1860

1860 Thomas Hale engages man to sink shaft near Woonona Post Office - 6' of coal, 12' below surface.
1861 Bulli Colliery - opened
1861 Tunnel driven at site of Old Bulli Mine??
1861 Mt. Pleasant Colliery - opened by Lahiff & Fawcett for Illawarra Coal Co. on Mr. Plunkett's property.
1861 Bulli & Bellambi Coal Co. incorporated
1861 Russel Vale Colliery - proposed
1861 Construction starts on Mt. Keira tramway
1862 Russel Vale Colliery - opened on Osborne's land by Taylor & Walker
1862 Mt. Pleasant - Tramway built to Wollongong Harbour
1862 Bulli Colliery - coal shipped to Ballarat
1862 Bellambi Colliery & Woonona Coal Mine - Thomas Hale becomes insolvent.
1863 Bellambi Cove - attempt to build jetty
1863 Bellambi Colliery - (aka Hale's Mine & Woonona Mine) closes (bankrupt), (reopens off & on over next 60 years)
1863 Old Bulli Colliery - officially commences June 23rd
1863 Bulli Bight - major attempt to build jetty - washed away within 12 months
1863 Bulli jetty - Schooners "Moselle", "Tiger" & "George" commence operations, Bulli to Port Jackson.
1863 Screw Steamer "Woniora" commences making 3 trips per week to Sydney.
1863 "Ironside" (June) 790 tons to Shanghai from Bulli jetty.
1863 Bellambi Colliery - closes for 25 years ??
1863 "A drift is working 4 miles south of Dapto & more than 20 miles south of Mr. Hales" - Gov. Examiner of Coalfields
1864 Russell Vale Colliery – closed due to depressed market, attempt to reopen fails
1864 Bellambi Colliery - reopens ?? by Bulli & Bellambi Coal Co. Merges w/- Sth. Bulli Colliery
1864 250' of Sandon Point (Bulli Colliery) jetty washed away in June - mining ceased until repaired
1864 Bellambi Cove - jetties abandoned
1865 Pioneer Kerosene Works - opened, owner John Graham Jnr. Mt. Kembla, American Ck seam
1866 HM "Tiger" - January, washed ashore at Bulli - loss of 3 lives.
1867 Mt. Pleasant Colliery – acquired by James & William Byrnes
1867 Bulli & Bellambi Coal Co. formed with capital of $60,000 - obtained 600 acres from O'Brien and Messrs Somerville & Black.
1867 Osborne-Wallsend Colliery - Messrs. Tulip, Nixon & Jackson sell interest to Messrs. Robson & Spiers.
1867 Bulli Colliery - steam locos introduced.
1867 "Moselle" - Mar. stranded on beach at Bulli.
1867 "George" - May, 22, smashed on beach at Bulli.
1867 Bulli Bight - Part of Sandon Point (Bulli Colliery) jetty rebuilt - washed away June 21st. (4 men died), 40 wagons lost
1867 "Matador" - lost on Bulli beach - Sept. 7th.
1867 "Bright Planet" - lost on Bulli beach - Sept. 7th.
1868 Wollongong Harbour basin complete.
1868 "Barwon" commences coal trade to Sydney from Bulli jetty.

1870

1870 Towradgi or Balgownie tunnels reported upon - became Corrimal Colliery in 1883
1871 Messrs. Robson & Spiers retires, Osborne-Wallsend Colliery reverts to Osborne family.
1871 Bulli Jetty in use (fig.11 "History of Coal Mining in Australia")
1871 "Barwon" wrecked.
1873 Mt. Pleasant Colliery - installs self acting incline (fig 13 HCMA) from "Sydney Mail"
1873 SS "Bulli" - arrives at Bulli Jan. 22 (500 ton cap.) from Plymouth.
1875 Pioneer Kerosene Works - operations suspended.
1875 SS "Woonona" - arrives Dec. for Bulli - Melbourne - Adelaide trade
1876 SS "Merksworth" - arrives for Bulli - Melbourne - Adelaide trade
1876 Pioneer Kerosene Works - operations reopened
1876 North Bulli Coal & Iron Mining Co. formed to open mine on North Bulli Estate see 1902
1876 Osborne erects coke ovens near Wollongong using colliery slack coal.
1877 SS "Bulli" - lost July on voyage to Tasmania.

1878 Nth Bulli Coal & Iron Co. opens a mine near Coledale
1878 Coalcliff Colliery – commences - January - (Coalcliff Mining Co) 6 miles north of Bulli Pass – by Clarke & Robertson, Thomas Hale as manager.
1878 Pioneer Kerosene Works - operations closed
1878 Mt. Kembla - The Mt. Kembla Coal & Oil Co. Ltd. formed to work coal from the property producing kerosene shale.
1878 A "Nth Bulli Colliery" (aka Coledale Colliery) commences (lasted 25 yrs) replaced by B pit (Nth Bulli)
1878 Coal Cliff jetty built - washed away 5 months later
1878 Steam locos replace horses on tramways
1878 Mt. Keira Colliery - ventilation headings called; Pratts (horse access); Porters; Rings; McGoldricks.
1879 Mt. Keira Colliery - steam locos introduced (Keira No.1 & No.2)
1879 Coalcliff Colliery - installs Furnace Ventilation

1880

1880 Corrimal Colliery - opens at Mt. Corrimal ??
1880 Clifton Colliery - opens
1880 Coalcliff Colliery - Charles Harper replaces Thomas Hale as manager
1880 Mt. Kembla Mine - opens but short of capital - company then formed in England.
1881 Coal Cliff jetty rebuilt - washed away - mine closed for 4 months
1882 Bulli Colliery - tunnel into Balgownie seam
1882 Woonona Old Tunnel Colliery - opens.
1882 "Woniora" - Oct 28, founders off Botany Bay - loss of 17 lives
1882 Mt. Kembla Colliery - opens in 7' seam. (5 good seams of coal) - jetty built.
1883 Coalcliff Colliery - Charles Stuart replaces Charles Harper as manager
1883 Corrimal Colliery - opened by Thomas Bertram
1883 Mt. Keira Colliery - No.1 shaft sunk to #2 seam (102m) & fitted w/- steam driven Walker fan, 12' dia. 100,000 cfm '@ 3/4" water gauge, replacing 3 furnace shafts
1883 Mt. Kembla Colliery - steam locos introduced
1883 Mt. Kembla jetty - at Five Islands Point (Pt. Kembla) built - 6m water & 120t/hr.
1884 North Illawarra Coal Co. proposes to open 3 mines on Westmacott’s (between Excel No 2 & Nth Bulli)
1884 North Illawarra No. 1 Colliery - opens on site of old colliery started in 1878 by Nth Bulli Coal & Iron Co.
1884 South Cumberland Coal Mining Co. - formed to mine coal at Camp Ck.
1884 Long Point Jetty - Nth Illawarra Coal Co. - Austinmer built
1884 Corrimal Colliery - sold by Thomas Bertram to Southern Coal Co. ( incorporated in Eng.)
1884 Austinmer Colliery - steam locos introduced
1884 Mt. Pleasant Colliery - steam locos introduced
1884 Brokers Nose Colliery - proposed
1885 Brokers Nose Colliery - commences July (Brookers Nose Coal Co. sic)
1885 Bulli (Sth) - (Russell Vale Colliery site) commences
1886 Russell Vale Colliery - reopens as Sth Bulli Colliery under Thomas Saywell
1886 Nth Mt. Pleasant Mine - opens 2km north of original site.
1886 Bulli A & Bulli B - both working
1887 Bellambi jetty - Sth Bulli Colliery - built w/- 6.9m water loading @ 200 t/hr
1887 Sth Bulli Colliery - first coal shipped in November
1887 Bulli Colliery - 86 lives lost in explosion at 2.30 pm March 23rd.
1887 Bellambi Colliery - steam locos introduced
1887 Austinmer Colliery - (aka Westmacott’s) commenced
1887 Long Point Jetty - 8m water @ high tide - load @ 120t/hr - "Waratah" wrecked.
1887 Five Islands Point - Southern Coal Co. - jetty built.

1888 Bellambi Coal Co. established 
1888 Corrimal Colliery - taken over by Southern Coal Co. 
1888 The Mt. Pleasant Coal & Iron Mining Company Ltd. Established 
1888 Helensburgh Colliery - opened in March. 
1889 Bellambi - second jetty built 
1889 Model Colliery - opens Nov 9, on same site as Woonona (Hales) Old Tunnel Colliery - by Bellambi Coal Co.. 
1889 South Bulli Colliery - reopens (William Wilson, Manager) employing 270 men 
1889 Woonona Colliery - steam locos introduced 
1889 Mt. Pleasant Coke Ovens - opens in Nth Wollongong. (next to railway bridge) 
1889 Coalcliff Colliery - virtually closes 
1889 Brokers Nose Colliery - closes, Sth Bulli & Brokers Nose Co. combine- renames mine " Corrimal Colliery" 

 

1890

1890 Corrimal Colliery - purchased by Southern Coal Co.(Ill. Mercury. 7/1/90) 
1890 Sth Bulli Colliery - purchased by Ebenezer Vickery 
1890 Another Mt. Kembla Mine? - opened in 1887 ( Sthn Coal Co.) - closes 
1890 Ocean View Colliery - opened by Illawarra Harbour & Land Corp. sth of Mt. Kembla. Connected to the western shore of Lake Illawarra by 10.8km railway - rail crossing opened in 1895 but closed in 1902 - jetty idea abandoned due to problems dredging lake. Decision then made to make Pt. Kembla coal loading point. 
1891 Corrimal Colliery - taken over by Corrimal-Balgownie Collieries (subsequently Corrimal Coal & Coke Pty Ltd.) 
1891 Sth Bulli Colliery - small explosion kills 1 man 
1891 South Clifton Colliery - opens 
1892 Coalcliff Colliery - purchased by Ebenezer Vickery & John Keir Clark 
1892 South Clifton Colliery - opens 
1892 Mt. Kembla Colliery - 12.5 km railway to Red Point (Pt. Kembla) 
1893 Tongarra Colliery - started by William Brownlee (@ 800' asl) Aug. - 40' into "the purest & best gas coal some 22' thick." 
1893 SS "Woonona" - wrecked at Fitzroy River 
1895 Original Austinmer Colliery - closed 
1896 Unanderra Coke Works (Southern Coal Co.) closes. 
1898 Wiley Mine - (fig. 66 "History of Coal Mining in Australia") Showing mine in use. 
1898 A more northerly mine to Austinmer Colliery opened of smaller size 
1898 The Mt. Pleasant Coal & Iron Mining Co. formed (public company) 
1898 Nth Illawarra Colliery - closes 
1898 Bellambi's second jetty destroyed with loss of collier - abandoned. 
1898 Long Point Jetty - destroyed 
1899 Bulli Pass Colliery - (1/2 coke; 1/2 coal) v. little work carried out. Became part of Excelsior Colliery 
1899 Unanderra Coke Works (Southern Coal Co.) reopens. 
1899 Coalcliff Colliery - furnace ventilation ceases 
1899 Mt. Keira Colliery - 8th Nov - purchased by Ebenezer Vickery & Sons from Osborne family 
1899 Mt. Keira Colliery - 8th Dec - John McGeachie appointed manager. 

 

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