Western NSW Mining History

Western NSW is historically significant as the location of the nineteenth century goldrush and for its importance in the development of the NSW colony. The story of the goldrush is one of rapidly flourishing settlements as prospectors eager to make their fortunes continuously moved to where new discoveries were reported. Goldrush fever reached its peak in the 1860s and 70s.

Along with gold, the Western regions of NSW are rich in deposits of silver, lead, zinc, copper and coal. Western NSW is also famous for its world-class opal deposits found around the town of Lightning Ridge.

Gold

Gold in NSW was first discovered in the Bathurst district in February 1823 by James McBrien, Assistant Surveyor for the Lands Department. Subsequent discoveries were made by Count Strezlecki in 1839 in the Vale of Clwyd at Hartley and by the Reverend W.B. Clarke in 1841 on the Cox’s River. These early gold discoveries were keep secret by the government at the time, due to fear of a mass outbreak in search of the gold. The government believed a goldrush would be injurious to the pastoral industry and would incite the convict population into violence. Governor Gipps reportedly said to Reverend W.B. Clarke when he exhibited his gold; “Put it away, Mr Clarke, or we shall all have our throats cut.” [1] The government altered its position following the goldrush in the American state of California in 1848, deciding to encourage prospecting and offering a reward for the discovery of payable gold.

Payable gold was found in 1851 near Ophir, which effectively kicked off the goldrush. The discovery was made by brothers William and James Tom, and John Lister. However the trio handed the finding to their partner Edward Hargraves, who was subsequently recognised as the ‘discoverer’ of gold by the government. Two official enquiries were held into the ownership affair; the first confirming Hargraves as the ‘discoverer’ and the second reversing these findings and crediting the Tom brothers and Lister. It should be noted that Hargraves certainly was an influential figure in the discovery as he had identified the gold region and also brought knowledge and expertise from his experiences in the Californian goldfields. Despite the controversy, it is clear that the finding at Ophir was responsible for kick-starting the Australian goldrush as well as having irreversible impacts on the future of the Australian colonies.

The Ophir discovery was followed relatively quickly with similar payable gold findings at Turon, Tambaroora and Hill End. This led to successive goldrushes that ended within a year, and at Hill End which continued until 1873. Although the goldrush at Ophir encountered a rapid decline, Chinese diggers re-worked the area in the mid 1850s with considerable success. This re-working occurred in many goldfields as gold diggers prematurely abandoned their labours, believing the resource was depleted.  The goldrush had significant effects on the fabric of Australian society. In 1851 the non-Aboriginal population of Australia totalled 437,665, and by 1861 had swelled to 1,168,149 persons. [2]  The NSW population increased from 200,000 in 1851 to 357,000 in 1861. [3]  This dramatic increase in population can only be credited to the goldrush, which had the effect of encouraging hordes of new immigrants who arrived in the 1850s to try their luck in the goldfields. Along with this dramatic increase in population, the discovery of gold also brought immense wealth to the colony of NSW.

Hill End

Hill End is significant as a heritage site because of its role in the nineteenth century goldrush. Hill End was once the largest inland centre in NSW and boasted a population of 8,500 in the beginning of the 1870s. [4]  It was also the location of the largest single gold nugget ever found, which occurred in 1872. The nugget was named Beyers and Holterman after its discoverers and is believed to have weighed over 300 kilos, although it was not preserved in its initial form. By the end of the 1870s however, due to the diminishing gold resources and dubious investment practices, the town was deserted. The town remained virtually abandoned until the 1960s when the locality was proclaimed a heritage site and was restored to its former glory under the guidance of the National Parks and Wildlife Service. Hill End in its current form is a picture-perfect example of an 1870s gold mining town and serves as a reminder of life during the Australian goldrush. 

Bathurst

Bathurst was first founded in 1815 by Governor Macquarie, and was initially used as a penal settlement. The Bathurst region was the location of the first discovery of gold in NSW which occurred in 1823 by James McBrien, Assistant Surveyor for the Lands Department. However the find was not capitalised on at the time and it was not until 1851 when gold was discovered at nearby Ophir that Bathurst was given the opportunity to prosper. Businesses were attracted to the town to provide resources and equipment to prospectors and diggers heading to the goldfields. The Bathurst region was the initial location of the NSW goldfields encompassing Ophir, Hill End and Sofala. 

Forbes (Black Ridge)

Gold was first discovered at Black Ridge in 1861. In recognition of a Chief Justice of NSW, Sir Frances Forbes, the unofficial name of Black Ridge was replaced with Forbes as early as 1861. Within months of the discovery of gold, there were an estimated 28,000 people living and working in the town. [5]  The discovery and extracting of gold brought not only a rich source of wealth but unscrupulous bushrangers like Frank Gardiner and Ben Hall. In 1862 Eugowra, near Forbes, was the site of the biggest gold escort robbery of the nineteenth century by Gardiner, Hall and their gang. The bushranging diminished with the arrests and deaths of the gang members. Although the town initially prospered with the discovery of gold, the resource was very rapidly extinguished. This resulted in a decrease in population and mining was usurped by agricultural pursuits. 

Parkes

Reef gold was found at present-day Parkes in 1862 and thousands of prospectors rapidly arrived to try their luck. The ‘Currajong’ goldfield was worked for five years until the gold resource diminished and the population moved on. In 1871 however a second goldrush was sparked by a new gold find in the area. In 1873 the NSW Premier, Henry Parkes, visited the area known as Bushman’s after the Bushman’s Lead mine. The Premier’s visit resulted in the name being replaced with Parkes and the further development of the town. By the late 1870s mining had been replaced with other pursuits such as agriculture and viticulture. Mining again resurged in the 1990s with the Northparkes gold and copper mine. 

Young (Lambing Flat) and Blackguard Gully

Gold was discovered in Young at Lambing Flat in 1860. After the discovery was announced in the newspaper, there were as many as 20,000 diggers purportedly working the goldfield. Young was the site of numerous violent riots against Chinese miners in the early 1860s. The most notorious riot occurred in June 1861 when a purported 3000 European-origin miners attacked the Chinese miners’ camp at Blackguard Gully, forcing the Chinese to take refuge at the camp of the Gold Commissioner. These riots led to the passing of legislation restricting ‘aliens’ from goldfields, along with other immigration restrictions. Blackguard Gully is now heritage listed in order to preserve the historical significance of the locality.    

Copper

Copper has been mined in the West of NSW since the 1840s, before payable gold was discovered. There are archaeological remains of copper mines in the state, particularly in the Tablelands, as this is where many of the early sites were located. Copper mining in NSW met with little success and most early mines were only worked for short periods for miners believed the resource was too scant to produce a profit. However there were more productive mines such as the Lloyd Copper Mine, which operated from 1878 to 1919, and the Sunny Corner Mine from 1878 to 1895. Cadia Valley Operations is currently the largest gold and copper producer in NSW.

Cobar has been a centre of copper mining in NSW since the 1870s, along with gold, silver, lead and zinc. 

Coal

Lithgow

Lithgow remains the centre of mining in the Western coalfields of NSW thanks to its significant coal reserves and the associated industries such as steel and iron production which sprang up from the coal industry. The first record of mining in the Lithgow Valley dates from 1838 when a local landowner, Andrew Brown, recorded that he was “getting coal.” [6] This coal was used for the running of Brown’s flour mill, and it is likely that other early landowners in the area also used coal for such domestic purposes.

The Zig Zag Railway opened in 1869 which facilitated the development of Lithgow as it linked the Western plains with Sydney, enabling the transportation of goods and people. The opening of the Railway preceded a growth in population and business as well as a flourishing of the minerals industry.

In 1863 the Hermitage Colliery became the first commercial mine to operate in Lithgow and was followed by the Eskbank Colliery in 1872 and the Vale of Clwyd Colliery in 1879. The Katoomba mine opened in 1878 and the scenic tramway that still exists was the line of the original shipway used to haul coal up the cliff.

The flourishing of the mines also ushered in a new era of development for Lithgow, as proximity to cheap energy was an important factor for businesses. Ironworks were established near the Eskbank Colliery and these were acquired by the Hoskins brothers in 1908. These Ironworks played a significant role in the production of steel for the Trans-Australia Railway. The Zig Zag Colliery was opened by Thomas Sutcliffe Mort in 1873 to supply coal to his meatworks. Further mines at Lithgow included the Calos Gap mine from 1884 to 1903 and the Oakey Park Colliery which operated from 1888 to 1941.

Near Lithgow, Wallerawang was also home to a number of collieries from the 1880s onwards including the Irondale Colliery from 1883, the Cullen Bullen Colliery from 1885, the Ivanhoe Colliery from 1893, and the Commonwealth Colliery in 1895, which in 1940 became the first open cut mine in NSW. Numerous other mines opened in the Lithgow Valley particularly around Cullen Bullen such as the Great Western Mine in 1899, the Invincible Colliery in 1900, along with a number of smaller mines. The Wallerawang Power Station opened in 1957 and used coal sourced locally.

In 1887 the Western district of NSW produced 302,137 tonnes of coal a year and by 1901 this had increased to 763,919 tonnes of coal. [7]

Post World War One, several new mines opened up at or near Lithgow such as the government-owned State Mine in 1919 which operated until 1964. The Depression forced the closure of several mines like the Zig Zag Colliery in 1932. During the 1940s and ‘50s the Lithgow coal mining industry was revived with the opening of new mines. The industry deteriorated somewhat in the latter half of the twentieth century, particularly with the closure of the early mines; the Lithgow Valley and the Hermitage, along with other mines such as the State Mine in 1964.
 
Mining in Lithgow is once again seeing economic prosperity, with a number of mines operating in the area. The State Mine Heritage Park and Railway at Lithgow is significant for its contribution to preserving mining memorabilia from across the state.

Silver, Lead and Zinc

The first significant find of silver occurred in the 1870s at Thackaringa in the Far West of NSW. Gold was discovered at Mount Poole and Mount Brown in 1880, 250km north of Thackaringa which led to the establishment of the town of Milparinka. Although this town initially thrived by providing services to the miners, it was depopulated by the 1950s and today only a few buildings remain. Tibooburra was another town that was established to serve the miners, but unlike Milparinka, Tibooburra still thrives today. Silver discoveries continued at Silverton and Umberumberka with Silverton becoming a prosperous town thanks to its generous silver deposits. The Daydream Mine operated from 1882 and an associated smelter was opened in 1885 but the entire Daydream mine closed down in the 1890s. Like many other towns in the Far West, Silverton was deserted with the rise of Broken Hill however the town has been rediscovered in recent years. 

Broken Hill

Otherwise known as ‘the silver city’, Broken Hill is famous as having the world’s largest silver, lead and zinc deposit in its ore body, the Line of Lode. Silver and lead ore were first found in Broken Hill in 1883 by a boundary patrol rider, Charles Rasp. The Broken Hill Proprietary Company was formed in 1885 composed of a ‘Syndicate of Seven’ including the original discoverer Charles Rasp. This company was one of the forerunners to the global mining and resources giant BHP Billiton.

The old South Mine commenced in 1888 and closed in 1972. By 1891 Broken Hill was the third largest city in NSW with more than 21,000 inhabitants. [8]  It was also the location of Australia’s first mosque built in 1891, as the area was serviced by Muslim Afghan camel drivers. By 1907 there were 8,800 men employed in the mines at Broken Hill, totalling a quarter of the town’s population. [9]

Writing in 1908, Stokes commented: “The Broken Hill or Barrier Range mining-field, situated in the desolate interior of Australia...constitutes the most important centre of silver-lead-zinc ore-production in the world.”  [10]

Broken Hill has the further claim of being the scene of the only enemy attack on Australian soil during the First World War. This attack took place in 1915 when a picnic train was sieged by gunfire from two Turkish sympathisers. Two civilians were killed and many more wounded, and a further two were killed in the gunmen’s escape. The gunmen died in the ensuing police retaliation. Following the attack the Broken Hill mines revoked the employment of ‘enemy aliens’ along the lines of the government’s War Precaution Act of 1914.

From its early days Broken Hill was a hotbed of union activity based on the sheer numbers of miners working there. The most renowned union event occurred in 1919-20 with the Miners Strike which lasted for a lengthy 18 months, at which time BHP acceded to the demands of the strikers.

Mining at Broken Hill was dominated by BHP until the company withdrew from its Broken Hill operations in 1939. Despite BHP’s withdrawal, Broken Hill reached another period of peak production in the 1950s, with 6500 people employed in the mining industry. [11]

Mining at Broken Hill continues with mines producing silver, zinc and lead, and Bemax Resources' Gingko Mine, producing titanium minerals and zircon. Numerous streets in Broken Hill are named after mineral resources in recognition of the role that mining played in the development of the town. The town is now a major tourist destination in Western NSW.

Opal

The European discovery of opal at Lightning Ridge is attributed to Robert Moore in 1873 however the significance of the discovery and its wealth was not recognised at that time. Opal mining first began in NSW in the Central West region in 1877 at Rocky Bridge Creek. This was successively followed by further opal discoveries in various parts of the Western regions. 

White Cliffs

Opal was discovered at White Cliffs in 1884 and was fated to be a superior form of opal to any other opal then known. Samples were sent to Adelaide in 1889 which was followed by the commencement of mining operations in 1890. By the turn of the nineteenth century White Cliffs was at its peak, with a population of some 4,000 people and over 100 businesses. [12]  The town of White Cliffs is unique in providing a tangible link with its mining past through houses built underground from old opal mines. These houses are still used by residents, and provide protection from the searing summer heat. Current population estimates rest at several hundred people, although the town remains a popular tourist destination. 

Lightning Ridge

It was not until the early 1900s that the first prospecting and extracting was carried out in the Lightning Ridge area, after other localities had started mining operations. The first commercial sale of opal from Lightning Ridge was in 1903 by Charlie Nettleton. Nettleton’s opals had been mistakenly valued at the pitiful price of 10 shillings by a Sydney jeweller, but the sale eventually went through at the established White Cliffs opal field for 15 pounds. Lightning Ridge’s Black Opal has earned it world-wide acclaim.

A Select Bibliography