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Chinese miners also made the best of the promised gold at the claims. Ah Fong and his small group of about four miners proved the most successful of the Asian miners and managed to extract 6,000 ounces (170 kg) of gold from their small claim between 1875 and 1883. Currently there is a loop track
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composed of no more than fifty men, and they were some of the first miners to use sluicing in the claims, creating water races and hydraulic systems to accommodate the hydraulic sluicing methods. Other companies also invested interest in the area at this time as did a number of individual miners.
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and then soon after it was mined by small companies. One of the more established was the
Pioneer Company who worked the Pioneer Claim for 25 years from 1856-1881, before selling to the Chinese Co-operative who continued mining the claim with relatively little success until 1888. This company was
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Omeo when translated means mountains. This is relevant for the area that forms Omeo is surrounded by mountains. During the peak of the gold rush the town accommodated thousands of miners, farmers and businessmen however in 2006 statistics showed that it had a population of 452. This population
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were brought into the area to help minimize crime. One of the magistrates Mr. Brown is said to have described Omeo as the roughest and toughest goldfield in
Australia as recorded in A.M Pearson’s historical recording ‘Echoes From The Mountains’.
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clan numbering at approximately two hundred and fifty. There is little reported of these people in the years that the district was settled, although it is said that they were somewhat territorial and could be violent towards neighbouring
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that hatched at the High Plains in great number which served as a delicacy in their diets. The environment was changed massively with the settlement of
Europeans and the introduction of pests such as
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The first stations were founded in Omeo in
December 1835. The area was originally settled by Livingstone. Livingstone Creek and Mount Livingstone were named after the first squatter in the area.
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on already worked ground and a new
Oriental Company took up the claim, but this proved unprofitable and all mining pursuits essentially stopped in the Oriental Claims area by 1912.
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During the gold rush period, gold was found throughout the surrounding district and it supported many small communities clustered around the gold strikes. These included
250:. However they had an alliance with the Bongillo clan who occupied the Wodonga district. The two tribes met annually to engage wives to the young men of the tribe at the
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issues around the state of the
Livingstone Creek and the Oriental Company went out of business. A solution was found in 1911 involving placing the mining waste or
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all utilized the gold rush to their own ends. However these criminals were a minority in the Omeo district, the majority of the people being hardworking miners.
49:. The Oriental Claims are named in reference to The Oriental Company which mined in the area from 1876 to 1904, and also in memory of the many Chinese miners ('
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The
Oriental Claim was mined between 1876-1904. Man-made cliffs up to 30m high such as seen here are found throughout the Oriental Claims Historic Area
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and altogether the company leased two areas containing 43 hectares and rightfully owned another 25 hectares of prime mining land.
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that views Ah Fong's Claim, and there is still evidence of the hydraulic system used to remove the gold.
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Prior to 1876 when the
Oriental Company started to mine the claims the area was first mined by early
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in the 1930s and the 1939 fires that claimed half the town, remarkably only killing two people.
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on Bindi station, south of Omeo. It is not known whether there are any present descendants.
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the area from 1876 to 1904, chiefly working its
Oriental Claim. It was established by five
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decline was mainly due to the end of the gold rush but was also affected by the
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of over A$ 1,300 an ounce. The
Oriental Claims are currently preserved as a
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484:. Bairnsdale: James Yeates & Sons (Printing) Pty. Ltd. pp. 60–66.
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assigned to the area were too busy settling mining disputes and enforcing
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of Livingstone Creek; this view today is largely obscured by vegetation
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During the main years of operation it is estimated that 58,000
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Contrary to the popular belief due to its name that it was an
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from the Oriental Claims c1890s showing the significant
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eager to rob a miner of his hard earned gold. The few
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Historic Area covering about 202 hectares (500 acres).
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Oriental Claims Historic Area - Omeo's golden heritage
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207:that crimes outside the claims were neglected.
8:
348:"Oriental Claims Historic Area - Park Notes"
266:. The last known survivor was employed as a
241:of the Omeo district it was inhabited by an
92:through the land, resulting in these cliffs
53:') that worked the area for over 50 years.
170:The Starlight Claim on Ah Fong's loop walk
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139:and gouged the land with a network of
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146:specifically designed for maximum
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254:. Here they also indulged in the
549:History of Australia (1901–1945)
544:History of Australia (1851–1900)
410:"Oriental Claims Historic Area"
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113:, The Oriental Company was a
41:, located 2 km south of
554:Victoria (state) gold rushes
447:"Oriental Claims Goldfields"
355:Parks Victoria Official Site
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88:The Oriental Company used
539:19th century in Australia
482:Echoes from the Mountains
451:Gippsland Gold Discovery
534:Gold mines in Australia
480:Pearson, A. M. (1969).
68:75 million at the 2010
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132:to carve the land for
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195:there were plenty of
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237:Before the European
97:The Oriental Company
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233:Aboriginal heritage
191:As a result of the
510:37.107°S 147.576°E
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252:Bogong High Plains
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130:hydraulic sluicing
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90:hydraulic sluicing
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215:and professional
213:con men and women
187:Criminal activity
128:The company used
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515:-37.107; 147.576
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414:Official website
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395:(Park signage),
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28:Oriental Claims
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148:water pressure
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43:Omeo, Victoria
37:operation, or
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454:. Retrieved
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421:. Retrieved
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370:. Retrieved
363:the original
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321:Swifts Creek
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256:Bogong moths
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162:Other miners
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123:shareholders
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60:(1,600
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513: /
501:147°34′34″E
221:Magistrates
528:Categories
498:37°06′25″S
456:25 October
423:26 October
372:16 October
327:References
311:Local area
305:depression
274:Settlement
264:extinction
243:Aboriginal
239:settlement
228:Local area
70:gold price
209:Murderers
197:criminals
193:gold rush
176:squatters
51:Orientals
47:Australia
317:Cassilis
282:View of
268:stockman
217:gamblers
201:troopers
156:tailings
134:alluvial
115:European
103:oriental
288:silting
260:rabbits
205:permits
111:company
80:History
248:tribes
58:ounces
35:mining
366:(PDF)
351:(PDF)
144:races
141:water
119:mined
107:Asian
39:claim
458:2010
425:2010
374:2010
298:Omeo
284:Omeo
137:gold
32:gold
26:The
66:A$
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62:kg
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105:(
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