09/06/2026
A major phase of a Creswick heritage project is complete.
Creswick Connect is proud to announce the completion of the New Australasian No. 2 Mine Site interpretive signage project.
The New Australasian No. 2 Mine is one of the most significant historic sites in Creswick, on Dja Dja Wurrung Country. In 1882, 27 miners were trapped underground when the mine flooded. Tragically, 22 men lost their lives. The disaster deeply affected the Creswick community and became an important moment in the history of mining, workers’ rights and occupational health and safety in Australia.
The new interpretive signage helps tell this powerful story on site, giving residents and visitors the opportunity to understand the scale of the disaster, the courage of those involved in the rescue efforts, and the importance of Creswick’s deep lead mining history.
This project is also part of the larger Buried Rivers of Gold project, which tells the remarkable story of the deep lead goldfields and the hidden rivers of ancient gold that shaped Creswick and the wider Victorian Goldfields region.
You can learn more about the broader project here:
https://www.buriedriversofgold.org/, or this podcast for some background to the event: https://open.spotify.com/episode/10WfyE6RwtbBLT9OtxE5Ta
This project has been many years in the making, and we acknowledge the work, persistence and support of many people and organisations who helped bring it to completion.
Thank you to Community Bank Creswick & District for major funding support, and to the Victorian Government, Public Record Office Victoria and the Victorian Local History Grants Program, along with Parks Victoria, Chrome on the Goldfields, RACV Resort, Hepburn Shire Council and other project supporters who helped move the project forward.
Special thanks to members of the Creswick Connect committee, past and present, who have carried this project through over many years, including James Freemantle and Margaret Giles, and to Robt Haughie of BaseGraphic for the research, writing and design work, and to Shaun Dridan Contracting for bringing the signage to life on site.
We encourage locals, visitors, schools, history lovers and anyone interested in Creswick’s remarkable story to visit the site and take some time to read, reflect and remember.
Details of a formal launch event and community celebration will be announced soon.
This is an important step in protecting and sharing Creswick’s heritage, and in recognising the lives and labour of those who shaped this place.
Tim Drylie
President, Creswick Connect
On behalf of the Creswick Connect Committee
