VAUGHAN SCHOOL (NO. 1985) SITE

The area was first mapped in 1854 after the discovery of gold along Fryers Creek. This site is up the hill away from the mining area and contained the school and other administrative buildings to the north. The area has clear features including wall alignments, handmade brick and a brick and bluestone cistern. The building was likely dismantled in 1913, and its materials were re-used by the Department of Education at other schools or public buildings. The site has been subject to minor development throughout the 20th and early 21st century. The site is known to have been graded in parts by the previous owner and used as cattle pasture.

The site is of historic and archaeological significance.

The site is of historical significance as the location of an 1860s goldrush-era public school. The site is related to a smaller township within the Mount Alexander goldfields that has a fluctuating population predominantly made up of miners. The site is of archaeological significance due to its potential to contain artefacts, deposits and features that relate to the establishment and operation of the school, and other later 19th century activities. The intactness of this site, in association with surrounding sites, will provide a wealth of information about the early Hamlet of Vaughan.