goldrush

I believe the man on the right is standing next to a hand operated air pump drive wheel used to provide rudimentary ventilation to the shaft. Firedamp would not be a problem but CO₂ buildup would be.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underground_mine_ventilation#
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firedamp

The rope and canvas bucket next to the man holding the windlass handle would be for raising the rock, earth (mullock) and hopefully rich wash dirt when they hit bottom and locate the gutter. There is a similar bucket in the foreground next to the air pump, behind the split timbers used for shoring the shaft and drive below. However there does not appear to be a flag flying as required by law for a gold strike.
collection.sl.nsw.gov.au/digital/8OJWMabzQL0JJ
GULGONG AND HOME RULE. (1873, August 16). The Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1871 - 1912), p. 215. Retrieved January 22, 2026, from nla.gov.au/nla.news-article162655932

The other three men standing up by the windlass wear close fitting miner's caps for working underground. Their three broad-brimmed hats and jackets hang by the side of the mine head.
The manager in shined shoes with collar and tie stands at left, he is the only one in the group who moved during the exposure but not as much as the blurry figure behind him. The overseer stands next to him.
Their shoes/boots appear to be a mix of lace-up and elastic-side.

The Gulgong area became a rush in April 1870, when Tom Saunders found 400 gms of gold at Red Hill, in the heart of the present town. Further major finds were made at nearby Canadian Lead in August 1871 and at Home Rule, 11 km south-east of Gulgong, in May 1872. By 1874, around 8,500 kg gold had been extracted from the Gulgong field.

Charles Bayliss, as operator for the American and Australasian Photographic Company, photographed Home Rule on 15 July 1872, when its population was around 3000. Fortunately, the Gulgong Guardian 13 July 1872 described Home Rule that very week and it’s interesting to compare Bayliss’s images with the reporter’s narrative.
www.sl.nsw.gov.au/blogs/home-rule-not-call-arms#:~:text=T....

There is another photo of the same miners and their mine head with a short handle pick lying on the ground and an eighth man, taken from a different direction showing surrounding buildings with a distant roof under construction here - collection.sl.nsw.gov.au/digital/NRWNop6yJljab

Would it be possible for you to confirm for me the formal position of each sitter?

Or stander (to avoid any confusion) :- )

I would love to have a go at "reading" that image, but I am not very concise, so an email is probably more suitable than this page. d a v i d . f r a s e r 1 @ n t l w o r l d . com if you are interested : - ) I will have a bash when I get back from my holidays (as we say in Glasgow)

Hi Tom, thank you for your interest and comments! These images are part of a collection of which the background documentation has been lost and/or destroyed over time. What we hope for here is that some of our intrepid researchers will unearth the details of the sitters, standers and location from the title, image and personalities therein! Keep an eye on the comments stream during the day and perhaps we will, as we have many times in the past, be enlightened, entertained and educated:-)

Other images in the series give the date as 1911, and the commissioning location as Ballybur (Castle?), County Killkenny.

Am I going mad? - Rhetorical! I clearly see six (6) figures above, rather than the five (5) you describe...

You are correct, entry updated.😄