Marlborough Express - Weekend Express
Hopes of reviving abandoned goldmine
Picton businessman Richard Cragg reopens a goldmine at the abandoned township of Cullensville, near Linkwater, this week 120 years ago, as we take a flick through the archives. From the Marlborough Express, October 19, 1903
Mr Cragg, of Picton, who is now sole proprietor of King Solomon’s Mine at Cullensville is sinking a new shaft and getting the water clear from the old workings, where he feels assured there is gold enough – and to spare – to re-coup him for all his expenditure, and reward his faith in old “King Solomon”.
A quantity of rich wash dirt lies at the bottom of the old shaft, which they had to abandon on account of the danger from the flooding of the mine.
The new shaft and machinery will relieve that danger, and the plucky proprietor hopes for great things shortly after Christmas. His fellow townsmen wish him luck.
Also in the paper:
Picton is bubbling over with excitement over a find of coal at the Elevation, made by Mr Geo. Freeth, of Koromiko. Mr Freeth has been prospecting for months, and on Thursday last came upon some coal shale
at a depth of four feet from the surface.
The shale looks quite as good as some of the coal residents are burning. On Saturday, close by his first find, Mr Freeth came across a seam of coal lying vertical in the ground.
Specimens, one of which is a big solid lump, is on view in Mr Cragg’s butcher shop, and those interested have great hopes now of the development of coal in the near vicinity of Picton.
The Waitohi Lawn Tennis Club opened the season on Saturday on Nelson Square, Picton, using the cricket pitch, by permission of the captain and officials of the Cricket Club.
The President (Dr. Redman) said he
was glad to see such a large gathering present, and he was proud of the honor (sic) the new club had conferred on him by electing him president.
He was glad to see that the two clubs were working amicably together, as was evidenced by the older club giving up the pitch to be used on this occasion.
Nelson Square was, as they all knew, public property, and any club could use it for games, but it was rather small for tennis and cricket to be played at the same time, owing to the danger of flying cricket balls, and he was glad to hear that there was a prospect of the Tennis Club being able to secure a better ground for themselves.