Clough Road, Karoro street cuts used to bring water to alluvial goldminers PHOTO ALBUM

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Tony Kokshoorn
·
11h
·
1864.
GREYMOUTH
4 GOLD MINERS STRIKE IT RICH.
1800 OUNCES OF GOLD IN 24 WEEKS.
WATSONS CREEK-SOUTH BEACH.
DAMS ON SAWYER'S CREEK.
WATER RACES TO THE BEACH THROUGH RUGBY PARK.
Greymouth has almost forgotten that it was once the scene of actual alluvial mining and not merely a base to supply diggers’ requirements and amenities. Sinnott’s dam in Sawyer’s Creek (later known as Fairhall’s Dam) existed at the site of the present general traffic bridge in Marlborough Street, and the water covered a considerable area of the low-lying land to the east; the Irishman’s race took water from the locality of the dam out to the beach in the vicinity of the cemetery. The race was constructed along the foot of the hills south of Marlborough Street and, in parts, was six feet deep. Another race intersected what is now (1962) Rugby Park. It appears that originally an alluvial terrace ran from southern Greymouth to the vicinity of Paroa at least – see the actual cemetery site, lands to the east and south of it, land immediately south and west of Watson’s Creek and the terrace on which the Hokitika railway is built south of Nelson Street. From about Nelson Street in Greymouth to Paroa, a huge area was excavated in the course of mining operations, except that an area west of the Hokitika railway line and south of Watson’s Creek was taken by the Railway Department to ballast various lines. But the great trench excavated in the course of mining can still be detected without difficulty. The various east-west streets in Karoro (south of the cem etery to Watson’s Creek) were the sites of tail races or water races. The youngsters used to be intrigued by the wooden box syphons between Nelson Creek and Paroa. The water was brought in open wooden flume (on legs) to the edge of the road, where there was a box flume leading to be low road level and passing underneath the road and then rising to form a continuation of the open box flume to wherever the water was required. How, we thought, could the water run uphill? The cuts through the terrace ulti mately provided access roads (e.g. Clough Road) from the Paroa Road to the land east of the Hokitika railway line. Much mining was done between the Paroa Road and the beach, as shown by the many excavations resulting in residual ponds, etc. According to the Handbook of NZ Mines 1887, Two Mile or Ballarat Creek south of the Grey River was one of the outstanding rich spots on the Coast; here, four men working quietly in the bush obtained 1,200 ozs of gold for about four months’ work; they afterwards got 600 ozs more from the same claim and then left for the Old Country. This was apparently in 1864. In Lord’s “Old Westland”, the creek is designated by its modern name “Watson’s Creek”. This suggested identity of the two creeks is almost certainly correct, as Lord’s father (Edward Iveagh Lord) was on the Coast in 1873, or earlier and a registered surveyor with an extensive practice. Kilgour and Perotti bought Section 1399 (Freehold Town of Greymouth) in November, 1872. There was then a dam marked “Kilgour’s” dam and a race partly on the section. This dam would be astride Grandjean’s Creek and the dam site is now incorporated in the Greymouth Technical High School’s playing field. Nothing is known of Grand jean except that in 1873 a J Grand jean was proprietor of the Courthouse Hotel, Greymouth (opposite the Court house, which was on the south side of Gresson Street). On the east side of High Street and a chain or so south of Marlborough Street, there was a dam, at a point where a creek passed through a substantial culvert on the road. There was also a dam in Sawyer’s Creek about midway between Tainui and Shakespeare Streets, but for non-mining purposes – flax milling and timber re-sawing. Extensive gold mining was done across the Grey River from the original Greymouth Borough area. All along the lower levels of the Rapahoe Range or Twelve Apostles (Darkies’ and other terraces), sluicing was carried on within the limit of the practical water supplies, while the North Beach dredge (built on Lake Ryan in 1900-1901) worked the beach terrace to its northernmost limit just south of Point Elizabeth, finishing in 1913. Map^[1]ContributorTony Kokshoorn

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Clough Road, Karoro street cuts used to bring water to alluvial goldminers *PHOTO ALBUM*

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Clough Road, Karoro street cuts used to bring water to alluvial goldminers PHOTO ALBUM