MOONLIGHT-CUM-MAGDALA

LITTLE RICKARD STREET STAWELL, NORTHERN GRAMPIANS SHIRE

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Victorian Heritage Inventory

MOONLIGHT-CUM-MAGDALA

Statement of Significance

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  • History

    MOONLIGHT-CUM-MAGDALA - History

    Heritage Inventory History of Site: The Magdala shaft was worked from 1868 to 1918, reached a maximum depth 2,140 feet, and yielded 315,417 ounces of gold valued at 1,293,652 pounds. Its shaft was the deepest on the Stawell goldfield.In the 1870s the Magdala Company was on of a number of companies at Stawell who were engaged in sinking on new ground to intersect a very deep formation which was being successfully worked by mines to the north. By the winter of 1877, the Magdala shaft was down 1,750ft, making it the second deepest on the field. Despite all its endeavours the Magdala company was not to mine successfully for some 18 years.By the late 1870s the Stawell field had slipped into a deep depression. The lethargy gripping the Stawell field was broken in 1880 when companies commenced using National rock drills. These drills driven by compressed air, proved to be extremely effective and enabled both prospecting and mining operations to be carried out with great economy. The new technology eventually brought the Magdala company success when it picked up some good indication in a diamond drill core in 1883 and commenced driving towards the ore body. In 1885 the company went through re-organisation to acquire the necessary funds to complete its prospect program: and in 1886, the fortunes of the new venture - the Moonlight-cum-Magdala- began to improve. The company's quarterly crushing from June 1886 showing a healthy and constant increase in the average gold yield. The improved showing of the company encouraged several other ventures - Cross Reef Consolidation, North Magdala and Moonlight Extended - to prospect hitherto untried country.The Moonlight-cum-Magdala company dominated the Stawell goldfield from the late 1880s onwards. In 1903 it was the only Stawell company still mining profitably and it continued to produce gold until it closed down in 1917. By this time the Magdala had exhausted all known reserves and were unwilling to commit any capital towards progressive works.During the 1930s Stawell Gold Mines was unsuccessful in its attempts to work the mine. Today the Magdala ore body is being profitably mined - via a decline - by Stawell Gold Mines Pty Ltd.

    Heritage Inventory Description

    MOONLIGHT-CUM-MAGDALA - Heritage Inventory Description

    Shaft - fenced shaft and display sign (worked from 1868-1918, maximum depth 2,140 feet, yield 315,417 ounces, Historic Marker, Stawell Progress Association). Water dams and slum ponds - the water dams abut Byrne Street. Below the dams are two- approximately 150 metres wide - quarried slum ponds.

    Heritage Inventory Significance: Regional Significance.

    Recorded by: David Bannear Date Recorded: July 1994

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