On this Day – February 5th

A very welcome stranger

The 'Welcome Stranger' was found on 5 February 1869 by Cornish miner John Deason, who was working in Bulldog Gully, near Moliagul in central Victoria. While searching around the roots of a tree he discovered, 3 cm below the surface, a gold nugget. He concealed his find until dark, then with his partner, Richard Oates, dug it out. They then held a party during which they revealed their find to the guests.

The 66kg 'Welcome Stranger', then the world's largest-known gold nugget, was taken to Dunolly where it had to be broken on an anvil before it could fit on the bank's scales. It was worth 10,000 pounds – around $3-4 million in today's money. Deason returned to Moliagul and his descendants are still in the area.

Oates went back to Cornwall and married Jane Penrose, before returning to Australia where he died in 1906 aged 79 years.

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