The Waitoa find: a fraudulent discovery close to Te Aroha

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dc.contributor.authorHart, Philip
dc.date.accessioned2016-06-23T04:05:43Z
dc.date.available2016-06-23T04:05:43Z
dc.date.issued2016
dc.description.abstractJohn Bealby Smith, a successful farmer at Waitoa and a prominent resident of the wider district, invested in the Te Aroha and Waiorongomai goldfields. In 1886 his announcement of finding gold on his farm created considerable excitement but also puzzlement, as it was an unlikely location and the nature of the gold was unusual. When tests made by some experts convinced them that the find was genuine, adjacent farms and even land throughout the Waihou Valley were tested as well, with some encouraging results being reported. Despite the results being erratic, they were sufficient to cause Smith to form a private company to develop his land; almost all the investors lived in the South Island. People in Auckland were also excited at the possibilities, although Te Aroha residents were more cautious. Because of continued doubts about the nature of the gold and whether it would be payable, more tests were made in Auckland, resulting in the fraudulent salting of the sands being uncovered. Despite this verdict, for a time many people, including one apparent expert, retained faith in the ‘goldfield’, and Smith denied any wrongdoing. His denials were undermined by his precipitous departure from the colony, to which he never returned.en_NZ
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.citationHart, P. (2016). The Waitoa find: a fraudulent discovery close to Te Aroha. (Te Aroha Mining District Working papers, No. 87). Hamilton, New Zealand: University of Waikato, Historical Research Unit.en_NZ
dc.identifier.issn2463-6266
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10289/10419
dc.language.isoenen_NZ
dc.publisherHistorical Research Unit, University of Waikatoen_NZ
dc.relation.ispartofseriesTe Aroha Mining District Working Papersen_NZ
dc.rights© 2016 Philip Harten_NZ
dc.titleThe Waitoa find: a fraudulent discovery close to Te Arohaen_NZ
dc.typeWorking Paperen_NZ
uow.relation.series87en_NZ
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