In May 1887 Jane Adams’ father, Charles Glass of Moujakine, found a small piece of gold while sinking a well on his lease.

This news sparked off the formation of several syndicates which employed experienced prospectors to go into the eastern districts seeking gold. One such syndicate employed Dick Greaves, Ted Payne and Harry Anstey to undertake an expedition which left Perth in July 1887 travelling first to Newcastle then on to Glass’s at Moujakine near Trayning. Their next stop was at Arnold Butterly’s homestead, built near what Greaves called the ‘Yarragan light house’, from whence they journeyed to Mangowine where they received a warm welcome.

Soon after their arrival a rival prospecting party consisting of B. Colreavy, H. Fraser and two others came on the scene, then came Alec Glass …

The next stage of the journey took the prospecting party to George Lukin’s station Wilgoyne, where Lukin provided a native guide who led them to another of his runs at Ennuin. Here they made camp and around 20 October discovered gold. Anstey accompanied by George Lukin, returned to Perth to peg the land, while Greaves and Payne continued prospecting, discovering another good reef some twelve or fourteen miles south which Greaves called The Cordelia, and about which he claimed to have told Colreavy who subsequently took the credit for discovering it, renaming it ‘Golden Valley’.

Anstey, although pledged to silence on the discovery, was too talkative, and early in November the news of the gold find was reported in the Press which led to the arrival of many prospectors on the fields.

The Inquirer of 16 November and 23 November 1887 told of several prospecting parties leaving Newcastle, Northam and York—A Mr C. J. Hughes of ‘The Emerald Hotel’ was going via Newcastle; Messrs F. & W. Craig, J. Seabrook, Edwards and Burgess left from York, having made special provision for the carriage of water ‘all canvas bags on sale at York having been bought by them’; a Mr Cameron, an experienced Queensland prospector and two capable bushmen, ex sandalwooders, left via Newcastle with

‘a waggonette, two horses and three months provisions with every necessary requisite in the way of tools, dynamite etc’ (his party was financed by a Perth syndicate); Messrs Steere and Lloyd had set out from Newcastle, while parties had started too from ‘the other side’ (the Eastern States).

Excerpt page 35-36, On The Line by Joyce Maddock