William Tom's father (Parson Tom) suggested the name 'Ophir', after a region in the Old Testament noted for its fine gold.[1]
There was a gold rush to the area in 1851 and 1852. The village of Ophir was laid out in 1851 by Major Sir Thomas Livingstone Mitchell, its first lots were sold in 1852, and reef gold discovered in 1868 by Joseph Christopherson.[2]
Although Hargraves was honoured and rewarded, it may have been William Tipple Smith mineralogist, who first discovered gold at what would be later named Ophir, in 1848. On 27 February 1852 William Tipple Smith wrote to geologist Sir Roderick Murchison in England saying the spot now called Ophir was the very spot where he had found nugget gold in 1848. Smith's claims and correspondence are exhaustively studied in a 1986 book "A Fool's Gold?" by Lynette Ramsay Silver, in the foreword of which geology Professor David Branagan of Sydney University concurs and states "It is good to see him deservedly remembered in the pages of this book".[3] William Tipple Smith was one of the owners of the Fitzroy Iron Works at Mittagong and, during a visit in February 1849, Governor Charles Augustus Fitz Roy was presented with a steel knife "mounted with colonial gold".[4]
Some remnants of old alluvial, reef, and deep lead mines, are located within the Ophir Reserve, which includes the former site of the town.[5] The town's cemetery also remains.[6] There is an obelisk that commemorates the discovery of payable gold, in 1851, giving credit to Edward Hargraves, John Lister, James Tom, and William Tom.[7]
All that remains of William Tipple Smith is one small gold sample and a previously unmarked grave (number 4929, section 4, Rookwood Cemetery) that was only recently provided with a headstone recognising him as the discoverer of the first payable gold in Australia.[8]
^Power, Julie (3 September 2020). "History stands corrected: Smith, not Hargraves, first to discover gold in NSW". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
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ophir, south, wales, ophir, name, locality, south, wales, australia, cabonne, shire, contents, history, discovery, also, references, external, linkshistory, discovery, edit, nbsp, gold, diggings, ophir, 1853, ophir, located, near, macquarie, river, northeast, . Ophir is the name of a locality in New South Wales Australia in Cabonne Shire Contents 1 History and discovery 2 See also 3 References 4 External linksHistory and discovery edit nbsp Gold diggings at Ophir 1853 Ophir is located near the Macquarie River northeast of the city of Orange Ophir is the place where gold was first discovered in New South Wales in 1851 leading to the Australian gold rushes In popular literature it has been stated that William Tom Jr John Lister and Edward Hargraves found payable gold in February 1851 at the Ophir gold diggings located at the confluence of Summer Hill Creek and Lewis Ponds Creek 33 10 7 68 S 149 14 19 68 E 33 1688000 S 149 2388000 E 33 1688000 149 2388000 Hargraves was awarded 10 500 worth 1 125 434 in 2004 values by the NSW Government William Tom s father Parson Tom suggested the name Ophir after a region in the Old Testament noted for its fine gold 1 There was a gold rush to the area in 1851 and 1852 The village of Ophir was laid out in 1851 by Major Sir Thomas Livingstone Mitchell its first lots were sold in 1852 and reef gold discovered in 1868 by Joseph Christopherson 2 Although Hargraves was honoured and rewarded it may have been William Tipple Smith mineralogist who first discovered gold at what would be later named Ophir in 1848 On 27 February 1852 William Tipple Smith wrote to geologist Sir Roderick Murchison in England saying the spot now called Ophir was the very spot where he had found nugget gold in 1848 Smith s claims and correspondence are exhaustively studied in a 1986 book A Fool s Gold by Lynette Ramsay Silver in the foreword of which geology Professor David Branagan of Sydney University concurs and states It is good to see him deservedly remembered in the pages of this book 3 William Tipple Smith was one of the owners of the Fitzroy Iron Works at Mittagong and during a visit in February 1849 Governor Charles Augustus Fitz Roy was presented with a steel knife mounted with colonial gold 4 Some remnants of old alluvial reef and deep lead mines are located within the Ophir Reserve which includes the former site of the town 5 The town s cemetery also remains 6 There is an obelisk that commemorates the discovery of payable gold in 1851 giving credit to Edward Hargraves John Lister James Tom and William Tom 7 All that remains of William Tipple Smith is one small gold sample and a previously unmarked grave number 4929 section 4 Rookwood Cemetery that was only recently provided with a headstone recognising him as the discoverer of the first payable gold in Australia 8 See also editAustralian gold rushes New South Wales gold rush Edward Hargraves Hargraves New South Wales Hargraves HouseReferences edit Ophir Sydney Morning Herald 20 June 2008 Retrieved 3 June 2023 Photograph of gold discovery site of Ophir near Orange NSW Powerhouse Museum Retrieved 3 June 2023 Silver Lynette Ramsay 1945 1986 A fool s gold William Tipple Smith s challenge to the Hargraves myth Jacaranda Press ISBN 070161983X OCLC 15053130 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link CS1 maint numeric names authors list link SYDNEY Colonial Times Hobart Tas 1828 1857 9 February 1849 p 2 Retrieved 15 January 2019 NSW Department of Customer Service Transport for NSW 23 February 2023 Ophir Reserve NSW Government Retrieved 26 June 2023 Australian Cemeteries Index Ophir NSW austcemindex com Retrieved 26 June 2023 Gold Discovery Obelisk Monument Australia monumentaustralia org au Retrieved 26 June 2023 Power Julie 3 September 2020 History stands corrected Smith not Hargraves first to discover gold in NSW The Sydney Morning Herald Retrieved 4 September 2020 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ophir New South Wales 33 10 S 149 14 E 33 167 S 149 233 E 33 167 149 233 Map of the Town of Ophir Wellington County Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ophir New South Wales amp oldid 1162068932, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
