The Ovens Gold Fields, covering a large corner of North East Victoria and the gold of Eldorado, contributed substantially to the astronomical production of the precious metal obtained from the region. This well researched book is unique in that it records in detail the history of one town where boom mining of the last century, with its deep shafts and drives, developed into twentieth century mining by open cut sluicing and also dredging. This is the town where the mammoth Cocks ElDorado Dredge worked so profitably, ceasing operations just 100 years after the discovery of gold on the field. The book relates how the name El Dorado was introduced to a third continent of the world and how an overlander, William Fury Baker, requested that the area place name be changed to ElDorado at least fourteen years before any discovery of gold. It is not only a book of gold and gold mines but of people. The writer gives a most colourful account of the town’s rise from a primitive community through to boom years, then recession, then later a resurgence of deep mining – not omitting the tragic events, and in the twentieth century to a community that commanded great respect for its civic attainments. Of general interest are the biographies of such people as John Cock, after whom the twentieth century mines were named; David Reid, the eighteen year old overlander whose father told him the blacks would eat him (which they very nearly did), and on whose pastoral run the town of ElDorado became established and whose fortunes and life are related in detail; Michael O’Neill, the colourful figure of the leading mine of the earlier days and Hugh Falconer, a great mining identity whose name is indelibly engraved within the mining records of Victoria. Together with his family, he made a notable contribution to the industry and to the community of ElDorado. The biographies are completed with the story of Tom Gidley, not only ElDorado’s clever cattle and sheep duffer, but also a bushranger in a big way. This is a book for general reading as well as a reference work. It spans the era from the early rip-roaring mining days to a modern rural community (inside front cover).

CONTENTS:
Contents p1. Preface p2. Introduction p4.

1. Origins of settlement p6. An overlander and his El Dorado [William Fury Baker] p6. The Reids [Reid family] p9. A creek of many names p10.

2. The first twenty years p14. Mining the field p14. The miner’s life p22.

3. People and the field p29. The people p29. By coach, of course p31. Almost a railway town p32. The postal link p33. Our town needs buildings p36. The importance of education p41. Law and order; The community voice p43.

4. The boom years p45. The mines: The Kneebone Gold and Tin Mining Company p45. The McEvoy Company (The United ElDorado Company) p46. The Wellington Gold and Tin Mining Company p48. The Great Extended Gold and Tin Mining Company p50. The Golden Lake Gold and Tin Mining Company p51. The Ovens Gold and Tin Mining Company p54.

5. A low ebb p56. The 1880s and 1890s p56. ElDorado Gold and Tin Mining Company p59. Spread Eagle Company p60.

6. The mining tragedies p61. The McEvoy Mine p61.

7. A new era of mining p70. Sluicing and dredging p70. Cock’s Eldorado Gold Dredging Company p76.

8. 20th Century p80. The Australian sport [football] p80. The war years p82. Further mining p84.

9. Five faces p87. Mining leaders – John Cock p87. Mining leaders – Michael O’Neill p91. Mining leaders – Hugh Falconer p93. The rascal: Thomas Gidley p97. The overlander – David Reid p101.

Conclusion: What’s in a name p120. References p121. Bibliography p125. Appendix A: summary of the features of gold as a precious metal p127. Appendix B: Production records of Cock’s Pioneer Gold and Tin Mines N.L. and Cock’s Eldorado Gold Dredging Co. p128. Appendix C: Ovens Gold and Tin Mining Company No Liability 6th schedule [list of shareholders with addresses, occupations and no. of shares] p130. Appendix D: McEvoy Relief Fund p132. Appendix E: testimonial presented to Mr and Mrs Robert Dyce Reid prior to a trip overseas, 1864 p133. Appendix F: advertisement for the sale of the Sydney Hotel, Eldorado 1856 p134. Appendix G: Head Teachers of Eldorado p134. Index p136.

ILLUSTRATIONS (selected):
Oil painting by A.D. Morris ‘Sluicing days’. Map of Eldorado region p4. Agnes Reid; Gravestone of Agnes Reid in Wangaratta Cemetery p11. Geological map of Eldorado region in cross section p16. Map: plan of mines along Reedy Creek, 1867, clearly showing granite formation p18. Map: early plan showing the position of shafts of the Eldorado mines, prior to 1900 p21. The Star Hotel, about 1912 p27. The Catholic Church of St Augustine p37. The McEvoy Mine 1861 p46. Cock’s Eldorado Dredge, years after it ceased operation p55. ‘The rescue party at work’ [McEvoy Mine disaster], ‘The Weekly Times’, 3 Aug 1895 p63. Photographs and illustrations from the McEvoy Mine disaster appearing in ‘The Weekly Times’ 3 Aug 1895: 1. The township of ElDorado from the main street 2. The McEvoy Mine 3 Mr Stratton, manager of the mine 4 Mr Trizise (Tresize?), Government Inspector of Mines 5 View of the creek with men working above the locality of the accident 6 Joseph Ferguson 7 Richard Madew 8 Old identities of ElDorado, mining men of the early days and original shareholders in the McEvoy Mine 9 A mournful duty – making the coffins 10 Some of the orphans 11 Wife and mother of Thompson, one of the ill-fated miners 12 The four men rescued by Ferguson and Madew: P. Cruse, E. Collins, T. Quick and J. Conners p65. The shaft construction of the McEvoy no.3 Mine. The shafts are revealed by the sluicing process of the ‘open cut’ workings of the Cock’s Pioneer Mine p71. The power station, Cock’s Pioneer Mine p73. Barge and nozzle working Cock’s Pioneer Mine, with sluice boxes p74. The mammoth dredge in the first working year; Winch gear and bucket ladder p78. John Cock p87. Hugh Falconer p93. David Reid, in middle life p103. The bridesmaids to Mary Romaine Barber at her marriage to David Reid, Goulburn, 1844 p110. Mr and Mrs David Reid on their 60th wedding anniversary, 1904 p118. The ‘Kangaroo Bridge’ looking towards Eldorado, before 1913; An Eldorado store in the early 1900s, with Monument Hill in the background p135. The original ElDorado homestead built for W.F. Baker in the 1840s, close to Black Dog Creek (pen and ink wash drawing) (inside back cover). Portrait of the author Dudley Sheppard (inside back cover).

SURNAMES / FAMILY NAMES from the index:
Adams. Agnew. Allendice. Allan. Angus. Annersley. Armstrong. Baillieu. Baker. Balcombe. Barber. Bardwell. Bartie. Barton. Bates. Bawden. Billson. Bligh. Bolton. Bork. Bowman. Brache. Braidwood. Breen. Brown. Burke (Robert O’Hara). Burkitt. Callaghan. Callander. Campbell. Cameron. Canny. Carnsew. Clark. Clements. Cock. Collins. Cooper. Cox. Crane. Crawford. Crisp. Crone. Cropper. Cruise. Curnow. Dane. Darling (Governor). Davy. Dawe. Dawkins. De La Rue. Devereux. Ditchburn. Dixon. Docker (Rev. Joseph). Dunn. Dunstan. Dunkley. Edinburgh (Duke of). Edwards. Ellis. Evans. Faithful. Falconer. Farrell. Fealy. Ferguson. Findlay. Fisher. Fletcher. Foletti. Ford. Francis. Franklin (Lady). Fuller. Gardiner. Garlick. Gascoigne. Gemmell. ‘German Jack’. Gidley. Goldsborough. Gray. Grealy. Griffith. Grimes. Harnett. Harry. Hocking. Hoddle (Robert). Hogan. Holdreness. Hollow. Horrocks. Howell. Huggins. Hunt. Huon. Hutton. Ireland. Johnson. Ker. Kerford. Klemn. Kneebone. Lancaster. Lane. Lang (Dr). Leech. Lemain. Lester. Lyall. Lyon. Mackay. McBryde. McDonald. McEvoy. McFarlane. McGregor. McLaughlin. McPherson. Macquarie (Governor). Madden. Maddern. Madew. Matheson. May. Maynard. Milne. Mitchell. Moffat. Moffitt. Moline. Moore. Morey. Morrison. Morse. Moss. Moylan. Mull. Murphy. Nolan. O’Brien. Ogier. O’Grady. O’Neill. Orr. Owens. Perry (Bishop). Pinnell. Quick. Rankin. Reid. Richards. Richardson (Henry Handel). Robert. Rollings. Rowan. Sabine. Samuel. Savage. Scott. Shellnack. Sheppard. Singleton. Slack. Smell. Smith. Smythe. Sreeves. Stamp. Stawell (Sir William). Stewart. Stratton. Strickland. Studham. Sturt (Capt. Charles). Swift. Syme. Thompson. Trainer. Trembath. Tresize. Trimble. Urquhart. Usher. Victor. Visick. Vollprecht. Wain. Waldron. Wallace. Ward. Warrall. Warren. Webb. Wellington. Wharton. Williams. Wilson. Wise. Withers. Witt. Woodland. Woodd. Young. Zinche.

FULL INDEX available on library computers: Electronic resources \ Indexes \ Eldorado

FROM THE INDEX (Place names, institutions, etc.):
Adelong. ‘Advertiser’, ElDorado. Albion Hotel. Albury ‘Daily News’. Ameg Pty Ltd. Australian College, Sydney. Australian Gold Development NL. Australian Rules Football. Babcock and Wilcox. Back Creek. Bank of Australasia. Bank of Victoria. Barambogie. Barambogie Mine, Chiltern. ‘Baring’ migrant ship. Barnawartha. Beechworth: general; railway; football; Court. Bellis and Morcom. Benalla. Black’s Hut. Black Diamond Coalmine, Kurumburra. Black Dog Creek. Boer War. Bontharambo Plains. Boundary lines. Bowman’s Forest. ‘Bronte’ property. Bungonia. Bungonia Cemetery. Carraragarmungee Run. Catholic Church, St Augustine’s. Chandler and Strickland. Chiltern. Chiltern ‘Federal Standard’. Chiltern Valley Mine. Chinese. Churches. Church of England [Anglican]. Clear Creek. Coaches. Cock’s Dredge. Cock’s ElDorado Gold Dredging Co. N.L. Cock’s Pioneer Mine. Cock’s Pioneer Electric Gold and Tin Sluicing Company. Comforts Fund. Commercial Hotel. Congregational Church. Cornish miners. Court House. Court of Petty Sessions. Crawford and Connelly. Crawford and Co. Crown grants. Crown Lands and Survey. Dalgety and Co. Darling, Grant and Co. ‘Delalah’ Station. Diamond, first reported find. Dredging. Education.

Eldorado: Origins; meaning; mining; boom; population; Hall; Graveyard [cemetery]; timber yard. Eldorado Creek. Eldorado Gold and Tin Mining Company. Eldorado ‘News’. Eldorado, Oxley and Tarrawingee Advertiser. Eldorado Station Homestead. Eldorado ‘Times’. Eldorado West Station.

Eureka. Eumeralla Station, Maneroo. Everton. Everton Hotel. Excelsior Co. ‘Federal Standard’, Chiltern. Fire damp. ‘Fishers’. Forest Creek. Foundation Engineering Co. Ltd. Fox Films. Funeral of mine victims. Geririty’s Hotel, Myrtleford. Gidley’s Gap. Gidley’s Hotel. ‘Glenrock’ property. Glenrowan Mountain (or Mt Morgan). Gold. Golden Eagle Mine. Golden Lake Golde and Tin Mining Co. Goldsborough and Mort. Goulburn. Great Extended Gold and Tin Mining Co. Great Northern, Chiltern. Great Southern. Gundagai, great flood. Harris and Hollow. The Hermitage. Historic Building Register. Honour rolls. Hotels, licensees. Howlong: general; mechanics’ institute. Hume River. Indigo. ‘Inverary Park’. Jordan, Jack and Sons. The Kangaroo. Kelly and Lewis. Kenyon and Co. Kilmore. King River. ‘King’s School’, Parramatta. Kirk’s Bazaar. Kneebone and Co. Kneebone South. Kurumburra. Lachlan River. Legislative Assembly. ‘Londrigan’ Station. Longwood. McEvoy and Co. Maindample. ‘Maneroo’ Station. ‘Mariner’ (ship). Methodism. Merrimarenbung. Milawa, football ground. Mill, at Yackandandah. ‘Mill Park’. Mines, of the boom years. Mining. Mining companies. Mining surveyors. Moffat’s Gully. Monument Hill. Moorwatha. Mornington Peninsula ‘The Briars’. Murray River. Murrumbidgee River. Museum. Myrtleford. National Trust. North Eastern Historical Society. Newspapers, local. Nine Mile. North Broken Hill Co. North Ovens Road Board. North Ovens Shire. Oddfellows Hall. Ovens District. Ovens Gold and Tin Mining Co.: general; list of shareholders. Ovens and King Association. Ovens and Murray Advertiser. Ovens River. Overlanders. Oxley Plains. Parramarrago: see Inverary Park. Parramatta Factory. Patriotic Fund. Perseverance Co. Mount Pilot. Pitcairn and Neil. Poem: ‘Old Tom Gidley Oh’; ‘Eldorado Mining Catastrophe’. Police. Postal services. Postmasters and Postmistresses. Power House. Pretty Sally Hill. Railway Line. Ramsey, N. and Sons. Rechabites. Red Cross. Red Rover. Reedy Creek. Reids Creek. Reids Creek Bridge. Reids Creek Flat. Reids Creek Falls. Reidsdale. Reids Woolshed. Rocky Water Holes. Royaltown. Rutherglen. School. Sebastopol. Shore Treatment Plant. Sluicing and dredging. Smelting. Sport. Spread Eagle Mine. Spring Creek. Springhurst. Stanley. Star Hotel, Christmastown. State Electricity Commission [SEC]. St Jude’s Church. Tarcutta. Tarrawingee: railway; football match; sludge channel; Bowman’s holding. Telegraph Line. ‘Theralgeron’ Station. Thompson and Co. Thompson Pump. Tin: price drop; separation. The ‘Tin Pot’. Tragedies. Trommel Screen. ‘Trotting Cob’ legend. Try Again Gold and Tin Mining Co., list of directors. United Eldorado Co.: see McEvoy. United Ovens Gold and Tin Mining Co. Vinebone and Co. Volunteer Defence Corps. Wangaratta: general; football; Brewery; Michael O’Neill. First World War. Second World War. Warrier Mine. Washington Gold and Tin Sluicing N.L. Water supply. Wellington and Co. Wodonga. Wombat Mine. Woolshed. Woolshed Valley. Woolshed Falls. Woolshed Flat. Woolshed Jack. Wooragee. Yackandandah. Yackandandah Creek, water wheel. Yass. Yellow Creek.