Wales: Big Pit Coal Mine

Southern Wales changed during the industrial revolution. Factories and mines were built and ran by the British. It created employment for the Welsh people and made them conform to the English language leaving their native tongue of Welsh at home. 

We visited the largest Cole mine in Wales- Big Pit. In the 1900’s it supplied the coal that was consumed in London and other English cities. The Cole mine was functioning until it was closed in 1985. To me mining seemed to be something that was so ancient. At the Big Pit I realized that a lot of people are still working in mines today. The labor conditions are brutal in these Welsch mines. There is hardly any light, cold temperatures, hard manual labor, dusty air, and high danger risks. Nearly every miner had some sort of respiratory disease (e.g. black lung) from working in these awful conditions. My heart broke when I heard that little children came with their mother and father to work in the mines as well to contribute more money to the family. The man that took us on a small tour told us that there was no schooling for the children at the time so it was logical for them to work instead. Most of the children worked in darkness unless if their families could afford to buy candles for them. He also told us that today they are trying to restore the native language of Welsh by teaching it to the children in the schools. Now that a lot of these factories and mines are no longer used today Wales has some of the lowest employment rates in Europe.