In the year 1869, two British prospectors John Deason and Richard Oates made a historic discovery in the heart of Victoria, Australia. While digging for gold, they stumbled upon a massive rock that turned out to be an enormous block of gold weighing 72 kg. Measuring 0.6 meters long and nearly 0.3 meters wide, the gold block was a sight to behold.
Excited by their discovery, Deason and Oates kept it a secret until they could safely secure the gold. Under the cover of darkness, they retrieved the gold and brought it back to Deason’s tent. After removing the dirt and black quartz covering the gold block, they took a portion of the black quartz to a local ore crusher, which yielded 1.7 kg of gold. The remaining gold block was transported to Dunolly, where they sold it for an astounding £9,563 to the bank.
However, due to its size, the block of gold was too large to be weighed at the bank, so it had to be divided into three blocks for weighing. Despite their windfall, Deason and Oates faced different fates after the discovery. While Deason continued mining for gold in Moliagal and eventually became a store manager there before losing his wealth due to failed investments, Oates returned home to England and got married before returning to Australia again where he lived on a farm until his death.
Moliagul is now a quiet community with sparse houses but still attracts prospectors during Victoria’s famous Golden Triangle area. With its rich history of discoveries like Lady Hotham’s Gold Block or “Welcome Nugget,” this area continues to draw miners looking for fortune.
Today’s modern mining practices in Victoria have advanced significantly with companies using technology like drilling methods and machinery to efficiently extract rock samples from deep underground mines resulting in an annual production of approximately 18,427 kg of gold.
The lure of striking it rich continues to attract prospectors despite the challenges and risks associated with mining in this historic region.
