Mount Moran Battery

Mount Moran Battery
Mount Moran Battery
	Mount Moran Battery, 2009
Location	New Woolgar Road, Gilberton, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia
Coordinates	19°08′28″S143°29′56″E / 19.1412°S 143.4988°E Coordinates: 19°08′28″S143°29′56″E / 19.1412°S 143.4988°E
Design period	1919 - 1930s (interwar period)
Built	1924 - c. 1936
Queensland Heritage Register
	Official name: Mount Moran Battery
Type	state heritage (archaeological)
Designated	22 September 2000
Reference no.	601921
Significant period	1924-1936 (fabric, historical)
Significant components	pump, machinery/plant/equipment - mining/mineral processing, mine - open cut, well, battery/crusher/stamper/jaw breaker
	Location of Mount Moran Battery in Queensland Mount Moran Battery (Australia)

Last updated April 25, 2019

Mount Moran Battery is a heritage-listed former stamper battery at New Woolgar Road, Gilberton, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1924 to c. 1936. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 22 September 2000.^[1]

Gilberton is a remote locality in the Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia.

The Shire of Etheridge is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia in what is known as the Savannah Gulf region. Its economy is based on cattle grazing and mining.

Queensland is the second-largest and third-most populous state in the Commonwealth of Australia. Situated in the north-east of the country, it is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean. To its north is the Torres Strait, with Papua New Guinea located less than 200 km across it from the mainland. The state is the world's sixth-largest sub-national entity, with an area of 1,852,642 square kilometres (715,309 sq mi).

History

Mount Moran Battery is situated on a sloping ridge above the seasonally active Agate Creek, west of Forsayth. The isolated five head stamp battery was erected in 1924 to crush ore won from the three reefs worked in the area - the Mona, Iona and Bosker.^[1]

Gold was discovered in the Georgetown Mining District in 1868 and a series of gold and base metal discoveries followed. The region became known as the Etheridge Gold and Mineral Field. The field peaked as a gold producer in the 1890s but was in decline by World War I. High base metal prices turned attention to lead, silver and copper and the field boomed until the onset of the Depression in the late 1920s again caused prices to drop. A brief revival in gold mining followed but the labour and materials shortages of World War Two ended all mining.^[1]

Georgetown, Queensland Town in Queensland, Australia

Georgetown is a town and locality in the Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. In the 2011 census, Georgetown had a population of 243 people.

World War I 1914–1918 global war originating in Europe

World War I, also known as the First World War or the Great War, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. Contemporaneously described as "the war to end all wars", it led to the mobilisation of more than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, making it one of the largest wars in history. It is also one of the deadliest conflicts in history, with an estimated nine million combatants and seven million civilian deaths as a direct result of the war, while resulting genocides and the 1918 influenza pandemic caused another 50 to 100 million deaths worldwide.

Australia suffered badly during the period of the Great Depression of the 1930s. The Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of 1929 and rapidly spread worldwide. As in other nations, Australia suffered years of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging incomes, and lost opportunities for economic growth and personal advancement.

During the early years of gold discoveries on the Etheridge field small amounts of alluvial gold were found in gullies around Mount Moran. Although it was not until the 1920s that the area produced three working gold reefs. Between 1922 and 1936 the three mines, the Mona, Iona and Bosker, yielded 1,033 ounces (29,300 g) of gold. Ore from the area was first crushed at the Ortona battery. By 1924 Mount Moran required its own crushing facilities. The ten head battery at Ortona, situated about 3 miles (4.8 km) from Mount Moran field, was relocated from Ortona to its present site.^[1]

In 1924 there was increased prospecting in the area with satisfactory results. Several new gold-bearing lodes were discovered, however most of the work was confined to the Finger Point mine. Here, the principal owners formed a syndicate and amalgamated their holdings in a 16 acres (6.5 ha) lease. The claims in the area were the Blue Spec, Bosker, Brown Hill, Dinkum, Finger Print, Lucky Hit, Iona and Peg Leg, with the deepest shafts of 22 and 27 metres (72 and 89 ft) being sunk on the Peg Leg and Finger Print respectively.^[1]

The 1930s saw a brief revival in the area then known as "the Mount Moran group of gold mines". In 1936 the Mount Moran Battery crushed 157 long tons (160 t) of ore to yield 58 ounces (1,600 g) of gold. However, there appears to have been no activity after this date. The Mount Moran Battery presumably ceased operation as the mines in the area closed.^[1]

Description

The Mount Moran Battery contains the remains of a five head stamp battery including mortar box, stamper rods and belt wheel. The battery frame has been removed. A colonial boiler, the remains of a steam engine with fly wheel and several berdan pans are located alongside the stamp battery. A collapsed corrugated iron camp is located across a gully to the west of the battery. A small steam pump is located near a well on a watercourse east of the battery. The place includes several early open workings.^[1]

Heritage listing

Mount Moran Battery was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register on 22 September 2000 having satisfied the following criteria.^[1]

The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history.

The Mount Moran Mine is important in demonstrating the evolution of Queensland's mining history, in particular the Etheridge Gold and Mineral Field. It contributes to an understanding of ore crushing technology utilised on a marginal lode and is an example of a small battery which was set up to crush ore for a few small mines in an isolated area of the remote field.^[1]

Related Research Articles

No. 1 Scottish Gympie Mine and Battery is a heritage-listed mine at Old Brisbane Road, Monkland, Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from c. 1889 to c. 1923. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.

Glassford Creek Smelter Sites are the heritage-listed remains of a former smelter at Glassford State Forest, off Many Peaks Road, Many Peaks, Gladstone Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built c. 1903. It is also known as Glassford Creek Copper Smelters. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 4 July 2006.

Norton Goldfield is a heritage-listed former mine at Norton Road, near Nagoorin, Boyne Valley, Gladstone Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1870s to 1941. It is also known as Milton Goldfield. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 27 October 2006.

Barclay's Battery is a heritage-listed stamper battery at Collinsville road, Mount Coolon, Whitsunday Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1914 to 1932. It is also known as Mount Coolon Gold Mines Battery. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 17 May 2004.

Ebagoola Township and Battery is a heritage-listed mining camp at Yarraden, Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1900 to 1913. It is also known as Ada Stewart Battery and Ebagoolah Township. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 15 May 2006.

Alexandra Mine and Battery is a heritage-listed mine at Palmerville Station, Maytown, Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. It was built from c. 1878 to 1898. It is also known as Alexandra PC.It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.

Great Northern Mine is a heritage-listed mine off Jacks Road, Herberton, Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1880 to 1940s. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.

Coolgarra Battery is a heritage-listed stamper battery at Coolgarra Station, Silver Valley, Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1896 to 1901. It is also known as Coolgarra Old Furnace. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 25 August 2000.

Kingsborough Battery is a heritage-listed mining building off the former East Street, Kingsborough, Thornborough, Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. It was built from c. 1896 to 1990s. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.

Tyrconnel Mine and Battery is a heritage-listed gold mine between Kingsborough and Thornborough, Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1876 to 1980s. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.

Lolworth Creek Battery is a heritage-listed stamper battery at Basalt, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from c. 1930 to c. 1932. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 14 June 2003.

Mabel Mill is a heritage-listed former stamper battery at Barton Street, Ravenswood, Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from c. 1871 to c. 1902. It is also known as Mabel Mill and Partridge Mill. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 28 January 1994.

Ortona Mine and Battery is a heritage-listed mine at Forsayth-Agate Creek - Ortona (Iona) Station Road, Gilberton, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1899 to 1908. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 25 August 2000.

Aspasia Mine and Battery is a heritage-listed mine and stamper battery at Gulf Developmental Road, Georgetown, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1916 to 1952. It is also known as Mount Turner Battery. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 13 April 2006.

Joseph Morris Mine is a heritage-listed former mine at Georgetown Mining District, Gilberton, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1903 to 1910. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 5 April 2004.

Kidston State Battery is a heritage-listed stamper battery at Kidston in Einasleigh, Shire of Etheridge, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1907 to 1950. It is also known as Kidston Township. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.

Homeward Bound Battery and Dam is a heritage-listed stamping mill and reservoir at Croydon, Shire of Croydon, Queensland, Australia. It was built in 1888 by Mr Schumacher. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.

Bower Bird Battery is a heritage-listed former stamper battery in the Mount Isa Mining District, Mount Isa, City of Mount Isa, Queensland, Australia. It was built from c. 1895 to c. 1909. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 13 December 2002.

Silver Valley is a locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. It is known for its mining in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

References

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Mount Moran Battery (entry 601921)". Queensland Heritage Register . Queensland Heritage Council. Retrieved 1 August 2014.

Attribution

This Wikipedia article was originally based on "The Queensland heritage register" published by the State of Queensland under CC-BY 3.0 AU licence (accessed on 7 July 2014, archived on 8 October 2014). The geo-coordinates were originally computed from the "Queensland heritage register boundaries" published by the State of Queensland under CC-BY 3.0 AU licence (accessed on 5 September 2014, archived on 15 October 2014).

External links

Media related to Mount Moran Battery at Wikimedia Commons

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[qhr-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Mount Moran Battery (entry 601921)". Queensland Heritage Register . Queensland Heritage Council. Retrieved 1 August 2014.