The History & Coal Resources of Newcastle from 1830 - 1889

from a series of articles published in the Newcastle Morning Herald covering the period 26th September, 1889 to 21st November, 1889

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THE NEWCASTLE COLLIERIES
THEIR RISE AND PROGRESS

The Greta Coalmining Company
[No VII]

(By Atramentous)

Published 29th October, 1889
The Greta coalmining Company was formed some two years ago, for the purpose of working the coal from a large estate, then the property of the Hon. E. Vickery, MLC, of Sydney. The capital of the company is £150,000, in 150,000 shares of £1 each. The Greta stock is at present at a high premium. In 1896 they purchased the estate which consists of 2136 acres, and also secured another 2000 acres of coal bearing land at Leaconfield, some 2½ miles from Greta.

Properly speaking, the Greta mines cannot come under the heading of "Newcastle collieries" as they are situated on the Great Northern railway, some thirty two miles from the port of Newcastle. Soon after Mr Vickers proved the existence of the Greta seam, he had a shaft put down on his property which is now known as B Pit. It is 450 feet deep, and 15ft in diameter, the seam being over 20 feet in thickness. When sinking the pit a great number of carboniferous fossil fauna, such as spirifera, productera, conularia, orthoceras, and very large inocerami were found, and a small patch of rich petroleum oil cannel coal also met with. The township of Greta at that time only consisted of a few huts, but today is is a thriving place with a population of over 2000 persons. One of the first shafts put down on the Vickery Estate caught fire some years ago, and it is still burning, in spite of the efforts which have been made to stay its progress. The shaft was filled up, but a small cloud of smoke continually issues from the spot.

At the present time there is only one working or drawing shaft on the first leasehold, the old C pit having some months ago been converted into an air shaft. This mining or circular pit is within a few yards of the Government railway and about a quarter of a mile from the centre of the town, and is the one above referred to as sunk by Mr Vickery. It is fitted with all the latest appliances lifting and dispatching large quantities of coal the winding being accomplished by a pair of engines which have an indicated power equal to 117 horses. As the shaft is 15ft in diameter, the cages are made to bring up two skips at one time. The coal, as it reaches the surface, is tipped over four inclined screens, which are on the parallel iron bar system so common in the district, on to the steel hopper waggons beneath. The small coal which passes through the screens falls into a large hopper, from which it is raised by an endless belt carrying buckets, to a washing machine about 20ft above. There the dirty matter in the coal is separated, and thrown on one side while the cleansed articles is heaped on the other, the one being sent away as "washed nuts" and the other given away as ballast. This system of treating the small coal is unique in this district, and, so far as we are aware, does not obtain any where else in the colonies.

The underground hauling at the Greta Colliery is very efficient, being accomplished by an endless wire rope, controlled by an engine on the surface. This system is identical to the cable trams, and, indeed, it may be stated that this and all other great improvements in land locomotion have emanated from coal mines. From the pit bottom there are two main engine planes - one going to the south level and the other to the north, the total hauling distance being nearly two miles. The skips of coal are drawn from the working places to the main ways by horses, and some idea of the extent of the workings may be gleaned from the fact that the total length of the headings actually in use is over 18 miles. The system of working the seam is the same as that in other collieries, namely, eight yard bords and five or six pillars.

Up to a few months ago the workings were ventilated by two furnaces, but as the mine developed they were found to be inadequate, so the C Pit which was formerly a working shaft, was turned into an upcast ventilator. Unlike the mines in which the Borehold seam is worked, the Greta Colliery is not entirely free from inflammable gas, so the question of ventilation is an all important one. When the supply of air from the furnaces was found insufficient the company erected a large Cuibal fan, 34ft in diameter and 12ft wide at the mouth of this shaft. This revolves about 35 revolutions per minute, and draws nearly 120,000 cubic feet of air through the workings per minute.

It is however capable of drawing much more, but at present the supply is ample. It is worked by an engine of 140 horse power, but to meet the contingency of a breakdown a duplicate one of equal power is erected alongside which could be attached to the crank of the fan before the air current could cease. In the event of an accident in the mine, this shaft, which by-the-way is nearly 500 feet deep, could be used by the miners if the escapes to the working pit were blocked, and for this purpose a winding plant is in readiness.

The workings are kept dry by a lift pump worked by steam erected at the receiving shaft, but the mines very free from water, as only some 50 gallons per minute are taken out.

The Greta seam, which has long been famed for the excellence of its mineral, lies very regular, is free from faults, and dips about 1 in 6 to the west. This dip, however is in some pieces much greater, and as an indication of this it may be mentioned that although the pit bottom is 500ft from the surface the workings at the far end are over 800ft. A section of seam near the outcrop shows a thickness of 26ft, including a clay band of 4ft 4in and other small ones. Half a mile under the hill, however, it decreased to 16ft 2in; but the mean thickness all through the workings is over 12ft. It is worked the full height, and contains four bands - three of clay and one of black shale. The seam exists under the whole of the estate, and so far not a single interruption has been met with.

Out on the Leaconfield Estate, about three miles north of the B pit, and situated on the side of a hill overlooking the valley of the Hunter, the company have driven two parallel tunnels into the outcrop. The seam here is only 6ft 6in in thickness, but what it lacks in quantity it makes up in quality, as an analysis of the coal proves it to be equal to the best Welsh, which it closely resembles. At present these tunnels are in for a distance of 800ft, but no coal will be drawn until they are down 1500ft. To reach this point, relays of miners are working night and day, and in the meantime preparations are being made to erect powerful hauling engines, screens, and other machinery capable of drawing 1000 tons of round coal in eight hours. A light narrow line of railway now connects Leaconfield and the Greta Colliery.

At the Greta Colliery proper the company are making preparations to increase the present output to 1000 tons per diem. and for this purpose are erecting a new pit-top pulley frame 50 feet in height, having wheels 12 feet in diameter. A new coal-washer is being fitted up which will not only cleanse the small coal but discharge into the furnaces all unsaleable mineral. The hauling plant is being extended, and the cages are to carry four skips instead of two as at present. When these arrangements are carried out the company will employ nearly 1000 men, and hope to excel the largest collieries in the district.

At present the output is between 700 and 800 tons per diem; and for the present year the company expect a total of over 200,000 tons. There are at present 350 men and boys employed below ground and about 90 on the surface; but this amount will shortly be greatly increased. The amount raised in 1886 was 98,282 tons; in 1887, 92,733 tons; and last year the record stood at 99,109 tons, despite the strike, which closed the colliery for three months.

The great drawback to the development of this colliery in the past has been the tremendous cost of haulage to the port of Newcastle, which is 32 miles distant. It costs the company fully one shilling more per ton to ship their coal than it does the Newcastle collieries, but despite this it can more than hold its own in the market. At the present time the major portion of the product goes to foreign countries, where it is well known and obtains the highest prices. It has long been used on the Californian and Japanese railways, while for gas purposes the name of Greta coal has became famous everywhere. No doubt, with the increased output, the company will be in a position to supply the intercolonial market, which, so far, has obtained very little of the mineral.

An Analysis of the coal gives the following splendid results: Moisture 2.25 per cent; volatile hydro-carbons 39.21; fixed carbons 54.41; ash (buff coloured) 2.72; sulphur 1.41; specific gravity 1.287; while it produces 57.13 per cent of coke, which is the lowest of any coal in the district. For gas-making a high percentage of hydrocarbons is, of course, invaluable, but the quantity of ash is of great importance, as it represents so much useless matter which entails expense in removing as well as impeding free combustion. So far as is yet known the Greta seam contains a less percentage of ash than any coal in the district.

The colliery is a non-associated one, and is at present under the charge of Professor Benton, an eminent mining engineer, who was lately engaged by the company in England. A large amount of the success of the colliery is due to Dr James R Robertson, who took the management of the mine some seven years ago, when it was in anything but a flourishing condition, and year by year increased its output until it was brought to the front rank. Mr. George Bewick, jun, is the shipping manager, the local office being in Scott Street.