Location of Gabriel's Gully.

The Central Otago Gold Rush (often simply called the Otago gold rush) was a gold rush that occurred during the 1860s in Central Otago, New Zealand. Constituting the country's biggest gold strike, the discovery of gold in Otago led to a rapid influx of foreign miners - many of them veterans of other hunts for the precious metal in California and Victoria, Australia. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... A California Gold Rush handbill A gold rush is a period of feverish migration of workers into the area of a dramatic discovery of commercial quantities of gold. ... // The First Transcontinental Railroad in the USA was built in the six year period between 1863 and 1869. ... The area known as Central Otago in Otago, New Zealand, includes the middle of the region but generally also most of the north-western portion (the Queenstown-Lakes District). ... The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was discovered at Sutters Mill. ... The Victorian gold rush was a period in the history of Victoria in Australia between approximately 1851 and the early 1860s. ...

The rush started at Gabriel's Gully but spread throughout much of Central Otago, leading to the rapid expansion and commercialisation of the new colonial settlement of Dunedin, which quickly grew to be New Zealand's largest city. However, only a few years later, most of the smaller new settlements were deserted again, and gold extraction became a more commercialised, long-term activity. Gabriels Gully is a locality in Otago, New Zealand, three kilometres from Lawrence township and close to the Tuapeka River. ... Dunedin (ÅŒtepoti in Maori) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the region of Otago. ...

Background

Previous gold finds in New Zealand

Previously gold had been found in small quantities in the Coromandel Peninsula (by visiting whalers) and near Nelson in 1842. Commercial interests in Auckland offered a £500 prize for anyone who could find payable quantities of gold anywhere nearby in the 1850s, at a time when some New Zealand settlers were leaving for the California and Australian gold rushes. In September 1852, Charles Ring, a timber merchant, claimed the prize for a find in Coromandel. A brief gold rush ensued around Coromandel township, Cape Colville and Mercury Bay but only £1500 of gold was accessible in river silt, although more was in quartz veins where it was inaccessible to individual prospectors. The rush lasted only about three months. Location of Coromandel Peninsula A true-colour image showing Auckland city (left), the Hauraki Gulf (centre) and the Coromandel Peninsula (right). ... A view of Nelson from the Centre of New Zealand Nelson stands on the southern corner of Tasman Bay, at the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand and is the administrative centre of the Nelson region. ... Schematic map of Auckland. ... The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was discovered at Sutters Mill. ... Coromandel is the name of a town and harbour on the Coromandel Peninsula on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. ... Cape Colville is the northernmost point of the New Zealands North Island. ... Mercury Bay is a large V-shaped bay on the eastern (Pacific Ocean) coast of the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealand. ...

A find in the Aorere Valley near Collingwood in 1856 proved more successful, with 1500 miners converging on the district and removing about £150,000 of gold over the next decade, after which the gold was exhausted. The presence of gold in Otago and on the West Coast during this time was known, but the geology of the land was different from that of other major gold-bearing areas, and it was assumed the gold would amount to little. The Aorere River is in the South Island of New Zealand. ... Collingwood is a town in the north-west corner of the South Island of New Zealand. ... The West Coast is one of the administrative regions of New Zealand, located on the west coast of the South Island, and is one of the more remote and most sparsely populated areas of the country. ...

Previous gold finds in Otago

Māori had long known of the existence of gold in Central Otago, but had no use for the metal, as they relied on greenstone for weaponry and tools, and used greenstone, obsidian and bone carving for jewellery. Languages Māori, English Religions Māori religion, Christianity Related ethnic groups other Polynesian peoples, Austronesian peoples The word Māori refers to the indigenous Polynesian peoples of New Zealand, and to their language. ... New Zealand greenstone is formed by the metamorphism of basalt. ... Obsidian from Lake County, Oregon Counterclockwise from top: obsidian, pumice and rhyolite (light color) Obsidian is a rock which is a type of naturally occurring glass, produced by volcanoes (igneous origin) when a felsic lava cools rapidly and freezes without sufficient time for crystal growth (see glass transition temperature). ... Grays Anatomy illustration of a human femur. ...

The first known European discovery of gold in Otago was at Goodwood, near Palmerston in October 1851. ^[1] The discovery was of very small size, however, and no rush ensued. In any case, the settlement of Dunedin was just three years old, and more practical matters were of higher importance to the young town. Panorama of the view from Puketapu Cairn overlooking Palmerston Puketapu dominates Palmerston, New Zealand The town of Palmerston, in New Zealands South Island lies 50 kilometres to the north of the city of Dunedin. ...

Further discoveries around the Mataura River in 1856 and the Dunstan Range in 1858 stirred some interest, but again this was minimal. A further discovery near the Lindis Pass in early 1861 finally started producing flickers of interest from around the South Island, with reports of large numbers of miners travelling inland from Oamaru to stake their claims. It was not until two months later, however, that the discovery which was to cause the major influx of prospectors occurred. The Mataura River is in the Southland region of the South Island of New Zealand. ... The Lindis Pass is located in the South Island of New Zealand. ...   Shibboleth: The southern (Kāi Tahu) dialect of Māori ignores the first A in the name (AUH-muh-ROO). ...

The main rush

Gabriel's Gully

Gabriel Read, an Australian prospector who had hunted gold in both California and Victoria, Australia, discovered gold in a creek bed at Gabriel's Gully, close to the banks of the Tuapeka River near Lawrence on May 20, 1861. "At a place where a kind of road crossed on a shallow bar I shovelled away about two and a half feet of gravel, arrived at a beautiful soft slate and saw the gold shining like the stars in Orion on a dark frosty night".^[2] Gabriel Read was an Australian gold prospector who, after working on the goldfields of California and Victoria, Australia travelled to New Zealand. ... Prospecting is the act of searching for minerals or ore deposits. ... General Name, Symbol, Number gold, Au, 79 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 6, d Appearance metallic yellow Standard atomic weight 196. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Largest metro area Greater Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... Motto: Peace and Prosperity Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Governor HE Mr John Landy Premier Steve Bracks (ALP) Area 237,629 km² (6th)  - Land 227,416 km²  - Water 10,213 km² (4. ... Gabriels Gully is a locality in Otago, New Zealand, three kilometres from Lawrence township and close to the Tuapeka River. ... The Tuapeka River is located in Otago in the South Island of New Zealand. ... Lawrence is a small town of some 500 inhabitants in Otago, in New Zealands South Island. ... is the 140th day of the year (141st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1861 (MDCCCLXI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link with display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar) // January 1 - Benito Juárez captures Mexico City January 2 - Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia dies and is succeeded by...

The public heard about Read's discovery via a letter published in the Otago Witness on June 8, 1861, documenting a ten day long prospecting tour he had made. There was little reaction at first until John Hardy of the Provincial Council stated that himself and Read had prospected country "about 31 miles long by five broad, and in every hole they had sunk they had found the precious metal."^[3] With this statement, the gold rush began.

Arrival of prospectors

By Christmas 14,000 prospectors were on the Tuapeka and Waipori fields.^[4] Within a year, the region's population swelled greatly, growing by 400 per cent between 1861 and 1864^[5], with prospectors swarming from the dwindling Australian goldfields. A second major discovery in 1862, close to the modern town of Cromwell, did nothing to dissuade new hopefuls, and prospectors and miners staked claims from the Shotover River in the west through to Naseby in the north. By the end of 1863, the real gold rush was over, but companies continued to mine the alluvial gold. The number of miners reached its maximum of 18,000 in February 1864.^[6] Christmas is an annual holiday that celebrates the birth of Jesus. ... Cromwell is a town in Central Otago in the Otago region of New Zealand. ... The Shotover River is located in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. ... The historic precinct of Naseby, New Zealand Naseby is a small town, formerly a borough, in the Maniototo area of Central Otago, New Zealand. ...

Aftermath

Results

The city of Dunedin reaped many of the benefits, briefly becoming New Zealand's largest town even though it had only been founded in 1848. Many of the city's stately buildings date from this period of prosperity. New Zealand's first university, the University of Otago, was founded in 1869 with wealth derived from the goldfields. Dunedin (Ōtepoti in Maori) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the region of Otago. ... The University of Otago (Māori: ) in Dunedin is New Zealands oldest university with over 20,000 students enrolled during 2006. ...

However, the rapid decline in gold production from the mid 1860s led to a sharp drop in the province's population, and while not unprosperous, the far south of New Zealand never rose to such relative prominence again.

Later gold rushes

The Wakamarina River in Marlborough proved to have gold in 1862, and 6,000 miners flocked to the district. Although they found alluvial gold, there were no large deposits. Marlborough is one of the regions of New Zealand, located in the northeast of the South Island. ...

The West Coast of the South Island was the second-richest gold-bearing area of New Zealand after Otago, and gold was discovered in 1865-6 at Okarito, Bruce Bay, around Charleston and along the Grey River. Miners were attracted from Victoria, Australia where the gold rush was near an end. In 1867 this boom also began to decline, though gold mining continued on the coast for a considerable time after this. In the 1880s, quartz miners at Bullendale and Reefton were the first users of electricity in New Zealand.^[7] The West Coast is one of the administrative regions of New Zealand, located on the west coast of the South Island, and is one of the more remote and most sparsely populated areas of the country. ... The South Island The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... Charleston was a goldmining town 30km south of Westport in the South Island of New Zealand, founded after a major goldrush in 1867. ... The Grey River is located in the northwest of the South Island of New Zealand. ... Motto: Peace and Prosperity Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Governor HE Mr John Landy Premier Steve Bracks (ALP) Area 237,629 km² (6th)  - Land 227,416 km²  - Water 10,213 km² (4. ... The small town of Reefton is located in the west of New Zealands South Island, some 80 kilometres northeast of Greymouth, in the valley of the Inangahua River. ...

Gold was long known to exist at Thames, but exploitation was not possible during the New Zealand land wars. In 1867 miners arrived from the West Coast, but the gold was in quartz veins, and few miners had the capital needed to extract it. Some stayed on as workers for the companies which could fund the processing. Location of Thames Thames is a town at the southwestern end of the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealands North Island. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Quartz (from German Quarz[1]) is the second most common mineral in the Earths continental crust. ...

Commercial extraction

After the main gold rush, miners began labouriously reworking the goldfields. About 5,000 European miners remained in 1871, joined by thousands of Chinese miners invited by the province to help rework the area. There was friction not only between European and Chinese miners, which contributed to the introduction of the New Zealand head tax, but also between miners and settlers over conflicting land use. This poll tax certificate was issued to Yee Nam on his arrival at Wellington in 1904. ...

Attention turned to the gravel beds of the Clutha River, with a number of attempts to develop a steam-powered mechanical gold dredge. These finally met with success in 1881 when the Dunedin became the world's first commercially successful gold dredge. ^[8] The Dunedin continued operation until 1901, recovering a total of 17,000 ounces (530 kg) of gold.

Gold is still mined by OceanaGold in commercial quantities in Otago at one site - Macraes Mine, inland from Palmerston, which started operations in 1990. Macraes Mine, an opencast hard rock mining operation, processes more than 5 million tonnes of ore per year and had extracted 1.85 million ounces (57,500 kg) of gold by 2004. ^[9] OceanaGold Corporation (OceanaGold) is a significant Pacific Rim gold producer, listed on the Toronto, Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges under the symbol “OGC”. Its distinct advantage is having both producing and developing mines, with operations on the South Island of New Zealand and development and exploration activities in New... Panorama of the view from Puketapu Cairn overlooking Palmerston Puketapu dominates Palmerston, New Zealand The town of Palmerston, in New Zealands South Island lies 50 kilometres to the north of the city of Dunedin. ...

Notes

1. ^ Reed, p.257
2. ^ Miller, p. 757
3. ^ Miller, p. 758
4. ^ McLean & Dalley, p. 156
5. ^ McLean & Dalley, p. 156
6. ^ McKinnon et al, plate 45
7. ^ McKinnon et al, plate 44.
8. ^ Gold in New Zealand: The Early Years (from New Zealand Mint website, retrieved 15 August 2006)
9. ^ Macraes Mine: Highlights (from the OceanaGold company website, retrieved 07 January 2007)

OceanaGold Corporation (OceanaGold) is a significant Pacific Rim gold producer, listed on the Toronto, Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges under the symbol “OGC”. Its distinct advantage is having both producing and developing mines, with operations on the South Island of New Zealand and development and exploration activities in New...

References

• King, M. (2003). The Penguin History of New Zealand', ISBN 0-14-301867-1
• McKinnon, M. (ed.), Bradley, B. & Kirkpatrick, R. (1997). New Zealand Historical Atlas: Ko Papatuanuku e Takoto Nei. Auckland: David Bateman Ltd. ISBN 1-86953-335-6.
• McLaughlan, G. (ed.) (1995). Bateman New Zealand Encyclopedia (4th ed.). Auckland: David Bateman Ltd.
• McLean, G. & Dalley, B. (eds.) Frontier of Dreams: The Story of New Zealand. Auckland: Hodder Moa Beckett. ISBN 1-86971-006-1
• Miller, F.W.G. (1971). "Gold in Otago", in Knox, R. (ed.) New Zealand's Heritage, volume 2:. Wellington:Paul Hamlyn.
• Oliver, W.H. (ed.) (1981). The Oxford History of New Zealand. Oxford: The Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-558063-X
• Reed, A.H. (1956). The Story of Early Dunedin. Wellington: A.H. & A.W. Reed.