What stories do these slopes conceal? This is Mount Pleasant. It is a residential suburb on the Illawarra escarpment. It sits a short distance from Wollongong’s center.
Before European settlement, Aboriginal people lived here. They lived in small family groups. These groups had complicated social structures. They kept close ties to specific areas. Today’s Traditional Custodians descend from these original inhabitants. They maintain spiritual and cultural ties to the land.
An early resident named John Dingwall owned land here. He purchased it from John Buckland’s large estate Balgownie. Dingwall named it Mount Pleasant. The village of Mount Pleasant developed as a mining town. This happened after the Mount Pleasant Colliery opened in 1861.
Most houses were small. They had two rooms and a kitchen. These housed the miners and their families. Mount Pleasant was even nicknamed Babytown. This was because of the many large families living here.
Part of the area was known as Cramsville. This lasted from the early 1860s until 1889. James Cram owned and subdivided land here. He rented small cottages to local miners.
John Dingwall was born in Scotland in 1801. He was a stone mason. Dingwall immigrated to Australia in 1838. He quickly bought land from the Balgownie Estate. Dingwall also built the first St Michael’s Anglican Church in Wollongong.
James Cram purchased 60 acres from the Balgownie estate around 1839. He became one of the first miners at Mount Keira Mine in 1857. When the Mount Pleasant Colliery opened in 1861 housing was needed. Cram subdivided his land. He built rental cottages.
Patrick Lahiff and Benjamin Fawcett opened the Mount Pleasant Colliery in 1861. It boosted the area. The mine created a need for housing. This drove the subdivision of larger properties. It also spurred building construction for rental. The town sprang up around the mine. A second Mount Pleasant Mine opened in 1886. It was located 2.5 kilometers north of the first mine.
In 1862, a tramroad was built. It ran from the Mount Pleasant Colliery to the harbor. This ensured the company’s success. Initially, oxen pulled sleds down the mountain’s steep slopes. Then, they transferred the coal to carts. These carts delivered coal to customers.
The Illawarra Coal Company lodged a bill in parliament. It was called the Mount Pleasant Tramroad Act. This allowed them to build the tramway across private land.
Roads leading to Mount Pleasant were dangerous. They were steep and often in disrepair. Mount Keira Road accessed Mount Pleasant. It was described as a winding path around the sea-face of the mount. Convict labor first constructed this road in 1835-1836.
The natural environment features tall open eucalypt forests. Patches of rainforest grow in sheltered spots. Mining significantly impacted the environment. Every mine meant a hole punched in the forest.
Today, environmental threats exist. Feral animals heavily impact the area. Deer pose a risk to motorists. They destroy the fragile environment. Foxes and feral cats are also threats. Introduced flora such as lantana damages biodiversity. Weed management is done regularly.
Mount Pleasant Colliery ceased production in 1933. BHP took over the colliery in 1937. It was then named Keira Pleasant Tunnels. The colliery closed and was sealed in 1955.
Mount Pleasant. A place shaped by mining and nature. A place with stories etched into its very soil.