The Soldier's Details

From Mindat

Canadian born prospector Leslie Robert Menzies and John McDonald were investigating a new area around what would become Menzies in 1894. Having become lost returning from a water soak, they stumbled onto the Shenton Ridge, showing an outcrop containing rich gold, and many nuggets surrounding it. Two leases were pegged, the Lady Shenton and neighbouring Lady Florence. The area was dug up as a large open pit by Paddington Gold in 1997, and the historic workings were destroyed at this time.

The Lady Florence Gold Mining Company was soon formed. After some initial rich crushings, the ore body was cut by a huge barren cross-course reef. The gold bearing lode ran north-south, while the cross-course ran east-west, cutting the lode to the south. After much development work, the company was unable to find the continuation of the reef, and let the mine to tributers.

S. Bell and J. Brown sank a shaft south of the cross course in the hope of picking up the lode continuation. After some driving, they discovered no new ore. They had been 30 feet off discovering the rich lode.

Albert Marshall and his brothers had been working as tributers here since at least 1904. Albert escaped serious injury in this year when a fall of earth buried him to his shoulders for three hours, before being rescued. The Marshalls and W. Crowe had their own theory about the country rock movement, therefore the throw of the lode, and took up the area as a 16 acres prospecting lease. They successfully discovered the lode in 1912, and obtained gold worth 2000 pounds money-wise for each individual in the tributing party.

Meanwhile the Lady Florence Gold Mining Company had done very little with the lease, the prior six years. No work at all had been done for the six months prior to 1912. Before that only two men had been on the lease as tributers, when four were needed to comply with labour conditions. The mine had not been under any exemptions. Little money had been spent on development or exploration. The warden awarded the mine to Richard Falconer who headed the Menzies Gold Mines Company. Falconer hoped the Marshall’s rich find, which was not part of his annexed lease, would continue into the Lady Florence. After un-watering the main shaft and conducting development work, he was unable to find the southern lode in his lease and abandoned it. Charles de Bernales purchased the machinery on the lease later in 1912, and carted it off to Kalgoorlie.

The Florence Reef 4 July 1912

Although some very rich stone was mined by the old Florence Co to sustain its initial reputation on account of the reef being cut off at a comparatively shallow depth by a huge cross course. A good deal of work was done by the company, but without any marked success, and the mine, as a last resource was thrown open to tributers.

Marshall Bros, about five years ago took a tribute on the main lode, drove through the crosscourse and their efforts and expenditure were rewarded by the untimate discovery of a fine body of ore, which during the remaining tenure of their tribute yielded over 2000 pounds per man. The company then had another try with indiffernt success.During the management of Mr C W Skrine, with the past two years Mr S Bell and J Brown decided to try to locate the continuance of the reef in depth from the old open cut to the east of the Main Lode.

This stone has also cut off against the crosscourse previously mentioned at a depth of about 100 feet.The lode course is practially north and south with a westerly underlay. The croscourse runs east and west with a slight underlay to the north, thus cutting off the reef in its southerly course and dip.

Bell and Brown sunk a vertical shaft on the south side of the crosscourse outcrop to a depth of 120feet and failing to strike stone drove north through the first corsscourse, propsected east and west, without result and finally gave up.The Florence lease was secured by Mr R Falconer, but Bell and Brown’s shaft was not included. Mr Albert Marshall and W Crowe had a look down the shaft a few months ago and developed a theory regarding the movement of the country rock and consequent throw of the lode and accordingly took up a prospecting area of 16 acres and set to work.After fossicking about the bottom workings to get the trend of the reef, and incidentiallyt getting out 26 tons of stone for 26 oz over the plates, they started driving from Bell and Brown’s crosscut eastward along the footwall of the crosscourse and at 15 feet in cut 2 feet of stone carrying gold freely, worth anything up to 5 oz. This discovery was made a few days ago, since when the party have driven a further 15 feet, with good stone still showing in the face, worth anything over an ounce. The reef maintains the original southerly dip and westerly underlay and looks health.

Messrs Marshall and Crowe are receiving a lot of congratualations on their luck but at the same time it must be admitted that the prospector who can successfully follow the vagaries of the Menzies reefs must be equipped with a fair amount of industry, reasoning faculty and bulldog tenacity.

Albert Marshall used the money from this find to move his family to Middle Swan/Caversham where he purchased property, initially vineyards, which he converted to run cattle. This includes the Marshall Road named after the family. Albert went on to become the Mayor of the Swan Shire Council, as did his son Lenard.Albert and his brothers had initially been mining in Bendigo, Victora, before moving to the Menzies area.

(Albert Marshall and his brothers had been working as tributers here since at least 1904. Albert escaped serious injury in this year when a fall of earth buried him to his shoulders for three hours, before being rescued.