The Edinburgh Gold Mine Company first took a lease on this site in 1860. During the first nine months of 1861 the mine produced 3273 ounces of gold. Its peak was in 1862, when it was paying £100 a week in wages, but by 1864 the gold had petered out. The mine had later incarnations – a public crushing battery was established here in 1904 – but the works finally closed in the early 1900s.
The mine site later became a popular swimming spot, with plans at one stage to make it an open-air swimming pool. On your screen you will see a photo from around 1939 of children swimming in the Edinburgh Dam.
In the 1980s, the reserve was landscaped and converted into a wetland, bird haven and picnic area.
If you have walked through the Edinburgh Reserve, proceed west along the lane which borders the Reserve, back towards Jackson Street. Cross Jackson Street into Cumberland Street South. Walk up the hill along Cumberland Street.
