Maryborough - Cemetery Precinct Gold Puddling Machine
There is a great example of a gold puddling machine here. It has a concrete floor which has helped to preserve the distinctive ring shaped depression in the ground.
Puddling machines were needed to break up clay soil in the region in order to retrieve the gold. Puddlers were common on the goldfields during the 1850s and 1860s. Wash dirt containing gold was placed in the circular trough with water. The wash dirt was then broken up or puddled by a horse dragging a narrow type implement through the trough.
Location - Go along Wright Street beside the the cemetery and the follow the bush track around to the left behind the cemetery. The puddler is on the left of this track.
