Beaconsfield Mine and Heritage Centre

We also went to the Beaconsfield Mine where gold. The mine opened in 1877 when gold was found at nearby Cabbage Tree Hill, sparking a gold rush. The mine shafts (the Grubb and Hart Shafts) were sunk to access the gold - some 26 tonnes of gold was mined between 1877 and when the mine closed in 1914 due to water problems. Beaconsfield was once the 3rd largest town in Tasmania and was once called Brandy Creek.

The mine was reopened in 1999 and again made worldwide news on the 25th April 2006 when three miners (Brant Webb, Todd Russell and Larry Knight) were trapped underground from a rock fall for two weeks, with Larry sadly not making it. It was called The Beaconsfield Mine Disaster.

The mine closed in 2012.

I went into the 'monkey cage' where the men were put into to bring them up to the surface after their rescue. It was eerie.

There were so many items from Beaconsfield and surrounding areas history, eg the ruins of the shafts, old tractors, a miners humpy, medical items, old telephones, even a huge water wheel to separate the ore from the gold.

It was fascinating and well worth the $16Læs mere