Where is Box Creek you may ask? As I did myself back in 2000, (I can’t believe it was so long ago), when I received a letter from a lady in Queensland about a distant relative of hers called Ronald Donald McMillen who was supposed to be buried in the Box Soak Cemetery. I had not heard of the cemetery. She was able to send me a copy of his death certificate which she had purchased which said:-
Date:- 30th Jan 1905 at Box Soak in the North Coolgardie Gold Fields
Ronald Donald McMillen, Occupation: Shepherd: aged 65yrs,
Cause of death:- supposed heart attack,
Buried by order of the acting Coroner James Cormack JP, by order on 31 Jan 1905 at Yundamindera
Family details were ‘Unknown’
The death was certified by Constable O’Connor
Registered with Thomas K Hannah Acting District registrar on the 4th Oct 1905 at Menzies (some 9 months later, possibly because it had taken the policeman this long before he was able to travel to the nearest registry office)
Buried in the Box Soak Cemetery, witnessed by Constable O’Connor and Eugene Rider, Undertaker J F Moore.
So commenced my search for this elusive place (this is long before TROVE and the second edition of More Lonely Graves). I started with several maps which included Yundermindera north of Kookynie and managed to find it, a tiny speck on the map. A little settlement was developed in Christmas of 1904, between Yundamindera and the Linden townships. Located 15 km west of Linden near a watershed called Box Creek.
From the North Coolgardie Herald 17th Dec 1904 – THE B
OX CREEK RUSH:- Yundermindera Dec 1904.
Larkin and party, who have been prospecting near Linden for some time arrived at Yundamindera today and reported having found payable alluvial gold at a spot five and a half miles from Box Creek, on the Linden road and thirty miles from The Granites (Yundamindera). A rush to the locality of the new find has taken place, and there are now sixty or seventy men on the ground. All hands are reticent as to the results. No coarse gold has been obtained, but fine gold of good quality has been picked up. Water is procurable at 4d per gallon. Several miners employed in the Potosi Consolidated Mine have left work to proceed to the find. About sixteen parties are working on claims, and others are shepherding.
Also from the North Coolgardie Herald – 8th Feb 1905.
A man named Richard (sic) McMillen died suddenly at Box Creek Soak on the 30th of January. McMillen was employed as a shepherd by Robert Heppingstone, the cause of death was apparently heart disease.
The following description is a fascinating snapshot of the times:- From The Evening Standard 22 Dec 1904.
A Morgans man has returned from the alluvial field Box Soak, twenty-five miles, east of Pindinnie, and whose information can be relied upon. He states that the estimated number of men on the ground at less than 200, but there were not more than sixty working claims The rest were building machines (eg shakers or dry blowers) or shepherding. Fully fifty men were on gold, averaging, as far as could be learnt from 3 dwt. to 4 dwt. a day. The largest piece of metal seen by him was 2 dwt., but a half-ounce bit had been discovered. Two miles away from the locality now rushed a 2 oz. slug and several smaller ones were specked, which shows that the alluvial is spread over a considerable area.
The ground is worked at Box Soak about a foot deep, resting on a hard cement bottom. Some of this bottom has been tried but did not prove gold-bearing. The dry blowers are at present skimming the surface to a depth of six inches, as they have formed the opinion that the lower part of the deposit is valueless. The place is regarded by experienced gold hunters as showing great possibilities. From Box Soak to Eucalyptus, there is a seventeen-mile stretch of auriferous country which has scarcely been touched. The general opinion on the field is that the new find is going to be a substantial one, perhaps not productive of large slugs or dazzling pockets but good enough to give fair wages to a large number of men. Numbers continue to arrive each day by conveyance and per boot, the inevitable old party with wheelbarrow corks and a starved terrier showing conspicuously among the motley procession moving along toilsomely to the scene of operations.
Coolgardie Prospectors – Photo SLWA
Many old identities who, with shouts of triumph, in the days of Kurnalpi, Dunn’s, and Darlot mingle with the crowd. “Dutchy” is there, and so is “Dicky the Dog”, not forgetting Reg Moore who is well known hereabouts. Those girding their loins to proceed to the spot may as well know that tucker is dear. The tinned dog is one shilling and sixpence, milk ditto, and flour not too abundant. Supplies are coming by dray from distant Murrin Murrin when the storekeepers recover sufficiently from the effects of excessive heat to get a move on.
No butcher has yet put in an appearance, but the shantyman is already spreading joy in the community with pungent ‘tanglefoot’. He would shout to all and sundry that move along in view of his emporium,
“Here y’are boys, don’t pass me house, buy, after all me trouble to bring you a drop of the good stuff”
Good old snake-juice parasite, how could any rush succeed without him. Travellers going to Box Soak could, if inclined, for a bit of sport, find plenty of shooting on route, especially after leaving Eucalyptus, turkeys, rabbits, and roos frequently appearing along the roadside.
Over the years I have often wanted to see if I could find this lonely spot and see if there is anything left to mark the grave of Ronald Donald McMillen or any sign of a town but have not made it yet.
McMILLAN, Ronald McDonald Died 30.1.1905 at Box Soak – Photo Merv Scally in 1957 Photo supplied by Frank Howard 2008
Ronald Donald McMillen
Note: For those with limited knowledge of mining terms like myself, I asked Scott Wilson if ‘Shepherding’ was a mining term or was it had to do with sheep. He told me that it is an old mining term rarely used now. The Mining Act of the day required the prospector to ‘man’ (work) his alluvial claim almost continuously except the Sabbath – or unless a general exemption was called by the Warden.
A partnership or syndicate of prospectors would often be formed – this allowed for the ground not to be ‘jumped’ while the bloke remaining half-heartedly worked it, while the others looked for something better and also packed water or sourced equipment. So, R D McMillan would have been their Shepherd!
Moya Sharp
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Thank you Moya,
Another community to be added to every increasing list for the People of Western Australia’s Ghost Towns Project!
Chris