Goldfields Getaway
30 November, 2021
Dunolly history tour
Goldfields Historical & Arts Society (Dunolly Museum) runs regular tours in the goldfields of sites not included on the standard tourist route. They have been kind enough to share a recent tour and map, for tourists to take a self-guided trip...
Goldfields Historical & Arts Society (Dunolly Museum) runs regular tours in the goldfields of sites not included on the standard tourist route. They have been kind enough to share a recent tour and map, for tourists to take a self-guided trip down memory lane.
Head north along Broadway to Short St then right into Painkiller Gully Rd
1 Dunolly Historic Cemetery, First used in 1857 but not surveyed until 1860. There was no register and no plan. The graves appear to be at random. Some graves prior to the survey are outside the fence. An estimated 300 burials but the names are only confirmed for 46 burials. There are seven headstones.
J Augustus Grant Forbes 1862
William & Jean Hill 1865 & 1889
Julia Ann Martin 1859 – daughter of Alfred Martin, ironmonger
Thomas & Susannah Stafford 1857 & 1885
George Letts 1861 – builder of part of Chauncy Cottage
Elizabeth & Charles Lloyd 1857 & 1897
John Herbert 1862
Continue 400 m passed Cemetery
2 Thomas Stafford’s house dairy, orchard & vineyard. The brick house probably built 1869-1872. There was a brick cellar holding 300 gallons of wine. Was lived in until 1980.
Cross creek, turn right then left at bitumen, right into Cemetery Rd and right into School Rd
3 Dalysville Winery in School Rd. Established by Henry O’Brien Daly in 1860s. Vines grew all the way down to the bitumen. Stone cellar contained two wine presses and could store 30,000 gallons of wine. Nearby brick house built 1868-69.
Continue 900 m to next intersection
4 First aeroplane to land in Dunolly – 1920. A signboard is in the paddock near the corner of School Rd & Raglan St. Raglan St was the original road to Tarnagulla.
Take Raglan St to Thoms St and stop at bend
5 Joys Dam (brickworks) and house. Walter Joy was a brickmaker. Joys Dam is actually the hole where the clay was extracted to make the bricks. Many of Dunolly’s 1860s buildings are made of Joy’s bricks. As soft bricks came out of the mould, Walter Joy would use a thumbprint to mark off every 100 or so bricks. Then when he got to 1000, he would grab his fox terrier a put a paw print in the brick. Many old bricks in Dunolly have thumb or paw prints in them. Towards Broadway Joy’s house was built c1864.
Turn left into Broadway, left at Bull St, right into Barkly and stop at the gardens
6 lunch at Gordon Gardens
Head back the way you came
7 Henry & Sally Russell’s house site, 157 Broadway – Eliza Russell born here in 1861 and moved to Tweeddale St when a few months old. Her fourteen-year-old nephew was one of the winners in the 1901 competition to design a flag for Australia. Eliza Russell was a seamstress and sewed the first Australian flag.
Right before railway crossing and right again after 200 m
8 Dredge hole This hole was left after hydraulic sluicing 1906-c1912. There was later a eucy plant here. The rich gold find that started the Dunolly Rush was near here close to the railway.
Find your way back along Barkly St past Gordon Gardens and stop near a large shed.
9 Spread Eagle Reef/Government Battery Not much to be seen but this was once a large mine and site of the Government battery.
Turn left at end of Barkly St and after 150 m stop near a concrete bridge
10 Storm Channel The Municipal Reservoir had been built about 1870 to stop flooding in Dunolly but its overflow still flooded the town. This stone Storm Channel was dug in 1874 to divert the excess water.
Walk over the bridge to a high Cyclone fence
11 Drive-in – 1958 plan for, drive in for 600 people (Dunolly’s entire population). The screen was 40 x 88 ft & 30 ft high. Never completed, only fence and concrete slabs remain.
Return to Broadway and turn right. Turn left at petrol station and stop.
12 site of Windsor Castle Hotel 41 Broadway – built 1860, delicensed 1912, became a bootshop and then a boarding house, double murder here in 1938, burnt 1939
12a site of Davenport’s Bakery 45 Broadway – built 1876-77 for William Nowlan, baker. Sold to James Davenport 1880. James Davenport (jun) still running the bakery in 1940s. Demolished c1976. Pillar box c1880 still remains
Continue down Hardy St and turn right. Stop at Railway Station
13 Cork Tree Dunolly had a large wine industry. This cork tree was planted c 1870s.
