TitlePortrait, James NashAdditional InformationJames Nash (1834-1913) was the prospector who discovered payable gold near the Mary River in 1867. Cooran's existence is a direct result of the Gympie gold rush initiated by Nash. Walter Hay blazed a route between Tewantin and Gympie in 1870, which included a horse-change stop (the "Halfway House and Stables") that later grew into the town of Cooran. Dateca 1900sImage NoT4008519