Steve Carson, Kevin Carson and their sister Colleen Mead grew up in Kiama and will share experiences of their formative years in the 1940s and 1950s as well as aspects of their forebears' involvement in Kiama quarrying. 

The talk will focus on the important Kiama quarrying industry that was so significant in the early history of the town.

John Carson was one of the first quarrymen in the region, starting the Pikes Hill Quarry (now the site of Kiama Leisure Centre) in 1865. His brother William started the Brown Street Quarry in 1876, and the Bombo Hill Quarry in 1890.

The basalt rock of the district was initially used for fences and buildings. Notable basalt buildings are the old Kiama Infants’ School at Black Beach, the Anglican Christ Church and the Kiama Courthouse. 

The local basalt was found to be very useful for construction due to its fine grain, hardness, resistance to weathering and ability to be crushed without disintegrating.

Kiama basalt was ideal for Sydney roads and the growing NSW colony, which required a good solid rock base and would be in strong demand for many years, creating employment and industry in the developing community.

Until steam crushers arrived in the 1880s, all quarrying work was done manually.

Smaller rocks were created by drilling a hole in the rock with chisel and hammer, explosive powder was put in the hole, and then blasted. The rock was then crushed using spalling hammers. Knapping hammers were used to smash the rock into smaller pieces, before loading onto drays and taken along Terralong Street to the harbour.

The rock was shovelled by hand into wheelbarrows and tipped into holds of the ships. The backbreaking work employed many men in the Kiama area, and hundreds of tons a week was shipped to Sydney. Kiama became the principal provider of blue metal for the colony from the 1880s. 

Details: Saturday, August 19 at 2.30pm, Kiama Family History Centre.