claims around Brandy Creek in the 1870s, but nothing of any significance.
Then in 1877, it is reported in the Examiner that "A very rich quartz reef has been discovered at Brandy Creek by Mr W. Dally. The reef is about 18" thick and well defined gold is showing very freely in the stone" (BG). This was the mother lode -- the Tasmania Reef. A small rush started, although never on the scale of the Victorian fields, about 700 miners at the most, mostly for alluvial gold. And it didn't take long for the companies to get the advantage, with the financial backing needed for machinery.
"By 1878 many alluvial claims had suspended operations in consequence of the quantity of water. Many of the owners, finding capital necessary to erect pumping appliances, lost interest in their claims."(BG)
With the employment provided by the mines, the town, renamed Beaconsfield in 1879, prospered. However, right from the beginning, flooding was always a problem, and the equipment the mining companies had wasn't up to the task of handling it. "The directors of the four companies [with the biggest interest] realised that if the reef was to be mined below the 400 feet level now reached, they would have to amalgamate", which they did in June 1888, and the new Tasmania Co "now employed almost two-thirds of the men on the field" (BG). With the development work required to deal with the water, the company wasn't making money. To the annoyance of the shareholders, "no dividends were paid between May and October 1889" and in November "men were discharged and the main battery stopped work."(BG) "The slump which began in 1888 dragged on until 1894, and they were sad days for Beaconsfield. The company's work force was down to 72 men, and many left the district."(TWH)
But eventually mining resumed, and prosperity returned. In 1899, the population was "2,6999, with 7 hotels, eight boarding houses, five bakers, four blacksmiths, two doctors, two watchmakers, a solicitor, a tailor, 15 general stores, six greengrocers, five drapers, a state school, and four private schools." (TWH)
A little side note from Town With A History about workers stealing gold:
"The underground workers relied mainly on a wad of clay in the instep or a hollowed heel in which they imbedded a gobbet of golf or a fragment of rich quartz when coming off shift. The battery hands added a further refinement. In the stamper room at the battery, there was a gap between the top of the wall and the roof to allow the dust to escape. Through this gap suitable prizes were flipped with the assistant of a whippy stick and a ball of clay onto the slop outside. These would then be recovered on the boot at the end of the shift."
In 1905 police acted. "Clean-shaved Sgt Campbell, from Launceston, took to the bush to grow a beard, then arrived in Beaconsfield perhaps over-disguised as a miner. ... He arrived on a Saturday, put up at a boarding house, and that evening strolled down Weld St on his way to the pub to find what could he hear around the bar. Weld St was suspiciously busy, and as the sergeant proceeded the ladies bobbed and the gentlemen of the town raised their hats, and with one accord all the citizens greet him courteously : "Good evening, Sgt Campbell." He returned to Launceston the next day. (TWH)
The town's prosperity wasn't too last long though. Soon the company again needed better equipment to deal with the water problems, and they had "an English offer to purchase the mine". This was accepted in 1903, with the hope it would bring in more capital, to deal with the water problem, and better management.
"The Financier alone was critical of the Company because its mine already had the most extensive pumping machinery in the Southern hemisphere and a similar undertaking by John Taylor and Co. to unwater a Cornish tin mine had failed; investors in this waterlogged derelict at Beaconsfield were warned that they richly deserved to lose their money." (BG)
"The sinking of the new (Grubb) shaft was begun on March 23, 1905."(BG)
"As for surface work engine houses were built at Hart and Grubb Shaft and central boiler houses were erected. ... The policy of the Directors was to spend a large amount initially so that the mine could be worked on a large scale as cheaply as possible."
"The company blundered on. It had only $360,000 in working capital, and since 1904 had spent $502,000 on capital items. The shortfall came out of the profits. [In 1909] Shares were selling at 27 cents that had brought $4 six years before." (TWH)
"By early 1910 certain facts could not be overlooked. The working expenditure had reached the stage where it was greater than the value of the output."(BG) But the mine was too valuable to close down!
On 12th October 1912, came the Mt Lyell disaster, (which I can't find a good link for). At the mine near Queenstown (on the west coast) a fire trapped 90 miners underground for days, and 42 of them didn't come out alive. The worse mining disaster in the state, possibly the country -- imagine the impact it had on other mining communities. "Anxious people in Beaconsfield waited for news. Subdued and a little unnerved the miners went on with their work." Then, on the morning of October 17 the night shift workers were on their way out at the end of their shift. "As the cage was rapidly ascending there was the sound of an oilskin coat tearing. Almost instantly the men became aware that two of their number -- Thomas Floyd and Murdock Fraser Stewart -- had silently disappeared from the cage; to be crushed in the six inches between the cage and timber of their shaft. The cage was felt to sway as the crushed bodies of their mates were dashed to pieces at the bottom of the shaft some 900 feet below.
"The surface was reached; the story told. All Beaconsfield was soon aware that another tragedy had occurred. The doctor was called and with Spowart, the underground captain, and the sergeant, went below. As they descended in the shaft (in the capstan cage) they saw in the timber parts of boots, portions of clothing, fragments of flesh. At the bottom they found the naked dismembered bodies so horridly shattered that it took the three men over four hours to collect the pieces and bring them to the surface. Horror mingled with sympathy and panic. First Lyell -- then this. Some gave up mining; others left for a new field." BG
Also in 1912, came the unions. There were demands for higher wages, reduced hours, even though the company was already running at a loss. Miners held a protest meeting, and a strike was imminent. Miners' wives held an anti-protest meeting, and were told to mind their own business. The State government stepped in, a settlement was made and an increase in pay of 20% was decided on.
On top of this increase in wages, the company still had problems with water. "Because of the danger of a greatly increased influx of water, the Company found it impossible to continue sinking either of the two shafts. Another scheme and pumping plant estimated to cost over ₤90,000 was necessary if development was to continue." (BG)
"The company hadn't shown a profit since 1908. The grade of ore mined had fallen from approx 1 oz. per ton to approx half an ounce in 1913." (BG) An engineer was appointed, and he reported that "it was to be expected that for each foot in depth the mine was sunk, 21 million gallons of water would have to be pumped. With the present machinery this would mean at least three days' pumping for every foot sunk." (BG) Obviously not a viable proposition for a struggling company. So, "at the end of January, 1914 the Superintendent received instructions from the London directors to discontinue all developmental work and to extract the payable reserves of ore. This was to be finished by April." (BG)
And so the mine closed.
Beaconsfield Gold ends with the following lines:
"The legend of the overlooked asset still persists and the people of Beaconsfield still talk of the gold below. The mine closed despite the existence of a reef varying from 600-1200 feet long with a width of 4.5 to 7 feet, assaying from 6-13 dwt per ton ... There is a fascination about the future possibilities of the mine which grips the imagination of all who become interested in its history. The hope lingers that the struggle will be taken up again and the 'grand old Tassie' will live once more."
And a note that a company was created in 1938 to revive the mine using hydro-power and more modern machinery, with no luck.
For the current activity, this is from Wikipedia:
"By 1991 the old Hart Shaft collar had been re-established and water pumped out to 160 metres deep. The project was suspended until 1992 when the mine's owners changed. Deep drilling resumed in 1993 to review the resource estimates and, from 1994, the Beaconsfield Mine Joint Venture has carried out drilling of the depth extension of the Tasmania Reef. A permanent stage pumping station 181 m below ground has been lowering the water in the shaft since August 1995. The permanent winder and head frame were completed in January 1996 and the shaft finished in late 1996. An ore treatment plant was built during the 1999/2000 financial year."
This is behind/below the fence in front of the boiler house (first photo), but I've forgotten what it is.
There are some photos from inside the museum on the Beaconsfield Gold website.
