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SLATY CREEK CHINESE GARDEN AND SLUICING SITE

Location SLATY CREEK ROAD CABBAGE TREE, HEPBURN SHIRE Level Heritage Inventory Site

Statement of Significance

The site has important historic values if viewed and presented in the context of the Chinese adaptation and integration into the social and physical landscape of the Goldrush era and following years into the 1920s. The garden could be well presented with some minor work on rebuilding some examples of the garden beds and water races and wells and channels that formed the water supply. The deeply sluiced gully to the south of the garden shows the close association of the gardeners with miners and mining. Mine shafts with rounded corners are seen to the south, and represent the Chinese belief that spirits are discouraged by avoiding square cornered shafts.

The site on its own is important, but (with other local sites) it is a important component of the very major Creswick Mining Landscape, and also the Creswick Water Race Network and - which stands unique as the only surviving 1850-90s gold mining water distribution system in Victoria. This large network (180 km) had major significance in enabling gold mining and gold wealth of Victoria, but also in the development of legislation on water use and on environmental law on mining waste (see Davies, Lawrence and Turnbull 2014).

Group

Mining and Mineral Processing

Category

Gold Mining Site