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Charters Towers, the town they call ‘The World', was born to the sound of thunder and flashes of lightning. Hugh Mosman, George Clarke, John Fraser and their horse boy Jupiter had been prospecting to the south of what is now Charters Towers when their horses scattered during a fierce thunderstorm. It was while searching for the horses the next morning that the first Towers gold was discovered. The discovery point was just near the modern day intersection of Mosman Street, Rainbow Road and Black Jack Road and was at the end of the year 1871 or the very beginning of 1872. The party returned to Ravenswood to register their find which they named Charters Towers: 'Charters' for W.S.E.M. Charters, the Gold Commissioner - the big man from the Cape (Charters was said to be about 6'6" tall and weighed some 20 stone) and 'Towers' because of the conical shaped hills in the vicinity of the discovery. Mosman Street The rush to the place was immediate, with men from the south of the colony arriving as early as March. By the end of the month, 25 claims were laid off as far north as the St Patrick, south-east to the Washington and west to the North Australian. A business area with better access to a permanent water supply was marked out as well on a low ridge north of Mosman's Camp with its main thoroughfare named Mosman Street. Here the first storekeepers, blacksmiths, butchers and hoteliers went to work. "For a long time the buildings, business and private, were of a typical new goldfield variety - calico or bark - and leading hotels were constructed of saplings stuck into the ground and lined with calico, the whole being covered with iron." Source: www.visitcharterstowers.com.au/about/history-heritage

In the lower right corner is "Isa Mine State School", a State School, but only MIM employees children were allowed to attend. The lower left complex was Mount Isa Mines private hospital for employees only. That's another long story.

Mount Isa Mines’ historic Urquhart Shaft and Headframe holds a special place in Mount Isa’s iconic skyline and is acknowledged as a significant piece of Queensland’s European heritage. Originally named No. 1 Ore Shaft, the infrastructure was built between 1929 and 1931 to aid in the commencement of zinc-lead production at Mount Isa Mines, hoisting its first ore in 1931. At the time, the hilltop site for the shaft and headframe was selected as it was just outside the 'known' ore-bearing regions of the zinc-lead mine and was in an ideal location to feed into the mill site and smelting workings. Today, the Urquhart Shaft Headframe, which still sits hillside, is a community landmark and a symbol of Mount Isa Mines and is one of five Queensland European heritage-listed assets originally built by the company. The Urquhart Headframe, which used an American A-frame rather than the usual four power frames of the period, was considered innovative at the time. Like much of Mount Isa Mines' early infrastructure, the Urquhart Shaft was named in honour of one of the key players in the company’s almost 100-year history. Originally from Turkey, John Leslie Urquhart, Chairman of London-based Russo-Asiatic Consolidated Limited, was one of Mount Isa Mines’ early financiers and accepted technical control of the operation while also forming a London board of Mount Isa Mines. He held the position of General Manager and Chairman of Directors from 1927 until his unexpected death in 1933. Urquhart, who also held mining interests across the globe and spoke several languages, is credited with importing the latest technological advancements in mining equipment and employing the finest workers from all over the world. He was responsible for developing the mining community known today as Mineside, which included housing quarters and dormitories, shops, a hospital and recreational facilities for Mount Isa Mines employees. Source: www.glencore.com.au/operations-and-projects/qld-metals/re...

Congrats on Explore! ⭐ January 15, 2024

Congrats on Xplore!!

Congrats on Explore! ❤📷❤ lovely image! regards.