TRUNK LEAD GOLD MINE
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Eight km due west of Ballarat on the Carngham road the Trunk Lead Gold Mining Co. was one of the largest in the vicinity employing up to 100 people. It had 2 main drives each about 1 klm in length and they each had numerous exploratory drives. The main drives ran below and alongside the gold bearing quartz reefs. The miners worked 10 to 12 hour shifts 6 days a week only seeing daylight on Sundays during winter. They received no holiday pay or sick leave, made about $3 a week and were paid in contract for the quantity of gold bearing quartz ore that they recovered. More fortunate individuals were shareholders in the mine. |
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Madame Berry Mine, Ballarat, 1880s.(The
Trunk Lead mine would have been very similar in appearance)
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The gold bearing quartz was dug with a pick and shovel from the narrow seams buried in the bed of a river from 65 million years ago, slid down into a holding area waiting for a skip to be parked beneath then taken to the main shaft and raised to the surface in a cage by the poppet. The quartz rock was crushed by a battery and the gold extracted with a combination of syanide and amalgum. Children were employed to push the skips inside the mines. The miners lay on their sides or knelt on damp ground in tight spaces and work by candle light. The air was contaminated with dangerous gases, and silicone dust, and was low in oxygen. Miners kept a canary near where they worked and if it was asphyxiated they left the area. There were very few medical facilities, disease was common and what accommodation there was drafty, cold and damp. A miner was lucky to live more than 35 years. Most died from a lung complaint called silicosis (like asbestosis) caused by inhalation of dust. The earth above the seam and the ceiling of the drives were supported by timber poles (stopes) supplied by the mining company and cut and carted from the Mt Cole area. The boilers that powered the steam engines which lifted the cages and drove the pumps in the mine were wood fired from the same source. The Trunk Lead mines drives ran south west towards the Haddon mines and north east towards Cardigan .The main shaft was about 100 m deep.The northern drive met a land shift/fault and the rich reef (lead) was lost. 1990's aerial seismic research has relocated it some 50 meters from where the drive ended. The south east drive was overcome by underground water despite extensive pumping.
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The miners could clearly hear running water through the
earthen walls and fear of flooding from an underground river brought about
the Trunk Lead mines closure. The running costs versus the price of gold
bore a similar fate to most of the mines around Ballarat about the turn
of the century. Millie recalls her father saying he went down inside the
mine just before it closed when he was about ten. It had underground stables
with horse (dobins) drawn skips. The horses went blind in the darkness
of the mine and ended their days underground. He said the drives were
large enough to drive a horse and buggy through. She recalls very large
quartz mounds covering about 5 hectares and about 15 meters high indicating
the extent of underground activity. The Trunk Lead/Kopke train station was on the Skipton line. A branch line was temporarily extended to the mine to transport large quantities of quartz for railway track ballast. The outline of the raised ground for the track and remains of a wooden bridge still exist. |
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All that remains of the mine is a depression where the shaft was and part of the mullock heap. |
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Deposits of washed sharp edged crushed quartz sand are
around the site indicating the mine had a stamping battery and puddling
machine. In the 1950's & 60's the remainder of the non gold bearing
quartz rock was processed through a crushing
machine run by Roy Hayes and and
carted by George Burrows for the Country Roads Board for road surfacing.
All that remains of the mine are a depression in the ground where the
shaft and popett head were, some brickwork (probably to support the boilers)
and a mullock heap. For safety after the mine closed the shaft was sealed
by timber from Mt Cole. Mullock and tailings from the mine (up to 2 mtr
deep) flowed with the pumped water towards the east following the lands
gradient into a natural depression or swamp. |
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Roy Hay's crusher (another view
of which can be accessed via the link opposite.
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A substantial Chinese community resided at the site and worked in the mine. Several individuals died in the mine as described in the Ballarat Genealogy website's mining accident list.They were badly discriminated against by the other miners and probably only offered poor paying and dangerous tribute work. Millie recalls the remnants of their vegetable gardens and water holes and weeding opium poppies from the vicinity as a child. Her mother used to remark that there was a ongoing problem with Chinamen shaking (stealing) the chooks and other items from the hotel.
| Name | Date | K/I/O | Status | Dep | Comments | District | Division | Source |
| Sun, Gip | 1884/00/00 | Killed | Fall of earth | Ballarat | Trunk Lead | (Dig. Evans) | ||
| Chung, Hia | 1885/00/00 | Killed | Fall of earth | Ballarat | Trunk Lead | (Dig. Evans) |
Any further factual contributions would be greatly appreciated.
Ballarat Mines and Deep Leads 1:100 000 Map Geological Report Geological Survey of Victoria Report 94
Under Ref 9.3 Haddon lead system
Beginning on the northern side of the Tertiary drainage divide (AMG 737500E 5831000N), near Smythesdale, this system of leads tends north towards the Madame Hopkins lead which Hunter (1909) suggests it joins. Smythe (1869). however, says that the north trending lead is only a tributary lead of a main lead heading west towards Carngham.
HISTORY
The head of the lead was discovered in shallow ground near Smythesdale in 1853 (Adcock, 1912; Flett. 1970) and was first thought to be a continuation of Smythe's lead until deep ground was found on both sided of the divide. As the lead was worked north, tributaries such as the Haddon Vale lead were found. Shallow gold deposits at Campbell's Gully, Sago Hill and Bunkers Hill were also found. Miners here were mainly working the older cemented gravels but a small lead was struck which joined the main Haddon lead. There were three main mines on the Haddon lead system, the most successful and longest lived of which was the Reform Gold Mining Company which operated over a period of 24 years from 1867 to 1891 (Table3). This company, along with the Trunk Lead and Smythesdale Racecourse companies, won in excess of 5.5 tonnes of gold. Subsequently, hydraulic slucing and dredging were found to be very profitable and the Nintingbool Hydraulic Dredging Company was quite successful. The total recorded production from this field is 7,127 kg of gold.
Table 3 Major alluvial mines - Haddon lead system
| Company | lead | Gold (kg) | Years |
| Reform G.M. Co. | Haddon | 2,954k378g | 1867 - 1891 |
| Trunk Lead G.M. Co. | Trunk | 1,293k363g | 1871 - 1885 |
| Smythesdale Racecourse G.M. Co. | Haddon | 1,260k932g | 1869 - 1885 |
| Nintingbool Hydraulic Dredging Co. | Unknown | 530k575g | 1913-1921 |
| Haddon Co. | Haddon | 340k685g | 1871-1873 |
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Total: 6,379k933g
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A list of Shareholders of the Trunk Lead mine in 1869 show
that the paid up capital of the mine was £15,000 , made of 3000 shares
at £5 each. There were 20 shareholders each with 150 shares. John Pounder
Roberts was the mine manager.
Trunk Lead Railway:
The team of Messrs Bell, Lewis and Roberts contracted with the Victorian Railways
in 1882 to build the first part of the Ballarat - Skipton Railway. They agreed
to build the section from Ballarat to Scarsdale for £25,779. Stations
at Trunk Lead, Haddon, Smythesdale and Scarsdale were opened in 1883. (Reference
Railway Map of Victoria - 1890)
This station was opened with the line. It was first known as Trunk Lead -
the name of the local gold mining and agricultural area. In 1910 the station's
name was changed to Kopke after a local landowner. The station was
closed once the motor rail was withdrawn in 1977. (Reference Railway Map of Victoria - 1900)
WEST WIMMERA MAIL - September 4, 1914
Mrs. MOODY, who has been in charge of the Vectis South school
for some time, has been transferred to the Trunk Lead school, near Ballarat.
During her stay in Natimuk she was an active and devoted member of St. Aidan's
Church, acting as organist from time to time. Before leaving she was presented
with a handsome traveling rug by the Rev T. COLE on behalf of the congregation.
Reference: Public Record Office, VPRS 627/289 21193/31
This file refers to holdings by David Porter of Scarsdale,
teacher, Palmer, and Denis Maguire of Trunk Lead, Haddon, and is situated
within the claim of the Golden Stream Company, which is required for mining
purposes. Maguire had been resident for six years prior to the date of the
licenses, which is 27 Jan 1868 and then became resident at trunk Lead, Haddon.
He is transferring the lease to David Porter.
The file also includes reference to Antonia Herbstreit, miner, of Scarsdale,
who holds over six acres to the south of Maguire’s block.
As per the Land Selection files, David Porter, of Ballarat, applied for purchase
of the following properties on the 24th January 1868:
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Acres |
R |
P |
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3 |
3 |
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Previously rented off the crown by Denis Maguire of Trunk Lead Haddon. |
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6 |
0 |
12 |
Previously rented by Antonius Herbstreit |
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2 |
1 |
53 |
Previously rented by James Boyd. |
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7 |
0 |
22 |
Joseph Nimon |
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7 |
1 |
33 |
Thomas Boyd |
Margaret
CALDER. B. Kirkintilloch, DMB, SCT 1840 - Arrived Australia c. 1863 - married
William Rogerson
(b. Redgorton, PER, SCT 1836) 15 July 1864 at Barrabool Hills, VIC. From 1864
they lived at Sago Hill, Scarsdale and Ballarat until her death, 2 October
1928. William Rogerson was manager of the 'Golden Stream' mine and probably
held this position at his death on 18 August, 1882.
Extract from Rootsweb.com Goldfields Achieves:
From: "Michael Calder" <mikecalder@optusnet.com.au>
Subject: Death of William ROGERSON
William ROGERSON died at Sago Hill on 15 August 1882 and was buried at Ballarat
three days later on 18 August 1882. I have been told the following by the
gentleman's grand daughter. "He died at "Trunk Lead", Haddon.
It is believed that he had gone to the mine one night to check that all was
well. There had been some problems with Chinese diggers and the guards at
the mine mistook him for an intruder and fired and wounded him. As a result
of his wound he contracted blood poisoning.
In the book "The Story of Browns and Scarsdale" numerous mentions
are made of William. He was obviously a figure in the community. Unfortunately
there is no mention of his death. He was a mine manager at the Golden Stream.
As one of the last entries in the mining registers was:- 150 shares in Trunk
Lead Gold Mining Co. at Haddon ( lived Scarsdale)
It is probable that he was also (eventually) the mine manager for Trunk Lead.
I have applied for a copy of his death certificate but I doubt if that will
tell the whole story. If he was a man of importance, and as the incident was
probably out of the ordinary, I would think it was well reported in the main
Ballarat newspapers.
I live in Sydney and doubt if it is possible for me to access copies (if they
exist) of the newspapers Nevertheless, are copies of the papers available
and on what medium and where? Would this be classed as a "mining accident"
and reported and documented as such? Is there anyone who could check local
records on my behalf.
Extracts from mining records show:-
08 Aug 1862 a shareholder in the Chancellor GMCo.
25 Aug 1862 had 1 share in Golden Stream, Scarsdale. Shares £60 each.
05 Feb 1864 Golden Stream Gold Mining Co., Scarsdale. - 2 Shares
08 Feb 1864 Exchequer Gold Mining Co., Springdallah. - 4 shares
11 Mar 1865 Manager of Amazon Gold Mining co - no shares in co.
22 Mar 1865 Golden Stream Gold Mining Co. reorganize. Number of shares increased
from 200 to 2000. Number of shares held - 20 shares at £5.
04 Aug 1867 Chancellor Gold Mining Co - was part of their party ? New Stanley
Gold Ming Co. at Pitfield. William's address was Newtown which is next door
to Scarsdale - 12 shares
07 Jul 1872 Main Lead Consols Gold mining Co, Springdallah William, a mine
manager of Scarsdale, held 250 shares at £2 each. He was not the manager
of this mine.
30 Jun 1874 Crown Grants and Leases. A record of payment being made at the
Receipt and Pay Office in Smythesdale by William Rogerson and others.
19/07/1875 Lease of mine ? 150 shares in Trunk Lead Gold Mining Co. at Haddon
( lived Scarsdale)
25 Jan 1876 Crown Grants and Leases. A record of payment being made at the
Receipt and Pay Office in Smythesdale by William Rogerson and others. On 03
October 1912,
"The Story of Browns and Scarsdale" was published by the Scarsdale
"Old Boys", pupils of the first Scarsdale State School, on the occasion
of the jubilee of the foundation of the Municipality of Browns and Scarsdale.
This little book of about 150
pages gives a historical insight into the life and times of this local gold
mining area in which William ROGERSON was to be a key player.
The first gold discoveries of 1851 and the next few years gave rise to the
era of the gold rushes; the calico townships of the diggings and the miners
panning for gold. By the early 1860s the focus had shifted to deep underground
alluvial mining. The Scarsdale lead was mined by this methods. One of the
mines was the Golden Stream and William ROGERSON would become its manager.
In the September quarter of 1863 the Golden Stream Gold Mining Company had
its first yield of 65 ounces of gold, by the March quarter of 1864 this had
risen to 608 ounces and it would continue to rise. The mine continued to produce
for 12 years giving up a total of 69,271 ounces worth £277,085 ($31M
at 1998 prices)
"The mining managers were highly respected and included men of ability,
with reputations which extended far beyond Scarsdale. Even to this day they
are remembered with respect and affection. Among them was William Rogerson
of the Golden Stream". So says one paragraph in the book. William was
also active in the community of Scarsdale particularly regarding agitation
for the building of a new school in about 1869.
In describing their efforts a Mr J P Roberts wrote this:
"The Inspector (of schools) suggested that we should canvass the district
to see what support we could get.... Mr. McVitty, Mr W. Rogerson and I succeeded
in .....obtaining subscriptions well on towards £300." As the Government
provided a grant of half the cost, which was nearly £700, "Several
of us had to put our hands in our pockets a second time." Even then difficulties
were experienced convincing the state Board of Education to honour its obligations
but the citizens prevailed and building commenced in May 1870. The first school
committee for the "new" school, No. 980, at Scarsdale was formed
20th June 1870 and Wm Rogerson (Prebyterian) was voted to the committee. All
the committee members had their religions recorded, The committee had twelve
members giving 3 representatives to each of the four religions. C of E, Wesleyan,
Pres. and R.C. The "New" School was opened on 30 January 1871 That
school is the present Scarsdale School and John Rogerson and Christina Rogerson
were foundation pupils. Such was the life of William ROGERSON and his wife
Margaret CALDER. But, eleven years later, at the age of 45, he would be dead.
William and Margaret resided from the time of their marriage until at least
1875 at Scarsdale, VIC. Their house was in McDonagh Road. They were very much
involved in the Scarsdale community. William and Margaret resided about 1877
at Plank Road, Haddon. The Old Ballarat Cemetery Index says "William,
age 45, buried 18 August 1882, resided Plank Road Ballarat, Mine Manager".
He probably moved here when he became General Manager of the Trunk Lead Company
in about 1877.
His obituary in the Ballarat Star of 17th August 1882 read as follows:-
"Many persons have no doubt heard with regret that Mr. William Rogerson,
the well-known mining manager, died at his residence, Haddon, on Tuesday.
For a number of years the deceased had been connected with the mining enterprise
of the Scarsdale and Haddon districts, and his courteous and gentlemanly bearing
won of him the esteem of everyone with whom he came into contact. During the
somewhat long period of eight years he acted in the capacity of mining manager
for the Golden Steam Company of Scarsdale, and subsequently he filled the
important position of General Manager of the Trunk Lead Company, Haddon, which
latter position he held up to the time of his death. In being called upon
to superintend the operations of these companies the deceased must necessarily
have been held in high esteem by the directors, and must have possessed a
considerable amount of ability both as a business man and as a miner. About
two years back, Mr. Rogerson met with an unfortunate accident, the effects
of which materially assisted to hasten his death. Some Chinese were in the
act of stealing gold from the claim of the Trunk Lead Company, and whilst
Mr. Rogerson was endeavoring to arrest them a loaded pistol went off, Mr.
Rogerson receiving a rather severe wound. From the time of the occurrence
his health gradually failed, declining particularly for about three months
prior to his demise. The deceased, was a leading member of the Presbyterian
Church, and a very exemplary man, leaves a wife and a large family."
Christina's birth must have been one of the last that Dr Saenger delivered.
Extract from the Woady Yaloak Historical Society:
"the murder of Dr Saenger back in 1865. The inquest was held at Whitpaine's
Hotel, Scarsdale and William Rogerson was a member of the Jury.. The murders
of Dr Saenger were later hung at Ballarat".
Written
by Michael Calder. NSW
The Rogersons are of interest to us as Ernst Henry Kopke married Christina
Rogerson. Kopkes purchased Rogerson's property and The Ballarat &
Grenville Hotel was on the other side of the Carngham Road. They both derived
a livelihood via the Trunk Lead Mine.
We would greatly appreciate any information on the Trunk Lead Mining Co. as
all of our mine records were destroyed leaving us with no information from
that period.
Maps of locations mentioned in the text
Ballarat and Grenville hotel C.1950 As
viewed from Trunk Lead mine.(in photo archives)
