FAMOUS "RUSH."

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18552, 30 November 1925, Page 14

FAMOUS "RUSH."

—« —- KALGOORLIE GOLDFIELDS. DEATH OF DISCOVERER. (FROM OUR OWK CORRESPONDENT.) SYDNEY, November 20. There recently died in a timet Melbourne suburb a man whose chance discovery of a nugget of gold benefited this country to the amouut of more than £100.000.000. He was Mr Patrick Hannan, the first man to peg out a claim on the famous Kalgoorlio "<■<],[. field in West Australia, and "the amount named is the estimated yield of the field j-inee Mr Hannan made his find 32 years ago. Australia was then on the verge of bankruptcy, following the collapse of the ''boom,'' and the discovery of Kalgoorlic was a momentous event in the history of the country. The story of the find has many versions, and it has often been repeated in different ways, but the most accredited version is given here. . Miner from Ireland. Patrick Hannau was born in Countv Clare, Ireland, and ho came to this country as a youth of twenty. He went to the Ballarat (Victorian) fields, and after working there for a number of years, he crossed to New Zealand in 187-1, where he still followed goldmining. After visiting most of the principal liclds in the Dominion, for about six. years, the lure ot gold brought him to a new field in MewSouth Wales, and he continued the qucsb in thia and other States till 1839. Then he went to "West Australia, and for three years followed the mining game there with varying fortune. In June, 1893, a report reached Coolgardio that a gold find had been struck at Mount Youlc, 50 miles away. A rush at once star,ted and a party set out which included Hannan and two other Irishmen, Shea Plattnigan. One night tho party camped at the foot of a hill near the site of the present city of , Kalgoorlic, but nest morning the three mates were left behind, as .they had lost a horse during tho night, and they determined to find before continuing the. journey to ifount Youlc. While engaged in tho search for tho lost'animal, Hannan's foot camo in contact with a protruding bqulder with a force that drew a curso from his lips. But tho curso trailed off into wild shouts of glee as he made a closer inspection of tho offending boulder. l£ was almost pure gold and there wero dozons like it. ■ _ It was soon 'realised by the three mates that Hainan's find was an important 'discovery of alluvial gold, and Hannan's application for a' reward claim was granted the same evening as lie applied—June 17th, 1893. The next day there was a great rush to the spot*, a tremendous quantity of cold was discovered, and Kalgoorlic became a city overnight—a city of gold, of rough, bearded miners, of the&ectic times and high spending that accompany all such rich, finds. Between that«year and the ©resent, over £IOO,000,000 . .worth gold was extracted' from tho mines on the field. Government Pension Granted. ' Hannan received the Government reward, claim and about a year later, through ill-health, he was forced to return to the coast to recuperate. The following year again saw him active on the field, and there followed a period previous to his retirement in which he prospected in all parts of the State. Later ho became the recipient of a Government pension. Hannan. was the last of the three mates to.; pass out. Flannigan'died,a poor "man.', about twenty years ago. Shea was in no better circumstances when he died some years later, for "easy got, easy spent" was the motto of most itaen in. those days, and others, reaped<more benefit than they did from their good, fortune. Hannan, who. was 82 when he died, was in better financial circumstances but he was pbor compared with the wealth his "fortunate* Stumble over a gold nugget gave- this country.