It's the day when one protesting miner was killed and 45 others wounded as police opened fire on a crowd of 5000 in what would be infamously referred to as the Rothbury Riot.

It came as Hunter Valley miners, who had been locked out of work for nine months after refusing to accept a pay cut, stormed the gate the day before scab labour was due to start work.

The government had called in 70 NSW police officers from outside Newcastle - mostly Sydney - to protect the colliery and allow the entry of non-union labour.

The day was December 16, 1929. And to mark the occasion 90 years later, North Rothbury Tidy Town and the CFMEU (Construction, Forest, Mining & Energy Union) have combined to produce a three-act re-enactment and memorial service this Sunday at the site of the riot.

Mike Lowing, president of North Rothbury Tidy Towns, said he expects a big crowd for the event.

"It's such an historic event in Australian industrial relations history, but many people are not aware not only that it happened, but that it happened right on our doorstep," he said.

"The suffering those miners and their families went through was unbelievable. They were starving - think about it, no wages for nine months - and it coincided with the start of the Great Depression.

"The effects of that day were felt for years later. It's such a sad, sad story."

Mr Lowing, who lives at North Rothbury about a block from the scene of the riot, admits to being "a bit of an amateur historian" and said it's hard to determine which side started the riot and shooting.

"The government of the day, the Bavin conservative government, sided with the mine owners against the workers," he said. "I liken it to the Eureka Stockade, which is obviously a much bigger event in Australia's history.

"But here you have those same elements, with the battling worker uniting against a much more powerful force that had the backing of the government and police."

The miner killed in 1929 was 29-year-old Norman Brown.

Among the issues that had led to the protest was the condition from the mine owners that miners accept: a wage reduction of 12.5 per cent on the contract rates, one shilling ($0.10) a day on the 'day wage' rate.

Press reports from the coronial inquiry found police fired 123 rounds to deter miners. It was also revealed 100 rifles and 5000 rounds of ammunition were issued.

Mr Lowing said the costs of the event is being met by the CFMEU, and that he will have traffic controllers on hand, as well as local guides to chaperone the elderly.

The event will start at 3pm Sunday at Ayrfield Miners Memorial Park on Wine Country Drive, with twilight markets to follow.