N. and J. Jensen reported payable gold at Yambulla on 14 December, 1899 . By the
end of the year about ten claims were on payable gold at the headwaters of the Wallagaraugh River Eden
Gold was mainly obtained from reef mining, with small amount
from alluvial mining. The number of miners peaked at about 200 and as their
families moved onto the field, cottages were erected and a school established. A
sawmill, established on the Wallagaraugh River to supply the timber needed for
the mines and associated settlement, was powered by a water wheel in winter and
steam during the summer. A hotel, the Federal, was built entirely of galvanised
iron. It operated between 1901 and about 1913. There was also a bakery and
general store. A small cemetery on the hillside opposite the main settlement
saw less than half a dozen burials.
Production at Yambulla was never spectacular and by 1917,
mining had practically ceased, although small scale prospecting did resume
briefly during the 1930s. Although many of the buildings were relocated,
remnants of the field remain on site.
It is currently the focus of research and this page will be updated when further information is available.
