The economic depression of the 1930s caused a revival of gold mining around Creswick and this gold fever spilled over to students at the Victorian School of Forestry, but with limited success.
However, Harold Beer wasn’t giving up, and one Saturday morning in late March 1931 he went fossicking at Grub Gully, which is between the School and the State Nursery.
He brought some quartz specimens back to the school to examine under a microscope. Encouraged by what he saw Harold went out again on Sunday with fellow student Jim Wescott to have a bit more of a rummage.
After examining a quartz reef near the gully for about a chain or so Jim called Harold over to look at something.
Originally thinking it was just a fungus of some kind they soon discovered the object was hard and excitement started to build.
They unearthed the lump from the blue grey clay to find a gold nugget 6.5 x 2.5 x 1.5 inches in size.
When returning to the school they bumped into the Principal, E J Semmens, and asked him to take care of the nugget and keep their secret until the bank opened on Monday.
The nugget was 99% pure gold and weighed 73 ounces, 6 pennyweight (2.2kg).
It sold for 388 Pounds, 16 Shillings & 7 Pence. With current gold prices hovering at $2300 per ounce the find was worth $167K.
The bank arranged for a cast to be made of the nugget. The bank kept one and the two boys bought one each.
in 1961 Harold Beer donated his copy to the Dunolly Museum together with a letter he wrote to his father at the time. The letter was received on April Fool’s Day 1931, and the family wasn’t sure whether to believe it or not.
Not surprisingly, the find started a mini gold rush and students obtained miners rights to peg out several claims.
Even the Principal, Mr Semmens, the Vice Principal Mr Litster and manager of the Creswick nursery Mt Tidd got in on the act and also pegged claims.
However, the rush was short lived and gold panning along the creek only revealed some tiny specks,
The money from the gold was used to support Harold’s family.
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Victoria’s Forests & Bushfire Heritage 