Gold was first officially discovered in Australia on February 15, 1823, by assistant surveyor James McBrien at Fish River, between Rydal and Bathurst in New South Wales. McBrien found numerous particles of gold in the sand near the river during his survey work. This is regarded as the first authentic reference to gold discovery in the Australian colony, although the amount was not large and the discovery was kept quiet by the colonial government to avoid social disruption at the time. Later, larger discoveries that led to gold rushes happened in the early 1850s, especially near Bathurst and Ophir in New South Wales and then in Victoria.