It informed, 'Recognising he is the only survivor in Ballarat of the early pioneers who were here when gold was discovered in 1851, the venerable old city resident, Mr James Oddie, determined to celebrate the 58th anniversary, and the method adopted was decidedly novel. He had no colleagues whom he could invite to join him, and consequently he hit upon holding what he himself described as 'a one man banquet'.'

The unprecedented function was held in the afternoon at Craigs Hotel on September 1, 1909, where the worthy old pioneer dined in solitary stateliness. Later a number of the leading citizens called upon him to pay their respects, after which he addressed an audience of press representatives, through whom he conveyed his sentiments.

He highlighted the origins of gold discovery in Australia and described the country fifty eight years earlier as one immense sheep walk, Sydney being the centre, and in fact, the same might be said about the whole of Australia, except a little patch in South Australia. The Rev. W. Clarke, a Church of England clergyman of N.S.W., with a student of Sir Roderick Murchison, in 1835 indicated the probability of gold being discovered in New South Wales, having based the assumption on his geological knowledge. Oddie spoke about Hargreaves negotiating with the NSW government to search for gold, and Esmond finding gold at Clunes, the day after Victoria separated from New South Wales, which was the 1st July 1851.

Esmond arrived in Geelong a few days later where he consulted jeweller John Patterson who pronounced the find to be gold, and Esmond then headed for Melbourne with his gold to claim a reward of two hundred pounds which had been collected by Melbourne merchants. The reward was an endeavour to stop the rush to the New South Wales goldfields which had been taking place, but Esmond did not get the prize as it had been awarded to a German doctor who had convinced the merchants that he had found gold in the Pyrenees.

A Buninyong blacksmith and wheelwright, Hiscock, who had heard of Esmond's discovery made a cradle, formed a party and successfully prospected for gold at Buninyong in August 1851, and a rush from Geelong occurred. On the 23rd August Oddie with a party started for Buninyong diggings, and arrived on the 28th. Whilst they were on their way Connor's and Merrick's parties respectively found a colour at what became Golden Point.

When coming past Meredith they had met a number of men returning to Geelong who thought there was no point in going to Ballarat as all you could get was colour. Oddie however having a fortnight's provisions had decided to press on. When he arrived at Buninyong diggings a dray and two horses, with tubs and cradles was leaving for Ballarat, and some of the people followed it. On Saturday afternoon it was known that there was gold six miles away.

Meantime James Oddie sought out Hiscock 'and finding him, put his cradle down beside him and worked two days, finding gold that covered the bottom of a vial the size of his little finger'. The others did not think it was worthwhile to continue operations.

At noon on the Sabbath Thomas Bath and his wife arrived, and James Oddie invited them to join him at 8am the next morning when they were to continue their journey. Seven parties started off on Monday 1st September and arrived at 2.30pm. They counted seven tents there at that time and about fifty people in all, of whom James Oddie now declared to be the only survivor. Parties who had left on the Thursday had marked out their claims and the yield was about thirty ounces per day for each party. The reporter for the Geelong 'Advertiser' was also present, out on the ranges 'prospecting' for news. He had arrived on Wednesday and individually canvassed the parties, who had informed him of their returns, which information was forwarded to his paper which was the first to report the discovery.

Towards the end of the week the papers arrived, and one digger brandishing a copy confronted James Oddie. 'You D---- fool, you are telling the press all the gold you are getting. We are getting 30 oz a day, and we told him 2 oz. You'll have all Geelong and Melbourne here to take our claims, and serve you right.' The concerned digger was George Howe who later built the George hotel. The mass exodus to the gold fields then began.

Oddie claimed that somebody in the metropolis intimidated the diggers by calling them rogues and vagabonds, but the rogues and vagabonds initiated an industry which had by this anniversary produced two hundred and eighty two million pounds for the State.

Progress came quickly and on the 19th September Commissioner Doveton and Assistant Commissioner Armstrong arrived, and Captain Dana, a police inspector, with aboriginal troopers, arrived with guns. Next morning at ten o'clock the commissioner took possession of Connor's hut, and proceeded to issue gold licences at thirty shillings, (about half a weeks wages), per month.

Previously, on the 25th August a commissioner had been sent in advance, but no gold having been discovered up to that time the officer returned.

The gold licence caused much dissention on the goldfields, with resentment right from the issue of the first licence. Commissioner Doveton made the remark that they had not come here to make the law, but to administer it, and initially they were charged ten shillings for the remainder of the month, which was thirty days. The commissioner heard that one party had already unearthed 70lb (30kg) of the precious metal, but as yet there was no market for it and they sold their gold for two pounds twelve shillings and six pence (per oz.). James Oddie only sold one lot at that price.

The crowds continued to arrive and by the end of the month Oddie estimated that there were already five thousand people here and several churches, particularly the Methodists opened divine service. Mr Hastie from Buninyong also was involved.

James Oddie returned from Geelong with his wife on the 1st October and found a Methodist place of worship being covered with a tarpaulin, the walls being saplings interwoven with gum branches. Service was held within on the Sabbath, hitherto they had been held in the open.

As was the case with early alluvial mining a rush was made to Mount Alexander the following week and it was thought that that was the end of Ballarat, and the place of worship was dismantled. The surface diggings extended to Brown Hill and Canadian Hill, and developed into deep leads.

Canadian turned out very prolific. In December 1852 one shaft sixty feet (18m) deep produced nuggets weighing 134 lb (60kg), 126 lb, 90 lb and 30lb, with surface gold freely available. Oddie said that one member of the fortunate party was Mr. R. Mitchell who died with a wealth of over fifty thousand pounds, which today would equate to over two million dollars. He bought a hotel on the corner of Sturt and Armstrong Streets and later replaced it with the present Myer building, his name still visible in the pediment. He then moved onto farming pursuits. Others in the lucky nugget party had come out in the 'Great Britain', and returned in six weeks with their wealth.

Gold was found at Little Bendigo, an area that also turned out very rich. James Oddie had advised a young man from Wiltshire who was receiving nine shillings per week at the furnace, to come to Australia and Oddie found employment for him in his foundry at Geelong until the diggings started. His young friend unearthed fifteen pounds of gold at Golden Point, and then declared he was going back to Wiltshire where he could get farm labourers for six shillings per week.

The leads deepened and junctioned at two hundred feet at Ballarat Flat, they then struck south, went under the gas works (Albert St, City), and there the diggers struck their first rock, which was volcanic, and drove under it as far as possible. It then outcropped to Lydiard Street and there was a shaft on the south west corner of Lydiard and Dana Streets. One rock on the surface was sixty feet thick. The lead went through the Wesleyan grounds and their building sank bodily. This old church with a remodelled facade remains today as the S.M.B. E.J. Tippett Hall.

The nearby court house, which later became the first building of the School of Mines and occupied the site of the present turn of the century S.M.B. building, also suffered so badly from subsidence that the judge refused to sit in the building. The lead proceeded west for about a mile and then turned south, rock of 150 feet (46m) thickness being encountered and Oddie questioned whether anything in history equalled the difficulty encountered by the miners in penetrating these rocks. It had to be remembered too he qualified, that not one per cent of the diggers were practical miners. The yields of gold were difficult to conceive, he remembered one occasion when a man brought to the Bank of Australasia a 68 lb nugget from the Kohinoor.

James Oddie elaborated on how gold was responsible for the booming conditions and how the establishment of the School of Mines was the outcome of mining. However when the government grant was reduced by two thirds it necessitated a reduction in salaries of forty per cent, and the officers submitted with noble patriotism.

He concluded his interesting address by assuring his audience 'It was no wonder the Ballarat people were noted for their health and physique when their fathers and grandfathers represented the finest types of manhood the Old Country could produce.'