Discoveries of alluvial gold in the 1880s caused a minor gold-rush in Tierra del Fuego, and various industrial-scale operations were subsequently mounted. When work stopped, the migrant work-force resettled and the bulky dredges were often abandoned [the ruins of one can still be seen at Russfin (Chile)]. The name of this dredge, "Famatina", recalls the famous mining area in La Rioja province, northern Argentina. [Read more about the gold-rush.]