True story, or at least as far as family mytholgy allows. But yes Great-grandpa Morgan struck it rich with the Happy Jack mine, just out of the beautiful Ovens Valley gold mining town of Wandilagong. Owned half of nearby Myrtleford's main street, but by the end of the 1890s crash was pretty much back to square one. A brass band leader and dreamer, he never left the town, but he did leave a family legacy of love for the Victorian bush.
lyrics
MORGAN’S TALE
He came out to the gold-fields, from the green hills of old Wales
Suffered on the journey, becalmed and withstood gales
Could scarcely believe where his wish to be free would now lead
Across the sea
Onward past Benalla, saw the mighty Ovens flood
Dug into a valley, spent his heart, his sweat and blood
Who would’ve thought of old Morgan’s Wandilagong reef
Beyond belief
A god-fearing man of the Methodist clan
He hit pay-dirt
A god-fearing man who gave not a damn
For the money, or a new shirt
Sing now Morgan, sing to the warm wind of fate
Sing now Morgan, sing to the sun, the earth, the stars
Esther found it just right, and she headed back to town
Settled into Brighton, where she partied from sundown
She said that Morgan’s rich vein was the first of a few
She said she knew
Morgan stayed a bushman, the lights he loved were stars
A digger in an era of no phones or fancy cars
He knew that one strike was more than enough for his dream
A simple scheme
A god-fearing man of the Methodist clan
That was Morgan
A god-fearing man who gave not a damn
But his poor wife, she was mourning
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