AS a teenager, Colin Holmes would search creeks for gold, hoping to generate a bit of pocket money.<\/p>\n
Decades later, the Friends of Sparrow Ground historical officer has had a \u2018eureka\u2019 moment of a new kind while walking his dog.<\/p>\n
Mr Holmes has spotted what he expects is the site of an old gold puddler in Canadian, installed to retrieve gold from the \u201cmuddy and sticky\u201d clay.<\/p>\n
Opposite Sparrow Ground Reserve and about 20 metres back from the north-east corner of Spencer and Richards Streets, a trench and central island are hidden by bushland growth, but clearly defined at close inspection.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe puddler is inconspicuous and I only stumbled on it by chance. It\u2019s in an unused, secluded corner that must have been filled in years ago,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about 10 metres in diameter, a metre deep in the circular trench and the central island for the pivot is three metres in diameter.<\/p>\n
\u201cA large stone wheel or two would have been on an axel attached to the central pivot, and it would have been horse drawn.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Holmes thinks two water races were fed from Pax Hill\u2019s higher ground, and via a holding dam, as some connecting channels are still visible, although eroded and interrupted.<\/p>\n
When he moved into the Ballarat East-Canadian area, he spoke to elderly residents about the history of Pennyweight Gully and Grass Tree Creek.<\/p>\n
He said their ancestors had passed stories down about mining action in the vicinity pre-1854 and that the puddler could even be an \u201coriginal relic survivor…of the dreaded licence hunts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Historian, Doug Bradby, the author of mining series, The Astonishing History of Ballarat<\/em> said he would be surprised if the puddler existed pre-1854.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is an area that was reworked, reworked and reworked, and rewashed, rewashed and rewashed, off and on for 40 to 60 years, so it could date as late as The Depression,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cPuddlers are on the surface, so we\u2019re not dealing with great depths. But this sounds like a reasonable sized one, not two blokes with a wheelbarrow; it\u2019s more than that.<\/p>\n \u201cThey were associated with an enormous amount of difficulties with sludge. You ended up with a very thin soup, mixing the leftover clay with water.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr Bradby said it\u2019s difficult to pinpoint who built and operated the puddler but it could \u201cvery well be\u201d the technology of the goldfields\u2019 Chinese miners.<\/p>\n \u201cThey were better with water; that was their speciality. Ballarat East was the heart of the Chinese mining community in Ballarat.\u201d<\/p>\n Whatever the true story behind the site is, Mr Holmes sees a valuable piece of \u201cpure history.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI suggest an area name of Sparrow Puddler Ground and a laminated photo board at the roadside. I don\u2019t think others realise this is here. I think it\u2019s been forgotten over the years,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it should be dug out where they\u2019ve pushed earthworks in over it. It could do with a bit of a clean-up.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" AS a teenager, Colin Holmes would search creeks for gold, hoping to generate a bit of pocket money. Decades later, the Friends of Sparrow Ground historical officer has had a \u2018eureka\u2019 moment of a new kind while walking his dog. Mr Holmes has spotted what he expects is the site of an old gold puddler […]<\/p>\n