Traces of gold had been discovered by some of Boyle Travers Finniss's men; further traces had been seen by men working on the Goyder Northern Territory Survey. The men of the Overland Telegraph Line's work parties also found gold traces. The news sped south via the new telegraph line and the Territory's gold rush began. By October 1872 there were just under 400 diggers beginning to search for the Territory's gold. Speculation became rife. The bubble burst but enough men and machinery remained for some mining to continue. Few of the mines were rich: most of the reefs found were of poor quality and broken up by geological faulting.
Until the Pine Creek railway was built it could take weeks for supplies and equipment to be carted to the gold fields. Wharfage facilities in Darwin were nearly non-existent beyond a jetty that became stranded at low tide. Most of the mine labourers were Chinese. Only they were prepared to deal with the harsh conditions and pan for the small amounts of alluvial gold.
The Virginia Company mine, near the small township of Stapleton, opened for public subscription in March 1874. In 1882, when the mine was yielding 1.75 ounces of gold per ton, it was taken over by an English company which deepened the mine-shaft to 50 metres in an effort to increase the yield.
The environmental impact of early mining saw large numbers of trees cut down to fuel the steam engines which drove the mine machinery.
