Paddy HannanPrint Page

The fountain is a replica of the original commissioned in 1929 to commemorate the finding of the first nugget of gold by Paddy Hannan. The original fountain is now in the Mining Hall of Fame.

In June 1893 Hannan and Thomas Flanagan and Dan O'Shea followed a new rush to the east of Coolgardie. Along the track on 10 June, they found gold near the surface of the dry red soil. Working in secret, each man won the equivalent of several years wages in the space of a week. On 17 June Hannan rode his horse to Coolgardie with about 100 ounces (3.1 kg) of gold and broke the news. The next morning the rush to Kalgoorlie began. The gold rush was the greatest in the history of the country and the towns of Kalgoorlie and Boulder were born. The original statue is now in the Miners Hall of Fame.

The unveiling of a memorial fountain in honor of the late Paddy Hannan, the discoverer of the first gold at Kalgoorlie, proved one of the most important of the Goldfields' Centenary fixtures. The unveiling was performed at Kalgoorlie on Thursday last by His Excellency the Governor, Sir William Campion, in the presence of the Minister for Mines, Mr. S. W. Munsie, the Minister for Water Supply Mr. J. Cunningham, several members of Parliament, the Mayors of Kalgoorlie and Boulder, Messrs. B. Leslie and W. Coath respectively, and a large gathering of citizens.

His Excellency referred to the tremendous impetus the discovery of gold at Kalgoorlie had given the State, and remarked that in honoring Hannan they were also paying tribute to the many other fine prospectors who helped to open the fields. The fountain supplies the first permanent memorial to the pioneers of the goldfields.
Sunday Times (Perth), 8th September 1929.

Note : On Thursday 12 October 2023 this fountain was vandalised, with the head of the sculpture being decapitated.  “A member of the community secured the head and returned it” to the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder council several hours later, police said.

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