Exercise 3.5: Local history

South Wales is an area of high historical importance with regards to the industrial revolution. The valleys of South Wales are located on top of a coalfield (1) and it was the exploitation of this coal that led to the Rhondda valleys in particular becoming the heart of the coal industry. Living just to the south of the Ogmore and Garw valleys, I have not known the full extent of the importance of them until now.
Back in 1860, the Rhondda valleys (Fawr and Fach) were to have said to have a population of as little as 3000 people (2), and looking at the vast network of the valleys as there are today, it seems hard to believe. Due to the size of the coalfield under their feet, many coal mines were sunk along the valley floors to use these ample coal resources and then transport it along a network of tracks to the docks at the shoreline. This industry was to go on to be a big source of income for wales and the people of the valleys themselves.

"At the height of coal production there were 160 drift mines and over 30 shafts working in the ne=ine seams in the Blaenavon locality" (wikipedia/Mining in Wales - 3).

With such a small local population and the demand for coal being so high, the mines brought many people to the valleys in search of employment. The geology of the land prevented huge scale housing areas so rows upon rows of terraced houses were built along the valley sides to accommodate the rising populations. If you visit any of the valleys today, many of these houses are still being used. The uniformity of them is still a beautiful sight and although they have been added to over the years, you can still tell the original houses due to their simplicity and sameness. See this image for a typical welsh mining valley (2)
By 1910 the population of the Rhondda valleys had reached a colossal 160,000(2).
But will the success of the industry also came great tragedies. There were many underground disasters in which many of the miners lost their lives. Some of the worst ones were Senghenydd & Six Bells colliery disasters.
The Senghenydd colliery (4) disaster of 1913 saw 440 people killed when a build up of methane gas cause a huge explosion inside the mine (5). And the Six Bells (6) disaster of 1960 saw another explosion rip through the west district of the colliery, killing 45 men. An inquest stated that the explosion had been caused when a rock had fallen and ignited gas and coal dust (7).
But above ground wasnt safe either. The collieries would mount their waste on top of the valley hills creating giant slurry heaps. 1966 saw a heavy rainfall, which displaced the waste heap towering over the village of Aberfan. The flow of slurry hurtled down the valley side and ploughed into the village school. 114 children and 28 adults were killed in one of Wales worst disasters (2).

After WW2, the coal mining industry declined. The government wanted to close a lot of the mines due to this, which started the miners strike of 1984 and ultimately led to the demise of the coal industry.
Today, the valleys are a beautiful area with breathtaking views but still scattered with hidden treasures and reminders of such a monumental history. There are still stockheads visible at a few old colliery sites, which a Google search will help lead you to, including decaying buildings as well as countless memorials, which you will normally find at the site of the colliery or near to. Most colliery sites have now been demolished leaving behind a scarred landscape of what it once was.

In an attempt to photograph the history within this area, I really need to get out and visit some of the old colliery sites and memorials. The best thing to do is photograph some of the visible aspects that have been left behind in order to capture some of the memory that is left as well as the area in which they are in that was once so important.

References:

(1) South Wales geological map
(2) http://www.data-wales.co.uk/valley1.htm
(3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mining_in_Wales
(4) http://i3.walesonline.co.uk/incoming/article1990119.ece/alternates/s615/niversal-colliery-senghenydd-scene-of-one-of-wales-worst-pit-explosions-october-1913-image-1-401695748.jpg
(5) http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/0/24465242
(6) http://www.abertillery.net/pics/sixbellspast/colliery1.jpg
(7) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Bells_Colliery