History of Gold at Beaconsfield

The Past :

Gold was first discovered at Tasmania's historic Beaconsfield Gold Mine in 1877.

After the initial discovery Beaconsfield became a thriving mining town as the nature of the deposit was realised and the news of the discovery spread throughout the country.

Beaconsfield... a thriving gold mining town at the turn of the century. Many of the original buildings remain today, including the Mine Manager's residence, now the main office for the West Tamar Council.

Further prospecting and development confirmed the deposit was extensive and rich - the high-grade Tasmania Reef, 400 metres in length and extending more than 1000 metres below.

Underground mining began in 1879. Advanced mining techniques for the day were used to sink and develop three main shafts, the Hart Shaft, the Main Shaft and the Grubb Shaft, to access the reef and begin gold production.

The gold mine attracted people from throughout Tasmania and Australia to Beaconsfield... many descendants live in the town today.

Mining operations were soon stretched to the limit, as the shafts suffered continual flooding - the result of an enormous underground reservoir. Even with powerful and sophisticated pumping machines, production was continually halted for months at a time.

Beaconsfield... a thriving gold mining town at the turn of the century.

In 1903 an English consortium took control of the operation and installed what was believed to be the most powerful pumping plant in the world, designed to overcome previous flooding difficulties.

The pumps were highly complex and, with continual interruptions from flooding, took years to install. Costs of breaking and hauling ore also rose as the mine developed to the 450 metre level.

Hawthorn Davey Pumping Engines were part of the state -of-the-art pumping equipment installed to dewater the mine, circa 1905.

These and other factors resulted in the cost of production exceeding the value of the gold recovered. Eventually, after producing 854,000 ounces of gold obtained from the more than 1 million tonnes of ore, the mine was forced to close in 1914.

The Future - Coming Back To Life :

Tasmania's historic Beaconsfield Gold Mine is being brought back to life.

More than 100 years after gold was first produced, the mine is returning to its former glory as one of Australia's premier gold mines.

When mining operations ceased in 1914 the extent of the remaining mineral resource was unknown.

Since redevelopment began in the 1980's, extensive exploration has identified a resource of 1.5 million tonnes within a 450 vertical metre zone beneath the old workings, which extended more than 450 metres below the surface.

A multi-stage development program, designed to bring the mine into full production and incorporating construction of an on-site processing mill, is now nearing completion.

The initial stages of redevelopment have centered on the rehabilitation and dewatering of one of the original shafts, the Hart Shaft, to the 375m level.

Installation of an 800 litre per second capacity pump station 180 metres below the surface has been critical.

An 800 litre per second capacity pump station has played a key role in the successful redevelopment of the mine.

The mine is now efficiently dewatered at nearly three times the rate achieved by the original pumps, overcoming one of the major hurdles experienced by operators in the early 1900's.

Other major developments include the construction of a new headframe and winder at the Hart Shaft, capable of meeting full production specifications.