On 10 August 1870, two Italian immigrants discovered gold at McGraths Creek in the mountains northwest of Grafton, New South Wales. Soon afterwards, many more prospectors were lured by the gold-bearing quartz found in reefs named the ‘Lunatic’ and ‘Perseverance’. The town of Solferino, which sprang up on the site, was named after the hometown of the two brothers. On a visit there in 1872, photographer JW Lindt took this wonderfully detailed panorama. The two most prominent buildings seen in the image are hotels — the Solferino and the European.