Notes on this database:
- Names so far transcribed are for the dates 7 Aug 1867 to 5 December 1868,
with a total of 13,213 Miner's Rights issued in Thames during this period.
There is presently a gap in entries transcribed from 25 March 1868 to 12 May 1868.
Some miners took out multiple claims, either all at the same time or over a period
of days, weeks or months.
Also added to the database are the names of the first 6291 goldminers who registered for a
miner's right at the Tuapeka Goldfield (Gabriel's Gully) in Otago between 19 Aug and 1 November 1861.
Reference: The originals of these Miner's Rights can be seen at the Alexander Turnball Library
in Wellington: Manuscript 0713 Tuapeka Magistrate's office: Miners' Right and Business Licences 1861.
Original at qms-2045.
The database now has the names of approximately 20,000 goldminers of New Zealand who
registered a claim with the New Zealand Government in the 1860s. It is growing so check
back from time to time. I will notify you in this space when it is complete.
- The miners could transfer their claims from one location to another during the year and many
did. Transfer details with dates are recorded on the original entry books at
Archives NZ but are not recorded in this database.
- When the gold miner arrived in Thames in 1868, his priority would have been
to find some form of shelter for himself and his family if he had them with
him. This would be especially important in the winter months. After that, he
would have listened to the gossip amongst the old-timers, perhaps in one of
the many bars, to discover where the best finds were being made. He would have
walked the hills to discover for himself a likely spot, especially if he was
an experienced miner and knew the 'look of the land' that would make good gold-bearing
dirt. After he had finally made up his mind about where to stake his claim, he
would present himself at the Commissioner's office at the Courthouse in Shortland
to apply for his Miner's Right. On most days in 1868, he would have had to wait
in a queue to get in. During that time he would hear other miners talking about
recent finds and rushes, and by the time his turn came to plunk his money on the table,
he may have changed his mind several times about where to stake his claim.
- These miners were away from home and are therefore difficult to identify,
especially if they have commonly used names. Final identification will require
other records in Thames, preferably a marriage or the birth of a child in the
area. These should give you the place and date of birth of the miner. However
for those many people who came to Thames in search of gold and left a short
time later with no marriage, birth, death, arrests, ship's passenger record,
court cases or other official records, it will be difficult in the extreme to
confirm that one of the men in this index is whom you think he might be. Even
if you seek out the original Miner's Right records, you will not find any further
information to identify the individual. This index in that case can only be
used as a clue to the likely whereabouts of the people named. Given the convention
of the times to name nearly all boys William, James or John, there can be no
guarantee, even in a small colony the size of New Zealand in the 1860s, that
a certain John Brown is the one you are looking for. The first name of 10% of
the miners in this database was John, 8% William and 7% James.
- Identification of individuals can sometimes be achieved by the family groups
who presented themselves together to apply for their Miner's Right. Each Miner's
Right issued has an identification number, and those who presented themselves
at the office together will have successive identification numbers, and the
same date of issue. For this reason, it is best to search the surname of interest
to ensure that no recognizable family members were with the miner concerned.
There were family groups of brothers, father and son(s), even husband and wife,
brother and sister as well as cousins and friends from the same home town.
- It was extraordinary how many women came alone to the office and bought a
Miner's Right in their own name. Many of them returned over the next few days,
weeks and months to take out multiple Miner's Rights, something that needed
a lot of ready cash and/or success in finding gold. I personally completely
readjusted my prejudices about simpering housebound dependent Victorian women
after seeing this long list of the intrepid lady gold miners of Thames. My concern
is that few genealogists would ever think to check a list of gold miners for
the name of their great great grandmother. For this reason, I intend to publish
a separate list of the ladies elsewhere when the database is complete.
- The original of this database was a handwritten list and as such, the names
were sometimes open to interpretation. In fact the handwriting on the whole
was remarkable for its legibility and I think we have the Assistant Comissioner of the Goldfield of Thames, Mr Allen Baillie to thank for that. Every care has been taken to correctly interpret the handwriting but
it is certain there will be mistakes. I would definitely like to hear about
any of these cases and make the necessary corrections. One difficulty encountered
was that there was very little difference between the handwritten 'J' and an
'I' when it stood alone as an initial. Middle initials were usually given but
in the case of an 'I' or a 'J', I have left them off if there was any question,
to avoid confusion. These may be added at a later date if it becomes clear which
is correct. However when using the search box, the middle initial is not included
in the search. Note that from 1 - 5th July 1868, a substitute scribe stood in
for the usual one, and his handwriting was less than legible
- I would have liked to publish this list openly instead of using a search
box. I have not done this however to avoid the entire database being uplifted
by commercial genealogy sites bent on monetary gain. If someone invents a way
to prevent this, I will certainly make the list browseable.
- The official goldfields of Thames used in issuing the Miner's Rights (with
percentage of Rights issued) were: Karaka (78%), Waikawau (11%), Tararu (8%)
Puriri (3%), Kennedys Bay, Coromandel and Whakatete (these last three having
less than 0.1% of the Miner's Rights issued between them).
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