New Ranger continues family legacy at State Coal Mine
Friday 31 July, 2026
A family connection stretching back to the State Coal Mine's early days has come full circle, with new Parks Victoria Ranger Ty Hamilton bringing traditional trade skills and fresh enthusiasm to one of South Gippsland's most important sites.
'Every day it's different here. My colleagues, the volunteers and everyone in between make this site what it is today, and I'm stoked to be a part of it,' Ty Hamilton said.
Wonthaggi State Coal Mine has welcomed new ranger Ty Hamilton, who joins Parks Victoria as part of a statewide recruitment of 65 new rangers to strengthen on ground park management. Ty is continuing a family connection to the site that spans three generations.
'My family wouldn't be down here if it wasn't for my great, great grandparents who moved to Wonthaggi after the opening of the State Coal Mine during its tent town era', Ty said.
As a Parks Victoria Ranger, Ty is following in the footsteps of both his great grandfather, Gordan ‘Napper’ Hamilton, who worked as a coal miner, and grandfather Bob Hamilton who completed his boiler maker and welder apprenticeship at the State Coal Mine Brace 5 workshops.
The tokens aren't going to hammer themselves! Ty is hard at work reinstating by-gone mine tech. Credit: Parks Victoria
Ty is well positioned to continue his family tradition of contributing practical skills to the restoration and conservation of the site.
'I am a cabinet-maker by trade and have worked with Bass Coast Landcare and later Waratah Conservation, where I really found my love for bush regeneration'.
Ty’s trade skills have recently been put to good use re-establishing the traditional process of punching miners' tokens.
'These tokens were traditionally used as a simple clock-in, clock-out system for workers,' Ty explains.
'You would go to the token room at the start of your shift, grab your token off the wall and head out to your jobsite for the day. If your token wasn't back on the board at the end of shift, they would have to send a search and rescue team out to try and find you. Considering there are more than 4800km of tunnel networks beneath Wonthaggi it was pretty easy to get lost, injured or stuck in these dangerous mines.'
Ty hard at it in the workshop. Credit: Parks Victoria
A relic from time gone, the punch-in tokens are being reinstated by Ty. Credit: Parks Victoria
Outside work, Ty likes to keep busy, whether he’s out in the bush or working on projects at home.
“I'm currently in the middle of building my own sound system, I've always been fascinated by sound and especially bass, the stuff that makes your eyes shake or your clothes vibrate.”
Ty describes his process as “relatively simple mathematics and box building”, skills that sit comfortably alongside the hands-on role of the State Coal Mine.
With an increasing appetite for off-screen engagement, community connection and sustainable solutions to complex global problems, the local team and community are perfectly positioned to harness the power of inter-generational and multi-cultural skill sharing.
Above ground, Ty is working with Parks Victoria staff and volunteers of the Friends of the State Coal Mine, to revegetate key areas using plants donated by the Wonthaggi Seed Bank and Nursery.
With the long-held legacy of community, volunteer commitment and the new injection of resources and energy, the future is in good hands as the Wonthaggi State Coal Mine enters a new era for this vital pocket of South Gippsland.
For him, it is more than a workplace, it's a part of his family's story, and now he is helping shape its next chapter.
“I'm really excited to transform the bush out the back into something really special,” Ty said. “The on-site Wonthaggi Native Seed Bank donate a few hundred plants each year to make this possible.”
“In time, piece by piece I hope to create a showcase of native bush and possibly create the only Parks Victoria site south-east of Melbourne that's free of Sweet Pittosporum.”
As restoration works continue and volunteers keep sharing their knowledge with new generation, Ty believes the State Coal Mine has an exciting future.