WEST AUSTRALIANA –
It documents the massive, semi-nomadic logging operations that fueled the Goldfields’ booming mining industry and power plants south of Kalgoorlie.
The book details the life and hardships of the woodcutters, many of whom were Southern European immigrants.
- The Operation: The woodlines provided vital cheap energy to the Kalgoorlie Power Station, steam-driven heavy machinery, and underground gold mines.
- The Camps: Because woodcutters continuously clear-felled surrounding woodlands, the entire Main Camp had to be relocated to new territories when an area was “cut out”. Workers lived in basic, hessian-walled camps with earthen floors, enduring extreme conditions.
- The Demise: Operations eventually ceased in the early 1960s. Mines and power stations transitioned to coal-powered boilers and diesel generators, heavily reducing the demand for cordwood.
- The Toll: Over its lifespan, the woodline companies clear-felled millions of hectares of goldfields woodlands, severely altering the landscape.
- First Edition.