Edward Hargraves- A Renowned Prospector
Edward Hargraves is extremely renowned for being the first discoverer of gold in Australia, but hundreds had probably found gold before him. Convicts, shepherds, a clergyman, a Polish explorer - all sorts of people found gold before Edward Hargraves did, but the authorities buried the news of gold discoveries, for they were afraid that a gold rush would only mean chaos. When Edward Hargraves found payable gold near Bathurst, however, the news spread like fire. Soon hundreds of people rushed to dig for gold - the gold rush had begun.
Edward Hammond Hargraves (1816~1891) was born in Gosport, Hampshire, England. At age 16, (in 1836) he arrived in Sydney, where he later married his wife, Elizabeth. Before he started searching for gold, Hargraves had a number of occupations. He had been a sailor, farmer, hotel manager and a shipping agent, and had worked in Bathurst, Torres Strait, East Gosford and Manning River. Edward Hargraves was a large man. He weighed around 114kg! Why search for gold in NSW? Hargraves was not successful in any of his jobs, so he travelled to California during the Californian gold rush, in 1849. He had looked to find his fortune at the diggings, but he had only accomplished another failure. However, it was proved that travelling to california had done him some good when he noticed that the land in California seemed similar to the land in NSW, Australia. It had slate, quartz and granite. But people ignored his theory and he was criticized by many. The Inspector General of NSW police called Hargraves' idea 'wild' and 'unprofitable'. Those who had failed to found gold in California were largely brushed off in this manner. With his theory and his skill for cradling and panning, all of which he had earned in California, Hargraves set off for Australia, where his life would change. |
 Edward Hargraves named the first gold field in Australia Ophir, after a city of gold in the bible. Edward Hargraves was not the founder of Australia's first gold field. John Lister and William, James and Henry Tom were the first to discover the Australian gold field in Bathurst. | 400 people came to search for gold within a week after Hargraves found gold in Bathurst. Within the next three months, more than 1000 people had rushed to Ophir.   |
