James Venture Mulligan

For other people with similar names, see Mulligan (surname).
James Venture Mulligan

James Venture Mulligan (13 February 1837 - 24 August 1907) was an Ireland-born Australian prospector and explorer.[1]

Early life

Mulligan was born in Drumgooland, County Down and emigrated to Australia at the age of 21 in 1859.

Prospecting and mining

After missing the gold rushes of Ballarat and Gympie, Mulligan set out to find payable gold on the Palmer River in Far North Queensland that had been reported by William Hann. On 30 June 1873, Mulligan discovered payable gold reporting his find on 24 August to the Warden of the Etheridge Gold Field at Georgetown. The Palmer area was soon overrun by more than 30,000 prospectors, and Mulligan continued to search elsewhere. In 1874 he was to discover gold at Pine Creek.

In 1875 Mulligan became frustrated that his finds were creating great wealth for others, but were barely financing his expeditions. Unable to secure his services for free, the Queensland Government paid him £500 to find further gold fields. Instead of gold, he was to discover the Barron River and find tin that year on the current site of Herberton. In 1880 he discovered silver in the Silver Valley west of Herberton.

Later life

James Venture Mulligan's Grave in Mount Molloy Cemetery, 2010

Mulligan was married in Brisbane on 5 March 1903. In that year he also purchased the Mount Molloy Hotel. He died on 24 August 1907 from injuries received as he tried to stop a fight. He was buried in Mount Molloy cemetery. His headstone reads:

Memorial plaque at Mount Molloy
Sacred to the memory of James Venture Mulligan, prospector and explorer, died at Mount Molloy aged 69 years. RIP. Erected by a few old friends.[2]

Legacy

Mount Mulligan and the Mulligan Highway in Far North Queensland, and the Mulligan River in south-west Queensland, were named after him.[3]

James Venture Mulligan's Grave was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register in 1992.[4]

Sources

References

  1. ↑ "Obituary - James Venture Mulligan - Obituaries Australia". oa.anu.edu.au. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  2. ↑ "James Venture Mulligan's Grave, Mt Molloy Cemetery (entry 600684)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council. Retrieved 24 January 2010.
  3. ↑ "Mount Mulligan - locality (entry 48788)". Queensland Place Names. Queensland Government. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  4. ↑ "James Venture Mulligan's Grave, Mt Molloy Cemetery (entry 600684)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council. Retrieved 1 August 2014.

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