VPRS 5448 Registers of Residence Areas, Ballarat Central Mining Division

One of the privileges conferred by Section 5 of the Mines Act 1865 and subsequent Mines Acts was that the holder of a miner's right could reside on up to one acre on a gold-fields area. Those occupying a residence area were "deemed in law to be possessed ... of such ... parcels ... and the property therein". This meant that the resident had all the responsibilities and rights of an owner. Rights of residence could be transferred or cancelled. With the passing of the Land (Residence Areas) Act 1935 the right of occupation of residence areas was broadened to include all Crown lands, not only those in mining areas and with administration placed under the Land Act rather than the Mines Act. Details in this series are the number allocated at registration (the certificate number), the date of registration, the name of the holder, the number and date of issue of the miner's right, a description of the allotment and any remarks. These could be with respect to transfers, cancellations, payments to be made or the alteration of areas. Transfer numbers were indexed in the Index of Transfers with transfers being often cross-referenced between the volumes.