The Island is located at Thompson Bend on the Yarra River at Warrandyte, Victoria, Australia, approximately 24 kilometres (15 mi) north-east of Melbourne.
They dug a diversion channel to alter the course of the Yarra River, providing access to the alluvial gold in the exposed river bed.
[3] Mining Registrars and Surveyors Reports for the St. Andrews Division[2] date the diversion of the river into a canal as May–July 1859.
The nearby Pound Bend Tunnel was cut for a similar purpose in 1870.
The site is listed in the Victorian Heritage Inventory.