I know first left is Bill Hyde, but who are the other men and who is receiving the first aid?
Photo loaned by Dave McGill
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Looks as though there is an examination in progress, those of us not so young will recognise the Doctor there. The late Dr. Etches, a well known, well liked doctor in Loftus. Barbara McBurney tells us: ”The boys attending to the patient are Dave Partlett and Gerry Pearson facing, Norman Myers kneeling with his back to camera.”  Miners at Lingdale, leaving the mine one carries a safety lamp, others are discarded on the ground along with helmet battery lamps. Was this the Last Shift?. Miners: Bernard ’Bish’ Swinburne, Eric Hatfield?, Joseph Hood, ??. Ian Swinburn has told the Archive: ”Far left on the picture is my dad Bernard (Bish) Swinburne and it might be Eric Hatfield to his left; not sure about the others”. Stuart Williamson informs: “I was born in Brotton and spent many happy summers at my grandparents, both there and in Lingdale, where my father was born. His grandmother was a midwife before they became official, and she also laid out the dead.By chance when looking through your archive I came across a photograph of my grandfather, Joseph Hood, leaving the pit”. Stuart also offered his poem: A Northern Poem – Stuart Williamson © A coat that’s seen a dozen winters Ironstone, Belemnite, Nautilus rich Terraced streets all left behind to wake Women left to tend the home A ‘job down’t pit’ was all there was Identification of the other miners or corrections welcome. Photo courtesy George Pearson, thanks to Ian Swinburne and Stuart Williamson for the updates.
South Skelton Mine, around the time of closure in 1954. Mining commenced
in the 1860’s, at a depth of about 200 feet. Photo courtesy George Pearson.
South Skelton Mine, just before the war, The Picking Belt Shed at the left of the photo looks fairly new it was installed around 1935. The Picking Belt
1962 and the final day at Lingdale mine, the miners are coming out of the Shaft Cage for the last time. In the background a miner’s hand can be seen about to pull down on the handle marked Pit Bottom, to tell the Onsetter at the bottom of the shaft the cage is clear. The handle on the left is for the winding engine. Identification of the miners in this image or corrections will be welcomed.
This photo showing the arrangement at the top of the shaft at South Skelton Mine. On the right hand cage an empty tub waits to be lowered down the shaft. The man on the side of the cage appears to have his hand on a Signalling Handle which will send the right hand cage down and the left hand cage will raise a loaded tub to the surface. In the background the full tub from the left hand cage is being put into the Tippler unit, which will turn the tub upside down and drop the contents onto the Picking Belt for sorting the shale from the stone. Any further information or corrections will be welcome.
I would have a guess that these men are queueing for their pay at the end of a long hard week down the mine at Lingdale, as they appear to be holding their ”Off Taks”. We asked for help with identification of the miners and Bill Danby tells us: ”My brother in law, Frank Holmes, now aged 88, is the handsome young man far Right. He worked at Lingdale mine for some years. He was a Deputy when it closed and transferred to North Skelton mine where he worked until the closure of that mine and was the last Deputy out in 1964. He can identify some of the others:- The miner next to him is Jim Pearson. The one 4th from Right with his hand in his pocket is George “Dacker” Neal. The man in the centre with his back to the camera is Bernard “Bish” Swinburne. The miner 8th from the Right in the dark coat is Jack Armstrong. Standing in front of him is Ted Porritt. Behind Ted, [you can just see the top half of his head], is Eric Hatfield, who appears on your recent photograph entitled “I wonder where the next one is coming from”. Frank recalls that Eric was a good cricketer and once took all ten wickets for Skelton Castle. All the miners named lived in Lingdale. Franks says that the photograph was taken some time prior to the last pay day.”
A sideline at Lingdale Mine was the manufacture of bricks made from the waste shale. In the photo piles of bricks are stacked at the right hand side, with pallets of bricks being hoisted and lowered by the rope hoist system in the Photo. Down into the rail wagons below.
An excellent description of the plant and it’s working is given in Simon Chapman’s Book “Lingdale Mine”. Image courtesy of George Pearson.
Longacre Mine was situated close to the present Hollybush Industrial Estate. |
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