Early mining ore extraction techniques.

tomferry

Well-known member
I have been reading some of my coal mining books for early mining methods and came across a page containing this image I shall attach a link below as I can?t insert the image myself .

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=coal+mining+ladies+carrying+baskets&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwjA1s7ysrXzAhWO_IUKHUQvDwUQ2-cCegQIABAC&oq=coal+mining+ladies+carrying+baskets&gs_lcp=ChJtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1pbWcQAzoECB4QCjoCCCk6BAghEAo6BAgAEA06BQgAEIAEOgYIABAFEB46BggAEAgQHjoECAAQGFDeF1jeU2CwWWgAcAB4AIABkgGIAc8akgEFMjYuMTCYAQCgAQHAAQE&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-img&ei=X2JdYYCrNo75lwTE3rwo&bih=715&biw=414&client=safari&prmd=sivxn#imgrc=XfJnFzitRC5HZM

In the book it says : in the early days of coal mining many ways where devised to get the coal from the depths of the earth .this method was used in Scotland and it consisted of a circular wooden staircase , as far as we no the idea was never used in Wales . We should remember that we are only dealing with children in wales , similar conditions existed in other coal fields in Britain .

The book is about child Labour in mines . I have also read about this is other coal mining books , they said it was woman who did this job typically , the children would drag the corves out from the working face and empty them into hazel or willow baskets to be carried out ?like the image ? or by windlass or stair case , in other images it shows a similar image in situ in a bell pit

Does anyone else have any knowledge or proof of this technique being used ?
 

mikem

Well-known member
Image is also used in this article about child labour & says it was from 1844:
https://spartacus-educational.com/spartacus-blogURL97.htm
 

Roger the Cat

New member
It sounds a far too elegant a solution for primitive mining and would require substantial time and effort to construct to any depth. The only shafts I can think of with such attributes would be the Grand Shaft at Western Heights, Dover and various ancient wells on the Indian sub-continent, much featured in National Geographic magazines over the years. At what point did deep coal mining (definition required) begin? Sixteenth century? If my memory serves me correctly it was a tradition to pick up coal from Northumberland beaches in living memory, if not now and I expect the same was true for any coal outcrop.
 

tomferry

Well-known member
http://www.scottishmining.co.uk/164.html


Their is a mention of it in their again  also with some dates  :-\
 

ttxela2

Active member
I wonder if someone has had a climbing shaft with stemples described to them without actually seeing one and come up with this as their perception of what was described.

 

Cantclimbtom

Well-known member
Failing to find any reference to this apart from in Scotland where they are called a turnpike stair, although I think that might just be Scots for what a Sassenach like me would call a "spiral staircase" rather than being mine specific. Maybe for shallow shafts prior to engines it could be used, but can't see it as practical for much depth?

"...Windmills were also tried but were too irregular. An early method of working was a circular shaft, with a turnpike stair, up which in the days of slavery, the coal was carried in baskets on the backs of women, the coal bearers of that period. By the introduction of the steam-engine, water, coal, and other material can now be raised from great depths..." "Historic Notices and Domestic History of the Parish of Shotts", by William Grossart, surgeon, 1880
 

tomferry

Well-known member
I shall have to dig my other books out that mention this ,I have to admit
I believe all the images are the exact same one , then again though so are all the ones of children working in coal mines I believe these are the same images as the iron industry as well  maybe these sketches are the only evidence left ?
 

mikem

Well-known member
Picture is from an 1842 report referring to east of Scotland mines, which aren't that deep:
https://www.hoodfamily.info/coal/stairpits.html

The report, with relevant part highlighted (including several images; & yes it is a Scottish name for any spiral stairs):
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=mfRSh-ctOR4C&pg=PA9&lpg=PA9&dq=turnpike+stairs+mining&source=bl&ots=dOU-GHvwxI&sig=ACfU3U1U9FeLAOhFiLZRegbrfm6zRD4nlQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjqnd_mk7bzAhVIgVwKHSWhCAQQ6AF6BAg7EAI#v=onepage&q=turnpike%20stairs%20mining&f=false
 

ChrisJC

Well-known member
I am not convinced they ever existed. What a lot of effort to build them when ladders (which can be made outside and brought in) and platforms / stemples can be used instead.

Chris.
 

Cantclimbtom

Well-known member
Bloomin 'eck Tom, I know Roy is senior to many of us, but are you suggesting he can remember back to the 1840s? He's not that old!
 

AR

Well-known member
Roger the Cat said:
If my memory serves me correctly it was a tradition to pick up coal from Northumberland beaches in living memory, if not now and I expect the same was true for any coal outcrop.
That's sea-coaling you're thinking of - the coastal collieries dumped their waste into the sea, and the residual coal was effectively buddled out by wave action to be collected by anyone willing to put the effort in.
 

SamT

Moderator
ChrisJC said:
I am not convinced they ever existed. What a lot of effort to build them when ladders (which can be made outside and brought in) and platforms / stemples can be used instead.

Chris.

There's a short one in Raddlepits made out of dry stone ginging.  I know as Ive walked up it.  I reckon there must have been times when miners were at a bit of a loose end, waiting around for stuff, empty kibbles to be returned from surface etc. or work was slack for some reason and maybe one day, dreamt big to alleviate the boredom.
 

mikem

Well-known member
To start with mining was very localised & they used the skills that were available from other applications - spiral stairs were very popular in castles, which there are plenty of in Scotland (& elsewhere). It was only later that mines got so deep that everyone had to invite the Cornish in...
 

tomferry

Well-known member
Cantclimbtom said:
Bloomin 'eck Tom, I know Roy is senior to many of us, but are you suggesting he can remember back to the 1840s? He's not that old!

He knows a vast amount of knowledge about old technology that?s what I meant  :ras:
 

tomferry

Well-known member
mikem said:
To start with mining was very localised & they used the skills that were available from other applications - spiral stairs were very popular in castles, which there are plenty of in Scotland (& elsewhere). It was only later that mines got so deep that everyone had to invite the Cornish in...

Agreed it?s quite a complicated subject as  it seems to change where ever you look , I have only read about the East Midlands coal field and the south darbyshire coal field and these are very different techniques in their early days , in the East Midlands it was still done completely by hand until 1901 when they finally was happy with a cutting machine to bring into the first colliery.  It appears to change technique to suit the coal seam they was mining  in the earlier days
 

moorebooks

Active member
the only staircase I have seen is at Wieliczka Salt Mine in Poland,

there were reported to be wooden stairs in the Bradha Head Mine Isle of man


Mike
 

tomferry

Well-known member
moorebooks said:
the only staircase I have seen is at Wieliczka Salt Mine in Poland,

there were reported to be wooden stairs in the Bradha Head Mine Isle of man


Mike

https://flickr.com/photos/193182234@N06/51379970108/in/album-72157719683556944/

I believe you mean this 1 it?s a long bloody way down I couldn?t believe it !

 
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