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24 December 1924
COAL AT ULAN. BIG THINGS HOPED FOR.
MUDGEE, Monday.
An important mineral discovery has been made at Ulan. A five-foot workable seam of high-grade coal has been found, extending north about two and a half miles, and west from a granite ridge for about a mile, where it runs into shale country. There are upper measures of good coal twenty feet thick above this seam, which are capped by three feet of shale.
The area of the deposit is nearly as large as the Maitland coalfield, and the fact that the Sandy Hollow-Maryvale line will pass through the village almost at the foot of the mine, is sure to make Ulan a large industrial centre.
Twenty-three hundredweights of the coal have been tested at the local gas works. They yielded 12,600 feet of gas, or 11,050.7 cubic feet of gas per ton. The coke is also of excellent quality.
Five years ago the top seams were found by a retired police-sergeant, who did a lot of prospecting. A small syndicate was formed at Ulan, but lack of railway facilities, and the fact that the top seam was not a high-grade quality, led to the closing down of the venture. Not long ago Mr. T. H. Cunningham, an architect and mining engineer, who, with Mr. John Colreavy, of Kandos, discovered the big Boulder mine in West Australia, was sent to make a report on the shale deposits of Ulan. He happened upon the old shaft, and found that the floor contained fossils which led him to believe that good coal was below them. After piercing a foot of fossil band his hopes were realised, and he put men on to open the seam up. The coal, so far, is only an outcrop, and must improve as it gets away from the atmosphere and under the hill.
The seam will go down in mining history as the Cunningham seam, and the mine will be known as the G.C.L., these being the initials of the owners, Messrs. Gelling, Cunningham, and Luscombe.
They intend to interview the department, with a view to expediting the construction of the railway, as there is great scope for supplying gasworks and industrial enterprises in the west. Samples of the coal have been examined by experts, who were at first sceptical regarding reports of its quality. They declare they have seen none better.
- Ulan isn't unduly excited. The dogs still fight in its only street, and the citizens go to bed early. But they look forward to the time when coal trains will steam in and out of the station, and the little village will be a big municipality1
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29 December 1924
ULAN COAL FIND.
A 5ft seam of coal, extending over two miles north and one mile west, has been discovered at Ulan, 15 miles from Mudgee, by Mr. T. Cunningham, mining engineer. Our Mudgee correspondent reports that there is also good coal, 20ft thick, above the seam. A test of 2 tons 8cwt of the coal at the Mudgee Gas Company's works returned 12,600ft of gas and coke of good quality. A syndicate has secured a large area of country, and purposes early considerable operations. The Sandy Hollow MaryVale railway line, recently sanctioned by the Public Works Committee, will run within easy distance of the seam2
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28 November 1927
Ulan Coal A HUGE SEAM
HIGH QUALITY PRODUCT
Lying right on the surveyed route of the projected Maryvale-Sandy Hollow Railway, writes the Wellington Times, are huge deposits of coal. The average thickness of the seam is about 25ft, and the product is of high quality. Exhaustive tests have been made for gas, steam and coke properties. One ton of coal, tested at the Mudgee gasworks, produced 12,000 cubic feet of gas. Two big tunnels have been driven on to the coal, and several shafts have been sunk - one 400 yards ahead of the tunnel. It went through 40 feet of coal. Mr. Baddeley, Minister for Mines in the last Government, who made a personal inspection of the mine and is in possession of all the facts, says it will be a tremendous asset to the State. The saving to the Railway Department will be immense.
The coal mine is on Crown lands, and is being developed by a syndicate, under control of Dr. Kortum, Auburn, and Mr. T. Cunningham. The supply of coal is said to be inexhaustible3
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8 January 1931
ULAN COAL MINE INSTALLING MACHINERY
CATERING FOR LOCAL REQUIREMENTS
Mr. T. Cunningham, prospector and part proprietor of the Ulan coal mine, returned from Sydney this week. It is intended to equip the mine with an air compressor and coal-cutting machinery, and while further development work is being carried on, coal in any quantity required will be supplied to any address in Mudgee or the surrounding districts.
The superior quality of Ulan coal is too well known to require any 'boosting,' and as the arrangements made for transport will ensure prompt delivery, it should find a ready market. As a matter of fact, although Mr. Cunningham returned only a few days ago, he already has enough orders in hand to keep the mine busy for some considerable time to come4
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26 October 1933
DEATH
Mr. T. H. Cunningham
THE discoverer of the coal mine at Ulan, Mr. T. H. Cunningham, passed away in the Gulgong District Hospital on Sunday morning last.
Deceased, who was a native of St. Clair, County Cork, Ireland, was 60 years of age. He spent the greater part of his life in Western Australia, where he had a long mining career. He was one of the first prospectors at Great Boulder.
About nine years ago he was asked to report on the shale prospects at Wollar, and it was then that he discovered the bottom seam of coal near Ulan. A year or two later the coal mine was opened, the late Mr. Cunningham being part proprietor and manager. The history of the more or less successful establishment of the mine will some day be better known. It was a long and hard struggle, but Mr. Cunningham stuck to his task. The mine is quite close to the surveyed route of the proposed Sandy Hollow Gulgong-Maryvale railway line, and the construction of the line would have made a world of difference to the prospects at Ulan. Deceased was, naturally, a keen advocate for its construction, and at times was confident that his hopes would be realised. Some years ago the then Minister for Mines (Mr. J. M. Baddeley) made an inspection of the mine, as also did the present Minister for Lands (Mr. E. A. Buttenshaw) some time later in his capacity as Minister for Lands. Both Ministers were impressed with the "show," and Mr. Buttenshaw went so far as to say that the proposed line was second on the list of the lines which he believed should be constructed.
About five months ago the late Mr. Cunningham was admitted to the Gulgong Hospital, and was a patient for over four months. He was discharged about two weeks ago, to be readmitted some days later.
The funeral took place to the R.C. portion of the Gulgong cemetery on Monday afternoon, the Rev. Father Kelly officiating.
Mr. R. S. Bayliss carried out the arrangements.
A widow and two sons - William, of Ulan, and Walter, of Goulburn - are left to mourn their loss.
Mr. Leo Colreavy, of Perth, is a step-brother of deceased, Miss I. Colreavy (Perth) a step-sister, Mr. Jack Cunningham (Mt. Magnet, West Australia) is a brother, and Mrs. John McKellar (Epping) a sister.
Our sympathy is extended5
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