Book Gold on Mercer's Hill

A Geelong Legacy

Explore the rich history of gold in Geelong with C.A. Ganly's captivating narrative. From the inaugural recorded discovery of gold in Newtown in 1851, Ganly unravels the stories behind "that well-known Auriferous place."

🔍 Historical Exploration: Delve into the detailed mining and location information reconstructed from the exploits of each mining attempt.

🌳 Transformation of the Land: Trace the evolution of the land from its first Crown Grant in 1839 to its current state as a leafy residential area.

💡 Themes of Optimism and Failure: Witness the consistent themes of hope and expectation in each mining endeavor, juxtaposed with the eventual disappointment and failure to discover gold.

🔬 Geological Insights: Explore why surveyors and geologists concluded that gold would never be found in Newtown, Geelong, in the final chapter.

Blurb:

It is the little-known and largely untold story of gold mining in a suburb of Geelong, Victoria. The site was Mercer’s Hill in the suburb of Newtown. Between 1851 and 1878 no less than 7 different companies and prospecting operations tried their luck at discovering gold there. Despite all the indications of the futility and the failures of the past, each new endeavor attacked the hill with gusto and each one ended in complete failure. The story is largely unknown and has not been described in any detail to date. It is a fascinating tale of optimism and hope and then inevitable failure.

Our story takes us from the very first recorded “discovery” of gold in Newtown in 1851, at the height of the Victorian gold rush through to the last organized attempt of the formally registered Chilwell Gold Mining Company in 1879. Following this it looks at later day discoveries, events and reminiscences on Mercer’s Hill in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. Along the way the exploits of each mining attempt are recounted as well as the mining and location information carefully reconstructed. The story also lays out how the land developed from that first Crown Grant in 1839, who owned it, and how it transformed to what it is today, a leafy residential area.

Along the way we see consistent themes of great hope and expectation of finding gold if only someone else would fund the exploration. In each case we also see the failure to discover gold and in the final chapter we investigate why all the surveyors and geologists said that gold was never going to be found in Newtown, Geelong.