Bunbal: Working in the Timber Industry

Vivienne Mason recounts her family’s history, starting with her great-grandparents, Emily and Christie, who had a large family of 17 children, mostly boys. The boys, including Viv’s grandmother, grew up working in the timber mills along the Far South Coast. The family moved to Sydney when Viv’s mother was three years old due to her kidney disease, which required hospitalization at Prince Henry.

She remembers the amazing people who worked in the mill, often doing difficult work by hand before the advent of big machinery. The timber mill work was prevalent amongst Aboriginal men, and was dangerous work, leading to many men losing fingers or hands. For many, like Viv’s husband, Ronnie, who also worked in the timber industry cutting timber and mine props, it was a lifetime job due to the reliability for workers.

Viv also recalls the small, close-knit town atmosphere at the mill at Stoney Creek, where all the families were related. This community dispersed when the mill closed down, leaving a “little sad spot on the highway.”