Where was gold found in Australia?

Answer 1

During the goldrush years, gold was found in each state of Australia and also the Northern Territory.

• Gold was found in New South Wales in towns around the Bathurst area in 1851, including Ophir, Lucknow, Sofala and Hill End. It was also found in other places such as Young and Bingara.
• The first gold in Victoria was found in Clunes on 11 June 1851, by James Esmond. However, on 9 August 1851, Victoria's goldrush began tentatively when gold was found at Sovereign Hill near Ballarat, in the same month Victoria gained its independence from the NSW colony. While the Ballarat goldfields were rich and promising, the real goldrush began when gold was discovered at Mt Alexander, 60km northeast of Ballarat, and close to the town of Bendigo, a few months later.
• In South Australia, gold was not as important in the state's economic development, but gold was still found in numerous places, such as Castambul in January 1846, and later on, Blinman, Yudanamutana, Beltana and other places.
• In 1852, small traces of gold were found at Lucky Valley, Kilkivan and Warwick. Queensland's first significant goldrush was at Canoona, near Rockhampton, in 1858, but the goldrush started in earnest when James Nash discovered Queensland's two largest nuggets in a gully off the Mary River near Gympie in October 1867.

  Other places where gold was found in Queensland include regions around Sarina, Bowen, Charters Towers, Mount Coolon, Ravenswood, Forsayth, Kidston, Georgetown and Croydon.

• The first payable gold was discovered in Tasmania in February 1852, at Tullochgorum in Tasmania's east.
• In 1892, gold was found at Coolgardie, Western Australia, sparking off the gold rush in Western Australia.
• The Northern Territory also had its own goldrushes near the Finniss River in 1865. Later discoveries followed, including Yam Creek, Cullen River, Gandy's Gully, Pine Creek and then Tennant Creek in the 1930s.

Answer 2

Gold was discovered in Australia as early as the 1830s, but were kept secret for a variety of reasons.

The first reported gold discovery in NSW was made by James McBrien, a lands Department Surveyor, in 1833, whilst he was surveying a road along the Fish River, between Rydal and Bathurst. McBrien recorded: "At E. (End of the survey line) 1 chain 50 links to river and marked a gum tree. At this place I found numerous particles of gold convenient to river."

Explorer Paul de Strezlecki discovered gold in the Victorian Alps in 1839 and William Campbell found gold on his sheep run in Strahlodden, Victoria, in 1840. In South Australia, the first recognised find in South Australia was at Castambul, north-east of Adelaide in January 1846, by Mr Tyrrell, the captain of the Montacute Copper Mine

Gold was first "officially" discovered in Australia in 1851, not far from Bathurst, New South Wales. It was found by Edward Hargraves, with help from an uncredited John Lister. The New South Wales government made the official announcement of the discovery of gold on 22 May 1851.

Answer 3

Gold was discovered in Australia as early as the 1820s and 30s, but discoveries were kept secret, for fear of sparking off unrest among the convicts. There is much conjecture about who was the first person to find gold in Australia. It would be fair to say that perhaps we will never actually know who was the first person to find gold. However, there are some records of notable people finding gold. Surveyor James McBrien reported finding gold near Bathurst, NSW in 1823. Polish explorer Paul Strzeleckifound gold near Hartley Vale in 1839. All these discoveries were kept secret, for fear of sparking off unrest among the convicts. When Reverend WB Clark found gold near Lithgow in 1941, he was requested by Governor Gipps to keep quiet about it. However, as more people left the Australian colonies to join the gold rush in California, the government began to seek experts who could locate gold in Australian countrysides.

Gold was first officially discovered in Australia in 1851, not far from Bathurst, New South Wales. Edward Hargraves had carefully studied the geology of the area and, convinced that it was similar to that of the California goldfields, from where he had just returned, went prospecting. He enlisted the assistance of John Lister, a man who had already found gold in the region. Lister led Hargraves directly to where gold was found, at Summerhill Creek, at a site which Hargraves named "Ophir". Hargraves has been credited with the discovery ever since, even though, by rights, credit should go to Lister.

Answer 4

Gold seems to have been first discovered in Australia on 15 February 1823, at Fish River in the Bathurst area.

However, these early discoveries were kept secret, for fear of sparking off unrest among the convicts. As more people left the Australian colonies to join the gold rush in California, it became apparent that the outward tide of manpower would need to be stemmed. The government began to seek experts who could locate gold in Australian countrysides.

Gold was first "officially" discovered in Australia in 1851, not far from Bathurst, New South Wales. The New South Wales government made the official announcement of the discovery of gold on 22 May 1851. Shortly after this, on 9 August 1851, Victoria had its first gold strike at Sovereign Hill near Ballarat, in the same month it gained its independence from the NSW colony. While the Ballarat goldfields were rich and promising, the real goldrush began when gold was discovered at Mt Alexander, 60km northeast of Ballarat, and close to the town of Bendigo.

Answer 5

Gold was found in large quantities in parts of Victoria, in the "Golden Triangle" which encompasses the towns of Bendigo, Ballarat and Castlemaine. It was also found in large quantities in Western Australia, in the Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie regions.