At the end of April 1882 Elizabeth Moonlight caught typhoid. She went to Nelson for medical help, but died two weeks later. She was 44 years old. In May 1883, George Moonlight went into liquidation. Though his businesses appeared to be doing well he had accumulated too many bad debts, staking miners who either could not pay or who had left the district. Also his finances had never recovered from the flood damages of 1878, and he had generally over invested in buildings and leases on land. A great auction was held at Hampden, after which all that remained of his estate was the store and buildings at the Glenroy. With his creditors satisfied, he was discharged from bankruptcy at the Westport District Court in September.
