1St Day Without Coal

[tatsblisters 9,915]

 

 

 

 

 

My maternal grandfather (never met him) was killed when the seam he was working in collapsed in a colliery near Glasgow.

At one time I was doing a bit of researching the family tree and got quite caught up in the mining industry.

It's never ceased to amaze me how people get all misty eyed and nostalgic when talking about the pits, a hellish way to have to earn a living and myself, well you couldn't pay me enough to set foot down a mine.

All the talk of coal still there, reopening mines etc, who in their right mind would want to bring it to the surface?.

 

You'd be suprised how many ex miners would go back down the pits in an instant, for people who've never worked underground its hard to explain, a lot comes down to conditioning most of us went down the pits straight from school, I was underground at 16 working on my the coalface at 18, some people who came into the pits after working other jobs never quite took to it like those of us who knew no better

 

working on a tailgate rip were the top was for ever coming in.

 

 

Nightmare of a job mate, last going off I was working on "Gob headings", tunnels going through old coalface workings we'd have holes so high above the steel a cap lamp wouldnt see the top, cant say I miss those 1s.

 

Seen a mate nearly get killed wile chocking one up above the ring how he escaped with just a gash under his chin after a large lump came crashing down was a fekin miricale I realised then the job did not pay enough and realy was not for me no way at 25 year old did I want to meet my maker this way feck that.lol

 

 

Aye chocking, or cogging as we called it wasnt a job for the faint hearted, cant imagine an eighteen year old in this day and age taking to it, not the vast majority anyway

 

Probably so I went down against my parents wishes and tbh I would not want any of my grandsons going down if the pits were still open.

[Gin 498]

The Seeker

It says

 

Friday afternoon, half-past two. -- Edward Armstrong, Thomas Gledson, John Hardie, Thomas Bell and others took extremely ill. We had also a prayer meeting at a quarter to two, when Tibbs, H. Sharp, J. Campbell, H. Gibson, and William Palmer.. (The sentence is incomplete). Tibbs exhorted to us again, and Sharp also.

[Gin 498]

I've held the personal belongings, of James Amour at Woodhorn Colliery museum. His bait-bag still containing corn they had been eating. His tin containing his minute candles, the glass plate photo of him. It was a very sad feeling.

[JDHUNTING 1,817]

My maternal grandfather (never met him) was killed when the seam he was working in collapsed in a colliery near Glasgow.

At one time I was doing a bit of researching the family tree and got quite caught up in the mining industry.

It's never ceased to amaze me how people get all misty eyed and nostalgic when talking about the pits, a hellish way to have to earn a living and myself, well you couldn't pay me enough to set foot down a mine.

All the talk of coal still there, reopening mines etc, who in their right mind would want to bring it to the surface?.

My dad says that although it was hard it was the best job he'd had just for the camararderie.

 

Also gin that pic of the small seem he worked one that size for a few months while they prepared a new face, it was less than 36 inches and they had to use the old fashioned props etc as the modern stuff didn't fit, Got paid extra so happy days for him he said, not so much for a couple of the other blokes he worked with as they were 18st+

[Gin 498]

Yes there were some low seams. There was a seam, i think at Seaton Burn colliery, where my brother worked in the 1970's, ( he worked at a few pits ) , some lads were saying if they took their shovel in the wrong way, you couldn't turn it, you had to come out and go back in.. Thats where he had his accident. My other brother was nearly killed at Ellington Colliery, he had his face smashed in.

[nans pat 2,575]

imagine sending some of the scum about today down pit,you know the type staring at their phones.jeans down round their holes.

[Gin 498]

 

This often happened at Hartley Colliery before they got the pumping beam installed. Hartley Colliery being near the coast, and the best seams seaward, and a very wet pit.

Water would burst in on the miners. The actual seams were much lower than this, this depiction may be near the shaft bottom.

[C556 351]

Much of the coal worked underground in the UK is still worked by hand. Either shot blasted or cut with pneumatic picks before being shovelled into tubs.

[Gin 498]

Seghill pit where i'm from, was said to be a fairly safe pit,- from the time the shafts were sank, to the time the pit closed, only about 98 had been killed, over the years.

[C556 351]

Here's a working coal mine in the north of England showing the height of the road:

 

 

[Gin 498]

C556

 

Great photos. Thank you.

[C556 351]

Here's a load more pictures of the same mine from someone I know:

https://flic.kr/s/aHsjaoA8ka

[Gin 498]

That roof is not holding in places.

[nans pat 2,575]

some in them pics would make good grow houses,better than the lying idle.

[Nik_B 3,790]

Cracking pics C556, my masters was in mining geology I really enjoyed going down the old mines in Cornwall and the history of the industry there was amazing but we were mainly focused on hard rock geology and not coal mining or open cast etc.