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James R. Munro of Cromwell speaks about the history of gold mining in Central Otago, and relates anecdotes of local characters.
The principal method of mining in the early gold mining days was ‘quartz mining’, which was used on the Carrick Range at Bannockburn and at Bendigo. Munro lists companies that were involved in ‘sinking and tunnelling’ in the 1860s and 1870s on the Carrick Range, including the Cromwell Company. The original owners of the company were T Logan, Jack Garrett, and Brian Hebden.
The Cromwell Company was one of the longest-lived mines, and Munro claims it produced up to 400 ounces per fortnight. He says that in 1871 the Bendigo gold field returned upwards of 20,000 pounds per month in dividends. In June 1871, the gold escort (which carried gold from the Central Otago gold fields to Dunedin) carried 2,136 ounces of gold; and for the whole year of 1872, the escort carried 18,973 ounces of gold.
A method that followed quartz mining for gold was dredging, which took place on the Molyneux, Clutha, and Kawarau Rivers. The first dredge to operate in the district was at Teviot (later known as Roxburgh).
Munro speaks about the influx of Chinese to the district – he states that in September 1875 five wagons of Chinese men arrived in Cromwell. The majority settled at Bannockburn and on the banks of the Kawarau River. They would fossick for gold in the river.
Munro relates a tale of a Chinese man who jumped down a forty foot mine shaft, was rescued, and ended up in hospital. He then tells a story about Captain Jackson Barry, the first Mayor of Cromwell, who in March 1872 was given a lavish farewell party at Lowburn when he left to take up an inheritance in Bathurst, Australia. Captain Barry later returned to New Zealand, and Munro says there is doubt that he ever received the inheritance.
The recording concludes with a story about two pioneers, G. W. Goodyear and George Redhead, who made a wager with each other over the harvesting of an acre of oats. They bet twenty-five pounds a side, and there were many spectators to the match. George Redhead won, completing the mowing and binding of his acre of oats twenty-four minutes ahead of his rival – taking four and a half hours in total.