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Home » Themes » Disaster » Industrial
Ipswich & Rosewood Coalminers MemorialPrint Page 
The monument commemorates the 186 miners who lost their lives while digging for coal in the Ipswich and Rosewood mines. It features two cement pylons, representing a stratigraphic image of the Ipswich and Rosewood coalfields, placed in front of a 20 metre bronze wall bearing the names of those miners lost.
The wall displays the details of each man and boy who was killed whilst working in a mine in the Ipswich Rosewood mining region. Each person is represented by a round 'torch hole' cut through the wall and their name, age, location of incident and date of passing are etched alongside. The holes are spread along the wall chronologically from left to right which results in a full depiction of the scale of lives lost during the Ipswich Rosewood coalmining era.
The 'torch holes' are backlit to represent the ubiquitous miner's lamp and the light colour changes subtly at various stages along the wall to represent the changes in technology and lighting sources used for torches over time. Also the lower part of the metal wall is etched with images of topographic sections of the region. The wall represents both the personal details of the miners and the geological information of the regions in which they were lost. At the end of the metal wall is a monolithic concrete blade which is lightly etched with an image of St Barbara. St Barbara is the patron saint of mining.
Location
| Address: | Chermside & Griffith Roads, Limestone Park, Ipswich, 4305 |
|---|---|
| State: | QLD |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -27.622817 Long: 152.769622 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
|---|---|
| Monument Theme: | Disaster |
| Sub-Theme: | Industrial |
| Designer: | Liam Proberts (Bureau & Proberts ) |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Saturday 17th October, 2015 |
|---|
Ipswich and Rosewood Coalminers Memorial
A history of Ipswich coal mining
The history of coalmining in Ipswich stretches back to 1843, when the first mines were established in the area. The coalmining industry was the primary employer for many families in Ipswich throughout the late 19th and 20th centuries, providing stability and prosperity for many. It was an industry critical to the establishment and growth of the area, and helped to shape today`s City of Ipswich.
Lighting the way
Over the years, the methods used to mine coal evolved and grew as new technology was made available. A defining feature of this growth was the evolution of the lighting methods used to illuminate the often narrow and confined working conditions far below ground.
Until the 1920`s, tallow lamps were used, emitting a dim yellow light from an open flame. In 1924, these were exchanged for the carbide light, which burned with a blue open flame. During the late 1940`s this again developed with the replacement of open-flame light sources with the much safer electric headlamp, which glowed a bright white in the darkness. These lights were introduced to the Ipswich region in 1946, with legislation passed in 1949 to make this industry standard.
Honouring our heritage
The Ipswich and Rosewood Coalminers Memorial honours the contribution of coalmining to the Ipswich community, and commemorates the lives that were lost whilst working in what were hazardous and difficult conditions. Early records and research show that a total of 186 lives have been lost in the search for coal in Ipswich since the birth of the industry in 1943. The Ipswich and Rosewood Coalminers Memorial commemorates each of these individuals, as well as the geological formation of the area in which they were lost. Beside each name is a light, the colour of which signifies the type of lamp that illuminated their work as they toiled beneath the earth.
Mines and miners
Two columns adorn the memorial, representative of the Ipswich and Rosewood coal fields, respectively. The different layers of each are based on the geological layers in representative ground core samples from both regions. The black layers signifying coal seams are illuminated at night to highlight their significance, The column representing Rosewood rests on a plinth measuring 1.2m high and 3.1m wide, demonstrating to future generations the average size of mines in that area, and providing an insight into the cramped conditions that early coalminers experienced. The column representing Ipswich stands 10 metres tall to demonstrate the thickness of the Bluff Seam, which was mined extensively throughout the field. The column also shows, in geological perspective, the Aberdare, Bluff, Four Feet , and Bergin Seams.
Ipswich and Rosewood Coalminers Memorial
Official dedication of memorial wall
Saturday 17 October 2015 by
Jennifer Howard MP Member for Ipswich
Mayor Paul Pisasale City of Ipswich Patron
Trustees Ipswich and Rosewood Coalminers Memorial
B . D. Evans OAM (Chairman)
P. W. Casos (Deputy Chairman)
D. J. Walker (Secretary / Treasurer)
C. J. King
H. H. W. Taylor
Architect
Bureau Proberts
Dedicated by the Rev. Kath Hobson
