Eldorado / Beechworth area information and questions

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anyone have information about the beechworth goldfields and more to the point, the lunatic asylum ?
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Evening Mirrors,

Beechworth was a mostly fine gold location with much creek sluicing, panning, etc. But there were nuggets found there. 1 old Trove article reported a nugget found behind the Star hotel in the middle of Beechworth that was 5 ounces from memory.

Silver Creek was one of the main areas in the early days and then what is now Lake Sambell was a spot that I think they did a lot of hydraulic sluicing. I have read it all up there on an information board but can't remember exactly what they did and how much they got - it was many thousands of ounces.

Then of course there is Woolshed Falls where they again got many thousands of ounces at the bottom of the falls by diverting the creek and drying up the area at the bottom of the falls. I think they did this on 2 different occasions over the years.

Then all the way down to Eldorado still gets a fair hammering with panners and detectorists but I am told very few nuggets are detected down that way - just flakes in the pans usually.

If you look at the link here it will give you the prospecting areas of the Beechworth Historic Park and Chiltern Mt Pilot National park where you can detect. It isn't a great deal but it's better than nothing.

http://parkweb.vic.gov.au/__data/as...eechworth-Historic-Park-Prospecting-Guide.pdf

http://parkweb.vic.gov.au/__data/as...-Mt-Pilot-National-Park-Prospecting-Guide.pdf

I have found gold at both 2 mile and 3 mile creeks. Small pieces both water worn and reefy specimen pieces. And LOTS of crap as you would expect from such a heavily populated area.

Hope that helps. ;)
 
Oh yeah, I forgot that bit :)

What did you want to know about it? The history of the asylum or if there was gold around it?

I assume the gold. Unfortunately it is now a quite busy commercial enterprise with a pub, ghost tours, a day spa, escape rooms, accommodation, etc. The grounds are very large and I would assume parts of the grounds would probably have gold but there is no way you would be able to access it.

There is much private land close by and I even know a bloke who owns a hundred acres within a kilometre or so - but getting access is proving a little harder than I thought.

The asylum closed down maybe 25 years ago (approx). I know my mother in law volunteered up there during the nurses strike in the 80's so it was still going then. Many of the inpatients were integrated into the local communities with varying success.

The asylum, the Old Gaol and Beechworth in general are worth a look and will keep other members of your party occupied while you search for yella ;)
 
I actually saw a guy on YouTube detecting the asylum grounds (with permission), and found several coins (old and new), some cutlery, but not much else, from memory.
 
Northeast said:
Evening Mirrors,

Beechworth was a mostly fine gold location with much creek sluicing, panning, etc. But there were nuggets found there. 1 old Trove article reported a nugget found behind the Star hotel in the middle of Beechworth that was 5 ounces from memory.

Silver Creek was one of the main areas in the early days and then what is now Lake Sambell was a spot that I think they did a lot of hydraulic sluicing. I have read it all up there on an information board but can't remember exactly what they did and how much they got - it was many thousands of ounces.

Then of course there is Woolshed Falls where they again got many thousands of ounces at the bottom of the falls by diverting the creek and drying up the area at the bottom of the falls. I think they did this on 2 different occasions over the years.

Then all the way down to Eldorado still gets a fair hammering with panners and detectorists but I am told very few nuggets are detected down that way - just flakes in the pans usually.

If you look at the link here it will give you the prospecting areas of the Beechworth Historic Park and Chiltern Mt Pilot National park where you can detect. It isn't a great deal but it's better than nothing.

http://parkweb.vic.gov.au/__data/as...eechworth-Historic-Park-Prospecting-Guide.pdf

http://parkweb.vic.gov.au/__data/as...-Mt-Pilot-National-Park-Prospecting-Guide.pdf

I have found gold at both 2 mile and 3 mile creeks. Small pieces both water worn and reefy specimen pieces. And LOTS of crap as you would expect from such a heavily populated area.

Hope that helps. ;)
It was actually millions of ounces, not thousands. And the fine gold was mostly downstream - it was coarser in the headwaters, with occasional nuggets from Pennyweight Flat and upstream of it. The gold actually travelled further at Beechworth than any other goldfield in Victoria - 26 km from source from memory - there being no further gold sources downstream of the town itself, except where alluvial gold redistributed by later streams. I doubt that the asylum would be a good spot for gold detecting, but it might be productive for relics.
 
Im working thursday and friday but maybe we could meet up for a bit of a scratch around on sunday. (Gold Fever is a religion ya know). weather permitting. S. Wright on here might want to join in the fun. I have a reasonable highbanking spot but it requires a lot of hose. ( im about 30m short )
 
Hey ya Limpalot Its only one inch layflat but I can change out pump end hose barb and go up to inch and a half. Ive got a plenty of that, just got to go and get it from the chap I lent it to to defend his house during the fires last year.
 
Jethro Sunday sounds good and any more afflicted with the fever the better ,let me know if you need hose
 
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