Dead Mans Terrace, Skippers, Queenstown-Lakes District, Otago Region, New Zealandi

Regional Level Types
Dead Mans Terrace	- not defined -
Skippers	- not defined -
Queenstown-Lakes District	District
Otago Region	Region
New Zealand	Country

Alluvial gold in gravels.

Deadmans Terrace is about 4 kilometres past Skippers, bordering The Branches pastoral station road. The name would suggest a grim past, and so it is.

During the first winter of the gold rush here in 1863, there had been much snow. This had caused the water level on the river to reduce, and mining parties took up claims on the exposed beaches. Then heavy rain came, washing away the workings, with the river full of mining debris. A party of 24 miners had encamped on a small terrace (now Deadmans) at the mouth of the Ballarat Creek. Further up the creek, debris had caused the creek to block, building up a dam of water behind. At 1:30am the water broke through with tremendous force washing away the camp site.

Thomas Monk stated 11 bodies were found and 3 went missing (Lake Wakatip Mail, 1915), while another source (Otago Witness, 1875) states two bodies were found, and the rest (22) went missing. The Shotover eventually enters the Clutha River, one of the longest in the South Island, and it was said for days after bodies were seen floating down the river past Cromwell and Alexandra. One was 'standing' upright in the river, with arms outstretched and glassy eyes, like some zombie movie to the horrified witnesses.

Those found were buried high on the terrace. Another party of 24 was formed, the Ballarat Creek diverted, however no gold was found in the creek bed. The flood and debris was thought to have washed out most of the gold, however they did find much mining debris.

Alexander Peat was from Stonehurst Scotland and arrived in New Zealand in the 1860's. He spent time at the Longwood diggings at Martins Bay, before moving to the upper Shotover in the early 1890's. He worked the claim at Deadmans Terrace for 20 years. He moved away only shortly before his death, being July 4 1929 aged 82.

In the 1930's, Jack Short ground sluiced using the 19th Century reservoir and water races.

Topographical maps place Peat's Hut here. (Land Information New Zealand, 2006) states the well preserved Coronet Peak homestead is at the site, occupied until recent years. Meanwhile, there is the matter of where the bodies are buried. An on the ground visit is needed. They may be hidden by a clump of trees on the east side of the road.

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