| Book Name |
The Berringa Gold Field |
| Author |
Bradford |
| published |
1904 |
|
|
The Berringa district is situated about 30 kilometres south-west of Ballarat. Auriferous quartz reefs occur within the Ordovician country rock which is composed of sandstones and slates. Alluvial mining commenced in the early 1850s, and quartz mining and crushing in the 1860s. Up to five mines were operating in a boom period from 1897 to about 1917.
The Berringa Gold-field is situated about twenty miles to the south-west of Ballarat city, and extends from Rokewood Junction on the south, for about twelve miles north, to the old alluvial diggings near Scarsdale. It includes mining centres known as Newtown,. Staffordshire Reef, Kangaroo (now known as Berringa), Moonlight, Misery Ranges, and Rokewood Junction. Sixteen months ago I examined and reported on the gold-bearing features of a strip of country east of, adjoining, and parallel to this area. The whole district is composed of ranges cut in the southern part of the Ballarat plateau by water action. Its highest altitude above sea-level is about 2,000 feet, while the volcanic plain seven miles to the south of the town of Berringa has an altitude above sea-level of about 600 feet. Its country is composed of the usual sedimentary rock peculiar to most of our gold-fields. |
