Bucket elevator,Wheel of Fortune claim.Stafford.ca.1906.

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DescriptionWHEEL OF FORTUNE CLAIM , Stafford. This claim is now (1906) owned by a private company, and the principals are: Messrs J. A. Murdoch, solicitor, Kumara; W. J. Mcllroy, merchant, Kumara, J. B. Lewis, solicitor, Hokitika; and F. A. Boyes, mine manager, Hokitika. The Wheel of Fortune claim has, under various conditions, been working for about thirty years.

Some years ago an English company, with a large capital, took over the claim and effected great improvements. It was acquired by the present company in the year 1904, and is being successfully worked. The claim consists of fifty acres, every foot of which is gold-bearing.

Water is brought six miles from Lake Mudgee, to the extent of twenty-seven heads, and the depth of ground worked is from thirty to eighty feet. The system of working is by hydraulic sluicing, and the tailings are disposed of by two sets of bucket elevators driven by Pelton wheels. The buckets are of four cubic feet capacity, and the elevators are capable of dealing with over 100 tons an hour. The works are lit at night by electric light. About fourteen persons are employed."STAFFORD is a mining hamlet situated on the Waimea creek, and on the main West Coast road, eight miles from Hokitika.

The first “rush” to the district took place in 1865, and it is stated that in 1870 the township contained thirty-seven hotels and seventeen stores. It is estimated that at that time the population exceeded 5000 people, amongst whom were a large proportion of Scandinavians. Stafford, in its palmiest days (which ended about 1875) was a payable field.

It has contributed a fair quota of gold, but the diggings are now nearly worked out, although a few good sluicing claims still remain; amongst them the “Wheel of Fortune.”

To read more , click onto External Link below.

Excerpt from "Cylopedia of New-Zealand".
{see external link}Date of PhotoBetween 1st January 1900 and 31st December 1904Map^[1]External LinkCylopedia of New-ZealandContributorHeather Newby

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Location (city or town)StaffordOrganisation (eg business)Wheel of Fortune claim

Category Information

Category TagGoldmining

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Date Created30th October 2016CommentsRobin Peterson Excellent detail from your research. Thank you.
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Bucket elevator,Wheel of Fortune claim.Stafford.ca.1906.

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