NSWMining
Scarborough
South Clifton took its new name from the pub.
1891South Clifton Colliery opens
WHAT STARTED IT
The South Clifton mine opened in 1891 on the steep strip between escarpment and sea, sending its coal away in government railway wagons. Miners settled around it and the Scarborough Hotel, which had been built a few years earlier.
WHAT SUSTAINED IT
To end confusion between Clifton and South Clifton stations, the railway renamed its station Scarborough in 1903, after the hotel. The colliery and its coke ovens kept the village busy into the 20th century, and a new school for Clifton and Scarborough opened in 1914.
TURNING POINTS
1886Alfred Broadhead builds the Scarborough Hotel.
1891The Illawarra Coal Company opens the South Clifton mine.
1903South Clifton station appears on the new timetable as Scarborough.
1914A new public school for Clifton and Scarborough is opened.
1983South Clifton colliery closes for good.
WHAT IT DOES NOW
A small cliffside village of about 300 people, with the 1880s hotel, a rock pool and views along the coast.