[Editor: This Gold License was issued to I. Woods, in Victoria, on 7 June 1852.]
Victoria.
Gold License.
No. 103 June 7 1852.
The Bearer I. Woods
having paid the Sum of One Pound, Ten Shillings, on account of the Territorial Revenue, I hereby License him to dig, search for, and remove Gold, on and from any such Crown Lands within the
Loddon District
as I shall assign to him for that purpose during the Month of June 1852, not within half-a-mile of any Head Station.
This License is not transferable, and to be produced whenever demanded by me or any other person acting under the authority of the Government, and to be returned when another License is issued.
G. Williams
Commissioner.
Printed by John Ferres, at the Government Printing Office.
Source:
Victoria. Gold License: 1852, State Library of Victoria
Editor’s notes:
Handwritten text has been rendered in italics.
There is a minor notation in the top-left quarter of this Gold License, with the number “2553”. Whether this was a contemporaneous notation, or was added at a later date, is not known.
Regarding the date on this document (near the top), the “June” and the “7” appear to have been written with different ink; it is possible that an assistant to the Gold Commissioner pre-prepared a stack of Gold Licenses, using a different pen, filling in the month, year, and area details on the forms, in order to enable the Commissioner to quickly complete the documents (in the face of a long queue of waiting miners).
The printer’s details were printed on the left side of the Gold License.
Head Station = the principal homestead and main business centre of a pastoral property, including the associated buildings
Loddon = the Loddon River (Victoria); the area around the Loddon River (Victoria); the Loddon District (Victoria); the Loddon Shire (Victoria); the Loddon Valley (Victoria)
See: 1) “Loddon River: river, Australia”, Encyclopaedia Britannica
2) “Loddon River”, Wikipedia
3) “Shire of Loddon”, Wikipedia
4) “About the Loddon Valley”, Bendigo Region
station = a large rural holding used for raising livestock, usually sheep or cattle (a pastoral property); can also refer to the principal homestead and main business centre of a pastoral property
See: “Station (Australian agriculture)”, Wikipedia
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