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Post by mknight on Aug 30, 2013 9:14:37 GMT -5
I am currently studying my third year of Costume Construction for Screen and Stage and focusing on the lives of miners and their families.
If anyone could provide any information about the type of clothing worn or photographs it would be greatly appreciated. Personal stories, information about memorabilia or links to headlines/articles will also extremely beneficial.
Many Thanks.
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Post by John on Aug 30, 2013 11:27:44 GMT -5
I am currently studying my third year of Costume Construction for Screen and Stage and focusing on the lives of miners and their families. If anyone could provide any information about the type of clothing worn or photographs it would be greatly appreciated. Personal stories, information about memorabilia or links to headlines/articles will also extremely beneficial. Many Thanks.
Our street clothes were the same as others wore.. |
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Post by dazbt on Aug 30, 2013 12:42:09 GMT -5
I am currently studying my third year of Costume Construction for Screen and Stage and focusing on the lives of miners and their families. If anyone could provide any information about the type of clothing worn or photographs it would be greatly appreciated. Personal stories, information about memorabilia or links to headlines/articles will also extremely beneficial. Many Thanks. Throughout the 1950s and 60s many coal miners wore surplus army clothes, khaki battledress jackets and ex-army trousers were popular as were fatigues. Many of the older miners wore waistcoats and the preference was for ex-railway issue. Shorts were inevitably the navy blue knee length ex-military PT kit, shirts, vests and jumpers were also available both new and second hand from any of the high Street Army and Navy Stores set up to dispose of military surplus. Wooden soled clogs with leather or even belting uppers were used by some miners well into the 1960s even long after the NCB issued protective footwear. |
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Post by mknight on Aug 30, 2013 13:31:18 GMT -5
Thank you both for your replies. The amount of detail is extremely helpful, definitely starting to get a greater understanding!
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Post by John on Aug 30, 2013 14:53:13 GMT -5
You lot in Yorkshire must have been better off Daz....LOL
NCB issued boots were mandatory, as were the helmets, might have been an area or Division directive, no idea but if you didn't wear the prescribed footwear and headgear you were sent home....or told to go back to the baths and get changed into the prescribed safety gear...
I have seen a Deputy warn a miner for wearing worn out boots, new boots next shift or no work, same with cracked hard hats, new hat or no work.
I was thinking about the waistcoats, not many wore them that I recall, mostly the older switchmen, whether from days gone by or just trying to stay warm in intake roads, no idea. A lot of the older Officials still wore waistcoats.
I don't recall a lot of ex army surplus clothes, some of the Poles wore the "army blouse" and great coats, most of the ones I worked with wore just old clothing that had seen better days.
Just for MKNIGHT, Daz and I are the same vintage, just worked in different coal fields.
I just wore my old shirts, old trousers, worn out sweaters where it was cold, and an old overcoat one of my Uncles gave me for the ride out at the end of shift, and of course the boiler suit type overalls.
Most of the facecrews during the 60's didn't wear overalls.
One thing from memory, some of the older face men had a patch sewn into the knees of their trousers, they found a padded patch more comfortable than kneepads.
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Post by tygwyn on Aug 30, 2013 15:55:21 GMT -5
Reading the above 2 posts,proves Yorkshire was closer to South Wales than Nottingham,lol,
Army and Navy surplus was popular down with us,but you could`nt beat a good pair of Moleskin trouser`s.
I know there were some thick bugger`s working for the board,but did you really have to have L and R stamped on your wellingtons,lol.
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ken
Trainee
Posts: 46
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Post by ken on Aug 31, 2013 1:23:49 GMT -5
In my time in the mines in the Durham coalfield 50 years ago only tradesmen wore overalls. Then gradually miners started to wear them.Some of the older mining officials wore a special kind of trouser. the legs finished about mid calf length. All mining officials carried a 'yardstick' or walking stick. It was a kind of badge of office but had practical functions as well. It had nails in it to make it into a measuring stick for measuring the advance of caunches etc, and it was used for testing the roof by "jouling" it. I am sure some old photos would show this trouser but may have been only in the Durham/Northumbrland coalfield.
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Post by mknight on Aug 31, 2013 5:35:10 GMT -5
This is all great, thank you. Would you all mind if I asked what years you worked and where? Also, I have tried to look for photographs showing the clothing, I have managed to get a few from peoples families etc... could any of you suggest where to look or if you have come across any? Thanks again! |
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Post by dazbt on Aug 31, 2013 7:18:42 GMT -5
BOOTS, HAT AND PADS
When we were new and first together
Along with my boots of dimpled leather,
I loved you both, I was proud to parade you
Tried the cap square and in style askew
Wasn’t a lot with the boots to choose
Wear em tight or simply loose
But a single shift showed which was right
Never again anyway other than tight.
You both took pleasure in breaking me in
Steel toe caps boots carved up my skin.
Became magnetised to stone and rail,
Found every pothole as if by Braille.
But over time I gained your control
The painful hobble becoming a stroll
Over the years you did your job
Initial agony reduced to a throb.
Black shiny helmet so easy to wear
Until a lamp you were given to bear
Highlighting your swivelling potential
And one handed retention became essential.
Adjustment finally cured the flopping
Or was it my ears that became a stopping.
Your true value realised pretty quick
When you not my skull got the very first nick.
Kneepads, bloody kneepads, what can I say
The first time of wearing you made my day
And every day after that you managed to ruin
I suspect you knew just what you were doing.
Protecting the patella but stopping the blood
Retaining water when dragged through mud.
But finally saved as God’s own gift
With orgasmic removal at the end of the shift.
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Post by fortythreesflyer on Aug 31, 2013 9:23:43 GMT -5
There was one guy at Wheldaale (John Henry Bramley) an ex pro rugby league player for featherstone rovers, wore clogs up to the early 1970,s he had them specially made.
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Post by dazbt on Aug 31, 2013 13:43:32 GMT -5
The first coal face I worked on was at Wharncliffe Woodmoor 4&5 (New Carlton)in the NCB Barnsley Area, this was 1965/66 and not only did some miners wear clogs at that time butthere were quite a few of the older men who chose to wear flat caps or the canvas type peaked caps, these were obviously worn "illegally" and in blatant disregard to rules. The canvas caps were purpose made with lamp holder brackets attached but the flat caps had no such fittings, the miners used woven shotwire threaded through the cloth to form a loop onto which their lamps were hung, how they managed to keep these caps on whilst working was a mystery.
Scarves were commonly worn in those days, something that seemed to disappear not long after, these full scarves were often worn at the end of the shift on the journey outbye but I remember quite a few colliers wearing ladies nylon or chiffon head scarfs tied around their necks like a collar, some officials used these scarves to hook their flame safety lamps on when crawling through the face (36" extraction).
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Mick
Shotfirer.
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Post by Mick on Aug 31, 2013 14:53:44 GMT -5
When i worked at Gomersal there was a bloke called Tommy Cunliffe he used to sing in the working mens clubs under the name of tommy cunliffe singing collier,and he was still wareing a cloth cap just into the 70s i filled in the next stint to him in the beeston was always singing .
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Post by gadge on Sept 1, 2013 15:44:26 GMT -5
One memory that will stay with me forever(and its almost 40 yrs ago now) concerns a guy called jim at my pit ,jim was a very tall ,very slim bloke for whom buying off the peg clothes was very difficult (73/74) and therefore had suits made to measure at a high quality tailor in wakefield the result being that he always looked the smartest at the local club at the weekend in pinstripes,flares with turnups and wide lapels which were the fashion at the time.
However one Monday morning as I was walking round to the mucky side I was confronted by jim slipping into the aforementioned suit along with shirt and waistcoat ready to go underground ,upon asking him why he was wearing his best suit down the pit he replied "I,m fed up of this suit I,m going to get a new one".
So for a time at least he was the smartest dressed miner I,ve ever seen underground
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Post by mknight on Sept 13, 2013 14:15:17 GMT -5
Thank you for all your replies, very insightful. I love the thought of someone wearing a suit underground!
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