Kōrero: Hauraki–Coromandel places

Thames sprang into existence with the discovery of gold in the Kauaeranga valley in 1867. The top photograph is of the tents of diggers at Shortland, the town laid out by the government at the diggings, in January 1868. The bottom photograph, showing approximately the same area in 1871 (but from the opposite direction) shows how many buildings (including government buildings, hotels, churches and gold-crushing batteries) had been erected in just three years. However, there are still some tents, as can be seen in the left foreground.