- Alternative Names
- Gooley's Creek
Prospector William Gooley was awarded £100 for discovering the first gold on the Woods Point gold field in 1861, at Gooley’s Creek. He maintained that he lost his eye defending one of his claims. Soon after the discovery of payable alluvial gold, prospectors traced the alluvial gold up the slopes to the source reefs. The goldfield is in mountainous country, and the impenetrability of the region meant that initially it was accessible only by foot or pack horse.
The township was named Woods Point in April 1863 after storekeeper Mabel Woods, who went prospecting one day and never returned. The richness of the Morning Star Reef turned Woods Point into a major quartz reefing centre. It is estimated that from its opening until 1915, the reef produced over £1,000,000 of gold, most of it during the 1860s.