Kurri Kurri historian Brian Andrews is undertaking the mammoth task of listing every mine to operate in the state, starting with the first coal mine in Newcastle in 1804.

Enlisted by Coal Services Pty Ltd, formerly the Joint Coal Board, Mr Andrews has so far identified 1609 mines covering the coal rich Hunter, Illawarra, and a spattering in Gunnedah and the Clarence valley.

He estimates there are another 100 to go.

It will be the first time a comprehensive database of all the state’s coal mines has been assembled.

“It will be the history of all the mines in one place,” Mr Andrews said.

“You’ll be able to look up the name of the mine, when it opened and when it closed, who owned it, and any interesting facts about it.”

Mr Andrews began his research at the Kurri Kurri Museum, but has also clocked up plenty of hours in the Department of Primary Resources library at Maitland.

The project must be finished by the end of the year.

“It’s painstaking, but we’re getting there,” he said.

“The hardest part is the modern era.

“In the convict days, there were a lot of records. As time went on, the government records got more and more abbreviated.

“It’s so hard to find the new mines and there are so many of them.”

Historic Richmond Main, near Kurri Kurri, is an important addition to the list.

It still holds the record for the most coal hauled out in a single shift after it closed in 1967.

The site now operates as a museum open to the public on the first three Sundays of the month, and each Sunday in the school holidays.