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William Fitzpatrick

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Jack Delaney

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Voices of the Hunter

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Maitland, NSW

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William Fitzpatrick (1915-2002) - District Councillor. Recorded 13 February 1991. Part 1/2.

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SummaryWILLIAM FITZPATRICK
Recorded 13 February 1991
Part 1/2

William V. Fitzpatrick, son of a coal-carter, was a District Councillor. He discusses Four Mile Creek Colliery.

00:15
About original pit of J & A Brown. Shamrock Creek – Jack and William describe the landscape from a map (portion 27). At this place in Four Mile Creek coal was first discovered by boys in Brown’s family who were swimming in the creek.

1:20
Brown’s second shaft got permission to prospect on Osmond’s Estate – prospecting by following the creek.

1:35
Worked Four Mile Ck. for around ten years 1:40 Brown's discovered coal c.1843

1:50
Brown originally lived at Stockton – Four brothers coal carting.

2:34
Newcastle-Hunter River Steamship Company - Eales

2:55
Recalls Eales finding coal at Morpeth – they couldn’t keep the water out of it. It was mudstone.

3:22
Location of coal outcrop, East Maitland – corner of Lawes Street and King Street they found coal and put in a shaft.

4:10
Location of Brown's coal mine – the Sellars’ estate in Portion 7 on the map. Shamrock Hill.

4:38
Location of Brown's residence at Four Mile Creek.

4:45
Brown mortgaged land from Dumaresq – he worked Crown Land into Sellars’ estate and bought 25 acres in 1857.

7:19
Hillington Colliery – Minmi.

7:30
Coal was carted on moonlit nights

7:48
Coal was stacked at Queens Wharf, Morpeth near the Butter Factory.

8:19
Austin Fitzpatrick ( James’ grandfather ) Grandfather carted coal to Morpeth supplying the hospital, sawmills and the waterworks at Oakhampton.) His grandfather sold coal from the railway station off wagons till 1916.

9:35
Grandfather was first rep. of Kurri Council. Grandfather was member of District Council till 1904.

9:58
Austin Lawrence Fitzpatrick (father).

10:08
William Vaughan Fitzpatrick named after his mother’s brother William and the Vaughan was her maiden name (Ellen Vaughan from County Clare). They married in St Augustine’s Church in Kilshenny.

11:00
Jim Walsh – engine driver at Ashtonfield also from County Clare.

11:50
The Mulbring/Buttai Road to the twin bridges. The reservoir. Portion 24. General Samuel Clift owned the property.

13:18
Henry Osmond also landowner. Donaldson and Stewart.

14:05
Turton's Brickworks. Baker's Brickworks A, B and C. (There’s a book on this)

14:30
William Farthing. Portion 22 and 23 of the map. Ashtonfield’s Colliery.

15:56
Recalls depth of coal basin – 150 ft. Farthing had Portion 26.

16:50
Paddy Scanlon – Shamrock Hill. There were meatworks there. Paddy passed it on to James’ father when he retired but wasn’t able to get a lease.

17:49
Billy Longworth. Billy bid for it £10 and a half crown.

18:10
? Fishburne – shafts went to 60ft.

19:30
Worked shaft using board and pillars. They produced 30 ton a day. Size of board & pillars – 6 yard boards and 9 yard pillars.

23:03
Thickness of coal seam was 13ft – he worked 9ft with bands. Timbers were taken from the property.

21:00
Coal was wound up by horse "gin". Used 1/4 tonne skips up the shaft.

21:47
Recalls skip being pulled into trolley. Recalls coal being tipped into screens 12 ft long. Turton’s brickyard took all their unscreened coal

22:23
Coal was carted using 3 tonne horse dray

22:31
Jim Lynch – coal carter who worked with James’ grandfather. Brannagan.

23:22
Pit was ventilated by shaft only

23:40
Recalls striking of old workings

24:06
Recalls how detected "black damp". Method of detecting "black damp" – the lamp would go out

24:30
Recalls sealing off older working

30:42
Reason for not working under creek – the creek would fall in.

31:06
Recalls driving of new tunnels

31:40
Used steam powered haulage engine – removed to Freeman’s Waterhole.

26:50
"Oakwood" – portion 24 on the map.

27:00
Harry Richards. Arthur Richards, Stan Richards. George Richards was their father.

37:30
Used "Worthington" steam pumps

33:43
Used steam driven 12 h.p. boiler – recycling the water to Pelton washery

34:44
Recollection of Fishburne pit which was burning alight for years.

35:06
Recalls water seeping into Bloomfield – it was full of sulphuric acid which killed everything when pumped into a creek. “It was the fire that brought the sulphuric acid out of the water”.

36:18
Ashtonfield Colliery

36:38
Location of store/boarding house – Shamrock Hill Road

37:15
The Metford Road that goes over the railway. Recollection of creek waterholes – the clay (for bricks) was about 6ft thick.

38:22
Reason for becoming brick maker.

38:30
Bill Way – James worked for him and in coal for 2 years.

40:09
Sold coal to local Maitland interests.

40:48
Early property owners from Maitland – Farthing and Brown and the Portions of 60/58 acres. Berry’s Creek. Purvis.

42:25
Abe Potts – Potts and Doolan used to own pits. Billy Potts from Ellalong. 573 McKendry family from Ellalong. John Fitzpatrick (son) at Lemington he drives the shovel. His daughter married a carpenter called Wilson. His brother and their families aren’t interested in their history.

45:36
Layout of Shamrock Hill.

46:35
J. & A. Brown

46:51
Eales' boiling down works – he put the tallow in hog’s heads and took them down to Duckenfield and loaded them at the wharf. When the Crimean War broke out they bought the lot off him at £80 a ton.

47:47
James Taylor - he worked Coal Hill and kept the Bond Store at Morpeth.

48:15
Jim Lynch.

Tape duration: 48:52SubjectFour Mile Creek Colliery (N.S.W.)Coal mines and mining -- New South Wales -- HistoryFour Mile Creek CollieryFitzpatrick, William Vaughan, 1915-2002PersonJack DelaneyCreatorFitzpatrick, William Vaughan, 1915-2002Delaney, Jack, 1919-2010CollectionVoices of the HunterPlaceMaitland, NSWDate Created13th February 1991Identifier438B

438B_WilliamFitzpatrick.ed.mp3

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