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PEAK DOWNS COPPER MINE.
ITS HISTORY - I
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Gold was the agent that raised Australia at one stroke to be the wonderment of half of Europe. Its production, though in a lesser degree, is still adding annually to the wealth of the world. Though Rockhampton is the centrepoint of one of the largest pastoral districts of Australia, its formation and early existence were mainly due to the discovery of gold at Canoona in 1858, yet it was not until 1882 that the wonderful Mt Morgan mine was discovered a mine which has produced enormous quantities of both gold and copper. Twenty years earlier than this discovery, gold was found among the ranges of Peak Downs, where one find led to another, and by 1864 a wide area of auriferous ground had been opened up, with a population of 2000 or 3000 diggers. As deep ground was approached, in a majority of cases the gold got finer and poorer until it ceased to pay. Many of the returning miners from Peak Downs in 1864 and 1865 turned their attention to likely looking places in the neighbourhood of Rockhampton, and many were found to be exceedingly rich and easily worked. It was during the rush to the newly-discovered Peak Downs gold field, however, that a gold digger named Mollard, who was prospecting for gold in some ironbark forest country about four miles south-west of the embryo township of Clermont, came across a large outcrop of what appeared to be copper ore. This discovery led to the formation of the Peak Downs Copper-mining Company, concerning which a comprehensive survey of its operations has been made available.
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The
last remaining chimney stack at Copperfield |
The discovery was made known by Mr. Mollard to Mr. John A. Manton, of Sydney, who was at that time on Peak Downs, and who at once proceeded to the spot. Having considerable mining experience, Mr. Manton had no doubt that the discovery was a valuable one. Purchasing Mr. Mollard's right for a merely nominal sum, he took immediate steps to secure the ground in which the outcrop was situated, and, having ascertained by further examination that a fine lode appeared to exist, running nearly due east and west, and extending a long distance, he took up three mineral blocks of eighty acres each, covering a mile and a half along the course of the load by half a mile wide. Two additional blocks were subsequently secured by Messrs. T.S. Mort and T. W. Smart, of Sydney, who with Mr Manton, afterwards became the promoters of a company formed for the purpose of working the mine. In order to test to some extent the value of the lode, Mr. Nisser and Mr Arthur Ledger, two experts in mineralogy were engaged to visit the property and report upon it, Mr. Manton also making a separate examination and report. The principal outcrop was found to be 10 ft. above the surface of the ground, 16 ft. in length and 8 ft. to 10 ft. in width, and was composed of high percentage of ore. Both east and west of this outcrop the lode was easily traced and shown distinctly for a distance of 1140 yards, the lode dipping towards the south. Samples of the ore were taken from a number of different places along the load and were sent to Sydney for assay, the returns varying from seventy-seven to fifty-four per cent of copper, while the reports of Messrs. Nisser, Ledger, and Manton all agreed in being of the most glowing description, and the prospects and indications being spoken of as almost unparalleled in the history of copper discoveries. These reports having been duly received in Sydney, it was resolved, on
the 18th of November, 1862, to incorporate a company with a nominal capital of $100,000 in $ shares, two thirds of which were to be retained by the owners of the ground as the value of their property, and considering as fully paid-up, the remaining third to be sold to furnish a working capital. The shares were not, however at that time placed before the public, Messrs. Mort and Smart having offered to take the whole at par, or 20s. per share, which offer was accepted, the condition being that these shares should be preferential value of eight per cent per annum over those shares which were given for the property. This preference was, however, afterwards set aside and the whole of the shares were placed on an equal footing. Thus was incorporated the Peak Downs Copper-mining Company, with a working capital of $33,000 all the shares being held by the three original promoters and a few others, who had acquired shares by private arrangement. Mr Manton undertook the first management and left Sydney early in 1863 with a small working staff; but owing to many difficulties on the road, which was at that time 260 miles in length from the port of Rockhampton, the party did not arrive on the company's property until late in April, Mr Manton having himself made a detour to the more northerly post of Waverly (Broadsound), which was known to be much nearer in actual distance to the mining property than Rockhampton. Subsequently a road was formed between Broadsound and the Peak Downs, which reduced the distance to about 140 miles, and which for some years was almost exclusively used for mining traffic. Mr Manton proceeded to sink trial shafts along the course of the lode and to build the necessary huts and other buildings for stores, &c. For this purpose, as also for future operations for smelting, an abundant supply of capital timber was at hand but, as it was several miles to the nearest permanent water, it was found necessary to construct reservoirs for the conservation of a supply. About ten weeks after arrival upon the ground Mr Manton reported that, in addition to building twelve huts for the men with store, stockyard, &c., he had raised 400 tons of ore, averaging about forty per cent. This report was corroborated by Mr. W. Burgoyne, a mining captain of large experience, who at this time inspected the property and characterised the lode as "one of the richest in the world." The company's first half-yearly meeting was held in July, 1863, when it was resolved to increase the number of shareholders by offering a large proportion of shares to the public, which shares appear to have been readily taken up.
The next six , months did not fully bear out the glowing expectations that had been formed. Materials for smelting furnaces had been procured from England, but the greatest difficulty had been experienced in getting them conveyed to the mine. Carriage in sufficient quantities, even at exorbitant rates, was not forthcoming, and the company at last had to purchase a carrying plant itself at a cost of between $2000 and $3000. A year after the formation of the company the material for only one furnace had reached the mine, and it was with great difficulty that the necessaries of life had been provided for the maintenance of the men. About this time rumours were current in Sydney that the value of the property had been overrated and in April, 1864, just twelve months after the first workings commenced, Mr Josiah Dennis, a mining captain of skill and experience, took charge of the mining department in the place of Mr. Manton. He condemned the superficial way in which the work had been carried on and commenced to prove the lode at a depth by sinking a shaft fifteen fathoms south of the outcrop, in which at seventeen fathoms from the surface, he cut a lode, it being at that part 4 ft. 6 in. in width, and composed principally of red and grey oxides. This and other discoveries made by Captain Dennis in his early explorations fully re-established the character of the mine. By the end of the third half-year of the company's existence the alluvial gold workings in the vicinity of the copper-mine had so increased that the town of Clermont and Copperfield had been surveyed and established, and there was a comparatively large proportion of diggers and others living round about, by reason of which the difficulties hitherto existing as to a supply of labour, stores, and carriage were somewhat modified, though the scourge of fever and ague, so generally prevalent in newly-occupied country, proved a serious drawback. Smelting operations had been attempted, but with little success, and had never been entirely given up until a competent staff of skilled smelters could be procured from South Australia.
Everything in the mine itself never looked so full of promise, but more trouble was at hand. It was found necessary to again suspend operations. At the end of 1864, Mr William Woodbine was appointed general manager-a position that he continued to occupy until the company's operations finally ceased.
Mr. Woodbine arrived at the mine and took charge in February, 1865, when Captain Dennis again proceeded with the underground work, but owing to the delay in smelting the ores already at grass, the mining operations were not pushed forward with vigour. The South Australian smelters had in the mean time arrived and had found it necessary to reconstruct the two furnaces already built. They managed to refine fourteen tons of copper of excellent quality, which was immediately despatched to port, when they were again beset with difficulties. The furnaces and refinery would not stand the requisite amount of heat, the bottoms constantly giving way, owing, it was supposed, to the inferior quality of the material available. A particular class of sand and of fireclay was required. In addition to the local supply, samples of sand were tried from the Fitzroy River, 250 miles distant, from the islands in Keppel Bay, and from Sydney harbour. Eventually sand and fireclay (or bricks), were imported from Adelaide (South Australia), at an enormous expense for carriage, and were used until further research in the neighbourhood of the mine resulted in the discovery of these materials within a few miles of equal quality to those of South Australia. Still, however, the difficulties of smelting, and especially of refining, proved so great tat for a long time nearly all the copper was sent to market in a rough state and large quantities of the best ores were bagged and sent to other works to be smelted.
By the end of 1865 the company had despatched from the mine in all ninety tons of smelted copper. Most of it was rough, but it was worth $80 per ton in London. The return formed a valuable addition to the financial resources. Six months later, or three years after the formation of the company, the whole of the subscribed capital had been expended, with the exception of about $2800 of overdue calls, in addition to which some $14,000 to $15,000 being the proceeds of copper shipped and sold, and overdrawn bank accounts, had been disbursed in connection with the various works. Against this the valuable assets, including ores at grass, were estimated at about $16,000. During the following years steady and satisfactory progress was made. The first steam engine was secured for pumping and hauling and was fixed at a shaft sunk some distance west of the principal outcrop. This shaft was sunk to the thirty-fathom level and a crosscut was driven at that depth twenty fathoms, cutting a rich vein of sulphurets and black oxides, yielding eight to ten tons of ore per fathom. Large quantities of good ore were raised and smelted and the number of furnaces increased to seven. More miners and smelters had been obtained from South Australia and also some competent furnace masons. A new road had also been marked from the mine to Broadsound and a survey made of the facilities of that port for shipping all at the company's expense. London prices for rough copper had reached $90, but during the year had declined to $76. The company balance sheet to the 31st of December 1866, showed a credit balance of $22,000, though the bank account was overdrawn, which prevented a dividend. At this period the mine itself was valued at $104,800, nearly $40,000 having been spent improving the property and adding to the original nominal value of $66,066. Another half-year passed, and though the production of copper continued steadily to increase, the time lost before could be realised upon was a constant drawback, and with a credit balance (in assets) of nearly $25,000 at the end of June, the bank overdraft had increased to over $13,000. Forty more miners had been added to the staff, and in April, 1867, Mr. J. P. Christoe had taken the management of the smelting department, as well as the duties of assayer. The refining difficulties were not overcome and most of the metal was refined before leaving the works. The depression in the copper market continued, about $70 for rough copper being all that was obtainable, and even this price was not maintained during the latter half of the year.