 Along with farming, the hills and creek were prized areas for the sawyers and splitters, and a number of mines were established in the region from the mid-to-late 19th century.In 1844 the first silver-lead, manganese and iron mines were established in the area, while the 1890s saw a minor gold rush—although "only small quantities were extracted".Of greater success was stone quarrying in Chambers' Gully, which began in 1863 and increased in scale in 1912.