THE COAL LOADER

HISTORY

The story of the Coal Loader is interwoven with the age of steam. Early steamships were coaled (or bunkered) from lighters moored against them in the harbour or by lines of stevedores carrying bags of coal on their shoulders. As steamships ships grew larger, so did their need for coal and the size of their bunkers. By the First World War there was a perceived need for a mechanised facility for bunkering ships.

The facility proposed at Balls Head involved a large storage platform, fed by two gantry cranes which could move from one end to the other. These used grab buckets to empty coal from the supply ships (known as 60 Milers as they carried coal down from Newcastle or Catherine Hill Bay, and up from Port Kembla) onto the storage platform. This platform had 4 tunnels under its length, fed by chutes from the platform. The skips operated on a cable-hauled railway system that ran as a continuous loop through the two western-most tunnels and then out onto the finger wharf in Balls Head Bay, where they loaded waiting steamers.

The local response to the proposal was hostile, with many decrying the desecration of a piece of unspoiled headland. Even Henry Lawson, one of our best known balladeers, and a local resident, got into the fight, writing:

Henry Lawson Poem “The Sacrifice of Ball’s Head”

Despite his and other protests, the construction went ahead, with the loader opening soon after the end of World War I. With the demise of coal as a fuel for shipping, the Coal Loader fell into disuse after the Second World War. However, when Australia started to export coal, the Loader was upgraded by a high speed conveyor in the mid 1970s and put back into service until large, purpose built export terminals were built at Newcastle. The terminal exported its last coal in 1992.

Construction around 1917                                  Early operation with gantries in operation

Ships bunkering at the Coal Loader jetty. Delivery skips can be seen

The Coal Loader was destined for demolition until the local community united once more and won the support of North Sydney Council, and ultimately the State and Federal Governments, with the Genia McCaffery Sustainability Centre being officially opened (with the cutting of 3 ribbons of course) in 20?? With the buildings back in use (including the old power house now being repurposed as a home for the SES, the next task was to bring the main platform and the tunnels beneath, back to life instead of being used as a Council depot. This stage of revitalisation was officially completed with the opening in 2018.

ENVIRONMENT

The Coal Loader was built on an area of unspoilt bushland, to the chagrin of Henry Lawson and others. Today it has been returned to the people and is a monument to an epoch of civilization built on coal, in this case, used for steamships.

The current Coal Loader has been reconceived with a strong environmental theme. It contains the following important aspects:

  • The easternmost tunnel is untouched and is the home (at least some of the time) for microbats.
  • The second tunnel houses water tanks which store water sourced from rain falling on the platform. It is used for watering the new green areas on the platform itself
  • The third tunnel is open to the public, showcasing the monumental scale of the works
  • The fourth tunnel, closest to the water, is also open to the public for planned events including art  shows and the like. As part of this area the formerly closed rooms between the tunnel and the water have been interconnected and are also available as display spaces.
  • Atop the platform there are the coal chutes to be seen in a large pattern. These used to funnel coal down onto skips which ferried it out along the jetty to fill the bunkers of steamships.

Glass interpretive panels on the Coal Loader

Former Manly Ferry Baragoola and former lighthouse support ship SS Cape Don

FACILITIES

The park has large walking areas, lift access and great views to the west as well as good interpretive signage. Toilets are available nearby at the Sustainability Centre.

A nice website with history and a video giving a sense of the area is available here.

VIRTUAL REALITY

A 2021 initiative of North Sydney Council is a virtual reality app for smartphones and tablets which allows users to experience the history and nature of the site in a totally new way. You can load the app using the QR code below.

GETTING THERE

The Coal Loader is accessible from Waverton Station and the Waverton bus stop on Route 265. It is also on the foreshore walk around Sydney Harbour. By car, head for Balls Head and find a parking spot.