Jupiter Mosman is recognised as the first discoverer of gold at Charters Towers, which led to one of the largest gold rushes in North Queensland. He is believed to have been born in north-western Queensland, and came to live at Kyuna Station, south of Julia Creek. Station owner and prospector Hugh Mosman came to visit Kyuna and ended up taking the young Aboriginal boy with him when he departed. According to stories he named the boy 'Jupiter' because his large, luminous brown eyes reminded him of the planet. His real name, family and tribal background are lost to history.
Hugh later travelled north with George Clarke and John Fraser, prospecting for gold around Ravenswood, and then further west, taking young Jupiter, who was said to be around 8 to 10 years old, to look after the horses. The story of the first gold discovery in 1871 tells of how the party were camped a mile from what is now the town of Charters Towers, when a storm rose and startled the horses, who bolted into the bush. The prospecting party dispersed to search for them, including young Jupiter. Following a gully, Jupiter found one of the horses, then stooped to drink from the creek. He spotted some signs of gold in the quartz in the water, and gathered some up to take back to Hugh and the rest of the party. The alluvial gold find led to a large quartz outcrop, which was later registered with the warden at Ravenswood and things quickly grew from there.
The quartz outcrop became the North Australian Mine, and gold seekers flocked to the area. A town sprang up, with stores, banks, hotels, assayers and more mines appearing in every direction. Charters Towers was born.
Jupiter's part in the discovery was overlooked for many years. Official reports only mentioned Hugh Mosman, Clarke and Fraser and their lucky find. As Jupiter grew up, he supposedly went with Hugh to Sydney, then returned to Charters Towers, where his skill at cricket and football saw him play for local teams. He often told local boys about the time he came across the quartz which opened the gold field. After Hugh Mosman left the Towers around 1891, Jupiter returned to the bush, taking work as a drover, moving a large head of cattle from Kyuna Station to Wodonga, Victoria - a journey which took over six months. Later he worked around the Charters Towers district at Lolworth, Dotswood, Wambiana and Stockyard Creek cattle stations as a station hand. He was said to have been an excellent rider and horseman.Jupiter also continued prospecting and is credited with the discovery of several auriferous areas in the Peninsula, as well as wolfram at Kangaroo Hills and Stockyard Creek.
However, he gained little money and no real recognition for these or his earlier discoveries. In 1917, aged around 50 Jupiter applied for an exemption from the Aboriginal Protection Act so he could receive a full wage from his then employer, rather than the half wage proscribed by the Act. His application was rejected.
As he grew older, Jupiter suffered ill health and was admitted to Eventide retirement home in 1937. He often walked from there into town, and was recalled by locals of the day as a stately man in a white suit. Aged in his 80s he would also walk out to Corinda, a small settlement near the current day airport, to visit friends and relatives among the Aboriginal and white populations there. He died at Eventide on the 5th of December 1945, aged approximately 84 years.
Some of the locals banded together to have his grave marker put up at the Lynd Highway Cemetery, led by Mrs Mona Bedford, who had known Jupiter for many years. She continued to care for his grave and planted a Burdekin Plum beside it - "a solid Australian tree for a solid old Australian".
Jupiter's story of gold discovery has gradually gained wider popularity and recognition. There are several memorials to him scattered around Charters Towers, including a cairn at the base of Towers Hill, near 'The Gap' where Jupiter first noticed the quartz with its touch of colour. Centenary Park also has statues unveiled for the bi-centennial depicting the legend with a young man leading a pack horse, while men pluck gold from the water feature's stream.
While it never led to personal riches for the initial discoverer, Jupiter Mosman helped to birth a gold rush and the town of Charters Towers, with a foundation of gold and the memory of a man who has become a legend.