Gold Mining

Lesson 2: Otago Gold Part Two

What Lies Beneath (2006)

Key Content

• Early gold mining extraction methods in the Otago region

Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

• Describe the living conditions miners faced during early mining activity in New Zealand.
• Outline some of the early gold extraction methods.

4. Weekly Review 237, National Film Unit, 1946

Weekly Review 237 (1946)

Shows men panning for gold in Otago and a dredge on the Clutha River in action.

a. Note down the name of the man who first discovered a payable gold field in Otago. Also note down the date of his first claim.
Gabriel Read May 20 1861

b. What are tailings?
Waste material left over after mining.

5. The Clutha With John Gadsby [extracts], George Andrews Productions, 1991

The Clutha with John Gadsby (1991)

Jon Gadsby takes a look at the sites of former gold workings along the Clutha River: Dunstan & Doctor's Point. Two of the main gold extractions (quartz and alluvial) are mentioned, and stone cottages and cave dwellings are investigated.

a. Describe the accommodation for miners.
Tents, shacks, caves, and eventually stone cottages

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