Discover what lies beneath
Before Sovereign Hill became one of Australia’s most celebrated living history museums, it was a working landscape shaped by gold, ambition, innovation and tragedy. Most visitors know that Ballarat was a place where rich alluvial gold was discovered in 1851, helping to spark the Victorian gold rush. Far fewer know the remarkable story of the rich nugget discoveries and the mines that later made Sovereign Hill one of Ballarat’s most important centres of quartz mining.
Join us for the book launch of Gold Beneath the Hill: Mining Sovereign Hill 1851-1918. Author Peter McCarthy will uncover the forgotten history of the men and women who lived and worked beneath and around the famous hill. His book follows the search for hidden deep leads, the rise of pioneering quartz mines, the influence of local entrepreneurs and overseas investors, and the fortunes won and lost in the pursuit of gold.
Copies of Gold Beneath the Hill will be available for sale at the event.
About the speaker
Peter McCarthy is a retired mining engineer who worked mainly in the gold mining industry as a consultant and company director. He is an Honorary Fellow and former President of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, and a Life Member of the Sovereign Hill Museums Association. Peter was associated with Sovereign Hill for more than forty years and served on the board for 18 years.
Since retiring, Peter has pursued his long-time interest in mining heritage and has written technical papers, articles and books on the subject.
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