Riccaboni Gold Mine, Mulga Queen Community Area (Nurra Kurramunoo), Duketon Goldfield, Laverton Shire, Western Australia, Australiai

Regional Level Types
Riccaboni Gold Mine	Mine
Mulga Queen Community Area (Nurra Kurramunoo)	Area
Duketon Goldfield	Ore Field
Laverton Shire	Shire
Western Australia	State
Australia	Country

The Riccaboni Gold Mine is about 10 kilometres east north-east of the Mulga Queen indigenous community. It can be access from a straight track heading east from the Mulga King Gold Mine, about 3.5 kilometres north-east of the community, however the area is not open to the public.

The deposit was discovered in early 1905 by Riccaboni himself, and a syndicate was formed with Paul and De Jarlais. They also owned the Parramatta Gold Mine, 1 kilometre to the south-east, and both appeared to have been mined in conjunction. By mid 1907 it was all over.

A shaft had been sunk to 130 feet on a vertical reef. About twelve men were employed who drank the Mulga Queen Hotel dry each pay day.

James George Thomas, who owned the nearby Famous Blue battery was given an option over the mine. March 1906, there was an un-specified dispute between the prospectors and Thomas and mining stopped. Mid 1907 it is reported the mine had re-opened and was employing men but nothing further was found. The mine had produced 845 tonnes of ore for 655 ounces of gold.

Disagreements between Thomas and prospectors both at Burtville and the Famous Blue where he operated his battery were not uncommon. He appears to have developed a distinct dislike for prospectors, which under normal circumstances would be a problem, as his battery business relied on them. Part of a letter by him to the local newspaper stated:

'Prospectors are 'soak suckers', men who can tell a good tale and induce someone in town to finance him with a load of tucker to prospect some good piece of country. He promptly arms himself with a good supply of books and magazines, journeys to the nearest good soak he knows of, and lies under a bough, eats, drinks and reads until the supplies are exhausted. He then returns to romance how he nearly lost his life to the blacks, the perishes he did searching for gold, for the man who backed him.'

This attitude may partly explain the following episode. William James Wood was a prospector camped at the Riccaboni mine, when Thomas had an option over the mine. Woods had found gold about 1.5 kilometres north of the Riccaboni, and asked Thomas to have a look at it. Thomas offered to put four men on the show to work it, and supply equipment for half ownership. Woods stated he would consider it, but Thomas proceeded to start development of the show. Woods claimed Thomas harassed him and threatened legal action unless he got half ownership. Woods pegged the lease in his own name, while Thomas tried to convince the registrar at Duketon to change it to his ownership. When that failed he took Woods to the Warden's Court, but the judgement was against him.

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