This Invention Changed Everything during the 1850s Gold Rush!

#goldhistory #mining #gold #goldfields #goldpuddler #puddlingmachine #puddling #miningtechnology #goldmining #goldmines #abandoned #19thcentury

If you’ve spent time out in the bush throughout the Victorian Goldfields, there’s a good chance you’ve come across one of these strange ring-shaped depressions in the ground.

These are the remains of puddling machines from the region’s busy gold mining past.

Gold puddling is a technique for separating gold from clay, which was developed in the early years of the Victorian gold rush.

In many areas, gold was trapped within tough clay and in order to retrieve it, the clay needed to be effectively broken up.

In the very early days, this was all done by hand in a puddling tub, but it wasn’t long before the puddling machine was invented, right here in the Victorian Goldfields.

Gold puddler diagram - The Gold Fields and Mineral Districts of Victoria, R. Brough Smyth, 1869.

Historical drawings and photographs of gold puddlers - State Library Victoria

Creative Commons CC BY 3.0

[nuggetella]

Nice short documentary on the historical background of the first mass wave of early settlers...
I've spent much rewarding & enjoyable time in the Victorian Golden triangle... 👍

[markbruechert]

An interesting goldfield site to check out, is the Charcoal Gully Bushland Reserve, behind Nos 2 to 10 Morrison Street, Kangaroo Flat. It's accessible from Morrison St., near the intersection with Helm Street, and from Thomas St., on the Western side. There are a number of old, circular depressions, made during the 1850's rush. The site can be easily covered in about an hour, and the curious visitor will see much to interest them. It's fortunate that the site was made a Reserve some years ago, and is now preserved for all to enjoy. A well-made bitumen walking track stretches from Morrison Street, running behind houses and exiting in Thomas street, near Burnie Ct.