Gold Department (also known as Gold Fields Department)

Full description

The Gold Department was established on 1 July 1855 after the Department of the Commissioners for the Gold Fields was abolished. A Government Gazette notice dated 28 June 1855 directed that all correspondence connected with the gold fields was to be addressed to the Colonial Secretary marked with the words "Gold Department". This suggests that the Gold Department was a sub Department of VA 475 Chief Secretary's Department.

The lists of officers employed in the public service (refer to VPRS 943), refer to this department as either the Gold Department (1856) or the Gold Fields Department (1857 and 1859).

This agency oversaw activity on Victoria's Gold Fields which from 1858 onwards saw the creation of Mining Districts. By 1860, the Department's activities had been incorprated into the Department of Mines (VA 2719).

Further research is required.