AAAE 15176/1a - (5 of 7 images)
Alexander Aitken’s report mentions the first discovery of gold in New Zealand - alluvial deposits found in the Coromandel district in 1851, followed by quartz deposits found in 1862 at Driving Creek and Kapanga. He refers to the opening up of the Thames goldfield about 1868, after which more gold was discovered in the Tokotea range and elsewhere in the Coromandel district.
In order to recover gold from quartz, the rock had to be crushed, and Aitken records the construction of a tramway from the top of the Tokotea range to the New Zealand Company’s battery.
