The Firth and Clark Battery at Waiorongomai

Abstract

A Thames battery was reconditioned at greater cost than anticipated because of adding the latest improvements. To power it, two water races were constructed through difficult country, and because so much gold was lost in the process then used, a tailings plant was soon added. Throughout the 1880s more improvements were made, but the fineness of the gold and the presence of base metals required a better process. After making a brief inspection of the latest American techniques, the first reverberatory furnace to be used in New Zealand was installed. For battery hands, the work could be dangerous, but the only fatality was not inside the building and nor was it the fault of the employers.