Becoming A City: Mining

While the railways were expanding, the mining industry was bracing itself for problems. In the lead-up to Federation, coal was a constantly recurring theme in Ipswich. Hard as it was for locals to admit, Ipswich coal was of slightly lower quality than coal from Newcastle and was more expensive to produce. However, it was protected by the colonial system. Each colony imposed tariffs on imports and had customs houses protecting its borders and its ports, so Ipswich coal was able to remain reasonably competitive and find local markets.

When Federation was proposed, it meant that Australia would become a single commonwealth, and tariffs would be abolished. What would happen to Ipswich coal then, and the hundreds of families who depended on mining for their living? The rural communities around Ipswich were also concerned about effects on their own produce and the region voted “No” in the Federation referendum in 1899. The fears of the miners were justified, although Federation was only partly to blame. Sales of Ipswich coal fell and by 1904, the industry was looking seriously at measures to assure its future. [1]

In 1904, Ipswich was described as “the principal coalfield in the State”, producing 80% of Queensland’s total output and employing 1002 of its 1336 miners. Production in that year was at a record high but this was not cause for jubilation: in spite of a world-wide increase in demand, Queensland was finding it hard to sell its coal and the price had fallen by about 30% over the previous 10 years. Mines began to work at less than full capacity and many miners were employed only three or four days a week.

One problem was that Queensland’s coal market was almost entirely within the state. It could not compete with southern mines in other parts of Australia, and also found that it could not “rush into competition” with them for foreign markets. It was particularly galling to note that ships from Newcastle were travelling 1000km to North Queensland to sell coal, even though the local product was cheaper. Another problem was that Queensland’s capacity was limited and when big orders came unexpectedly, it sometimes could not fill them. A ship which came in to Brisbane in 1900 required 4000 tonnes of coal immediately, but could only obtain half that amount.

Federation was expected to have a further effect when duties on imports into Queensland were removed, making the interstate product more competitive. However in the end, other factors proved to be more significant including the severe drought of 1902-03 which depressed many local industries. A deputation of Ipswich colliery owners approached the Government to look for ways to turn this situation around.

A branch railway line had been built in the 1880s to allow West Moreton coal to be delivered directly to the South Brisbane wharves. However a survey in 1904 showed that in the previous five years, 100 coal-fired ships had left for other ports such as Newcastle without taking on any coal in Queensland. A major cause was that loading facilities were poor. The government improved these facilities and provided incentives for coal export. It also provided discounts to mines which stored two days output ready beside the railway line, allowing a speedier turnaround of coal trains. The measures were so successful that by 1909, half of Queensland’s coal was sold as bunker fuel or cargo. The other major purchaser was the railways which consistently bought one third of the state’s production throughout the steam train era. [2]