Diagram of a Deep Coal Mine in the early 1800’s
How did Technology Improve Mining?
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Drainage – As mines became deeper getting rid of the water that constantly filled them was a real problem. The early methods of drainage e.g. adit drains, buckets on ropes and horse gins were inadequate. The steam engine developed by Thomas Newcomen (of Dartmouth) was therefore a breakthrough. The first one was installed in a coal mine in Dudley in 1712. By 1775 there were 400 Newcomen engines in use draining mines all over the country. The Newcomen engines were then gradually replaced by the more efficient Boulton and Watt engines with a separate condenser (1790’s onwards). Steam power had solved the drainage problem.
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Ventilation – Many mines were affected by gas – either methane (fire damp) or carbon monoxide (choke damp). Often the explosive gas was ignited deliberately each day by a miner dressed in damp leather and with a candle on a long pole. One common solution to circulate air was to have 2 shafts – an upcast and a downcast. A fire was lit at the base of the upcast and then fresh air was sucked down the other shaft. The airflow was then controlled by a series of trapdoors operated by young children (aged 4-7) called “trappers”. The ventilation problem was not solved until John Buddle’s steam powered fan (invented in 1807) came into widespread use.
- Lighting
Throughout the 18th century and the first 15 years of the 19th century candles were the only source of light in mines. The naked flame frequently caused explosions. The inventory of the Safety Lamp by Sir Humphery Davy was a real breakthrough. The idea was simple. The flame was surrounded by fine copper gauge which conducted the way the heat of the flame. It gave a good light but did not get hot enough to ignite thee gas. George Stephenson produced a similar safety lamp to the north east, known as the Geordie lamp.
- Transport (Underground and on the surface)
Up to 1842 transporting coal underground was the job of women and boys. The coal was carried in corves (or tubs). Which were pushed or pulled (using a belt or chain) along the galleries from the coal to the pit shaft. The use of wooden rails and iron plateways made movement easier. Raising the coal to the surface was a problem initially. Until the introduction of Boulton and Watt’s Rotative Steam Engine in the 1780’s the only methods were the “horse gin” or human power (hand operated windlass). By 1800, 130 Boulton and Watt engines were in use. Steam power (railways) also transformed the transport of coal at the pithead – but not until after 1830. Up to then the canals and the horse drawn plateways were the main forms of transport in use.
Why did Parliament pass the Mines Act?
Following the successful campaign led by Lord Shaftesbury and other reformers to improve factory conditions (Royal Commission and 1833 Act) their attention turned to the mines and in1840 a Royal Commission was set up to investigate and report back to parliament. The Commission used the same shock tactics as it had done in the factories. Shaftesbury’s 19th century middle and upper class audience were horrified by the use of women and children and the general immorality of working conditions – with naked and semi-naked men, women and children alongside each other. Pit owners complained that the commissioners presented a very distorted and biased picture.
The 1842 Mines Act
The Act made it illegal for women and children under the age of 10 to be employed underground in mines. Inspectors were appointed to enforce the Act – however the Act said nothing about men’s hours or working conditions.
Other Acts:
1843 – No worker under 15 to be left in charge of winding gear.
1850 – Inspectors allowed underground.
1860 – Boys under 12 not allowed underground unless they could read and write.
1862- Single shaft mines made illegal.
