Mystery Miners

There are a number of opal miners from the early years of Lightning Ridge that we just don’t know a great deal about! If you have more information about any of the miners below, please get in contact with us — we would love to learn more.

O’Connor, Dan

Dan O’Connor is described in Stuart Lloyd’s The Lightning Ridge Book as Charlie Nettleton’s offsider when he sank his first mineshaft. Lloyd appears to be the only source of information for O’Connor, and we have not managed to connect his name with anyone who passed through the Lightning Ridge area in 1902.

White, Stephen Thomas

Stephen Thomas White was born 5 May 1846 to Michael and Margaret White. He married Annie Hinchcliffe in 1901. White was a miner at Lightning Ridge, likely in the 1920s. We have one photograph of Stephen White, and a photograph of his daughter, Violet. He died 3 September 1924 and is buried at Walgett.

Old Miners, 1905

This photograph from the State Library of New South Wales is from 1905 shows eight miners resting on the opal fields. The State Library caption identifies the sitting miners, from right to left, as Ernie Newton, F. Bush, J. McKenzie, Jack Bush and Lou Dillan. The standing miner and two miners on the left are unknown. We have very little information on any of these men, except for J. McKenzie who signed a petition for mail service at Wallangulla in 1905.

Article: Research by Russell Gawthorpe and Leisa Carney, edited by Russell Gawthorpe. LRHS research compiled by Len Cram and Barbara Moritz. Sources: The Lightning Ridge Book, Stuart Lloyd, 1967, pp. 88, 90; Find a Grave, record 220727804, retrieved 10 June 2026; New South Wales State Library, ref. 391350, BCP 03310.