Waikato Gold Mine, Darlot Goldfield, Leonora Shire, Western Australia, Australiai

Regional Level Types
Waikato Gold Mine	Mine
Darlot Goldfield	Ore Field
Leonora Shire	Shire
Western Australia	State
Australia	Country

The location of the Waikato would indicate it is presently under tens of thousands of tonnes of tailings from the modern Darlot open pit, or is the tiny pit bordering the western side of the processing plant, next to the tailings.

Soddagrew and party discovered the deposit in 1896, and until 1903 mined 800 tonnes of ore for 1140 ounces of gold at 12 dwt, all near surface above 26 feet. J. Metzke took over in 1903. He was one of seven Metzke brothers who were involved with the field in its early days. Metzke had obtained enough gold from the field to go on a world trip the following year, no small expense for the time. The mine was let to tributers but they found little gold, and a lot of water.

Crushings were found in 1910, 1911, 1919 and 1922, with no names.

Much information gets found about personalities and non gold mining stories in old newspaper articles. More than usual was found for Darlot, which was originally a major alluvial field, attracting characters from across the globe. Such stories do not fit into Mindat, whose role is to provide dry facts about mineral locations. I will take this opportunity to relate one of many stories.

Tom Frawley arrived on the alluvial field in the early days, and later was a tributer at the Waikato. He was called 'Iron Foot' as under one boot was an oval shaped piece of iron to add to a short leg, the result of an accident during childhood.

He would make a conspicuous track through the mulga. It caused no end of worry to the local aboriginal tribe, who were filled with superstitious foreboding. It wasn't a horse, emu. kangaroo, or any bird or animal known- it was most mystifying and annoying.

One day a couple of the tribe ventured into Tom's camp to clear up the mystery, met Tom, and a great corroboree celebration took place afterwards, when they reported what had made the terrible track causing so much apprehension.

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