Gold cover art

Gold

The Remarkable Story of Edward Hammond Hargraves – Charlatan, Imposter and Self-Proclaimed Discoverer of Gold in Australia

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Gold

By: Matt Murphy
Narrated by: Kaya Byrne
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About this listen

Ask Google Who discovered gold in Australia? and you'll promptly get 'Edward Hammond Hargraves'. Hargraves has for decades received the fame, fortune and adulation from all corners of the country, but did he earn it?

What about the two diggers he met on the Californian goldfields who told him where to look when he returned home to Australia?

What about the guys who led him to where they'd heard gold had been found before?

What about the pioneers whose discoveries had been documented years earlier?

This is the story of an oversized layabout who received years of accolades and free lunches, despite lumbering from one embarrassment to another, and of those who spent decades trying to expose him and seek their share of the glory.

©2025 Matt Murphy. Matt Murphy asserts his moral right to be identified as the author of this work. First published by HarperCollinsPublishers in English in. (P)2024 Bolinda Publishing. This audio version produced by arrangement with HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty Limited 19th Century Americas Australia, New Zealand & Oceania Expeditions & Discoveries Modern World
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Loved the book, however, the pronunciation of Ophir (which is mentioned dozens of times) and Carcoar did my head in. Please ask a local before starting a recording.

A great read but the pronunciation…

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Excellent book, very well read. Had me from the first chapter when says spoiler alert Hargreaves was a jerk. I have the book on the welcome stranger I haven’t read yet and I’ll have your indigenous Australian theory in mind when I read it, Very interesting. Keep up the great work.

Truth told through great research

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.