ɡˈoʊld wʌz dɪskˈʌvɚd æt bˈeɪkɚz kɹˈiːk, hˈɪlɡɹoʊv ɪn wˈʌn θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪthˈʌndɹɪd fˈɪfti sˈɛvən bˌʌt ɪt wʌz nˌɑːt ʌntˈɪl ðə lˈeɪt wˈʌn θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪthˈʌndɹɪd ˈeɪɾi z ðætðə ɹᵻkˈoːɹdᵻd pˌɑːpjʊlˈeɪʃən ɹˈoʊz tə tˈuː,tˈuːhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti fˈoːɹ ænd lˈeɪɾɚ tʊ ˈɔːlmoʊst θɹˈiː,zˈiəɹoʊzˈiəɹoʊ zˈiəɹoʊ ɪn ɐbˌaʊt wˈʌn θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪthˈʌndɹɪd nˈaɪnti ˈeɪt.
Gold was discovered at Bakers Creek, Hillgrove in 1857 but it was not until the late 1880s that the recorded population rose to 2,274 and later to almost 3,000 in about 1898.