MODULE 1 ~ REFLECTION 1000 WORDS

The aim was to find an object that had a reflection of my family and our background in it. The object that we were to find had to be from our family routes but was also supposed to reflect Barnsley and the direction that Barnsley is going, this however was hard for me to do as I am not from the area of Barnsley. 

 

When it came to finding my object I started to look through mining memorabilia that my family had kept and stored over the years. I have a collection of paperwork that was used with in the mines system and many of the books that talk about the function and the mechanics down a mine and how to use them and work with them effectively. 

 

At first in my research I was going to focus on one main object that was the miners phones from when my grandad put in place a new phone system in the pits in the mines in our local area in dinnington colliery. Mining is of high importance in dinnington as it is a large representation of where we came from. However I chose to look at my grandads tie as the main object to be used as it was awarded to him for his safety in the mines. This made me think of what it was like for miners and in there working conditions as it was a dangerous place and to look at events that miners went through during there lives. I started by writing down some questions that I could ask people in my family and fellow past miners to find out first hand information and to receive my primary research, this allowed me to see how people felt as miners and what there lives where like been a mining family. 

 

I did research looking into the miners strike in the years of 1984 and 1985. This event had a large impact on the family of my town and put many out of jobs and in struggles however they would support each other as much as they could during the difficult times. The miners strike caused many friends and families to fall out in extensive arguments that have still not healed to this day and many are still left not talking. This was due to crossing picket lines because if you did this you would then be known to everyone in dinnington town as a scab. My grandma had a large amount of opinion towards this event but went on to tell me her memories that were unforgettable during this time. It was rough on her and my family as it was a struggle to be able to keep people warm. My grandma mentioned that they used to go to the slag heap at early hours of a morning to try and retrieve coal to take home just to be able to keep a fire burning and there family’s warm. The food that they received would arrive without there been labels and covers on the tins so my grandma, mum and uncle would turn this into a game where they would sit and try to figure out what was in a tin before they opened it an saw the true contents. My grandma says although times could be hard been in a miners family she loved every moment of it. Many people represent miners to be sad or miserable but from my primary research and information I collected I have grown to find that miners actually enjoyed there work and were seen to most regularly have a smile on there face. 

 

After looking at the life’s of miners and the effects there job had I looked into objects that would of been seen owned and used in the mining world such as my grandads phones that he had kept after replacing them in the system and also his badges he was gifted with. I also have in possession my grandads certificate of a apprenticeship that allowed the start of his journey and carrier as an electrician down the mine. 

 

After speaking to past miners I have found that many would still go back to work in mines and pits now without a second thought as it became an important time of there lives. Many people who worked down the mines followed in there farthest footsteps carrying on a family tradition. Such as my great grandad started working down in the pits when he was only 14years of age. Seeing him work down the pits is what inspired my granddad to follow in the same carrier path. 

 

My town does a lot to represent the past where we have come from and what dinnington was originally known for. The dinnington colliery band still play to this day, through our Christmas they will play outside the local supermarket to raise money and funding to keep the band going they would also take part in a procession along the Main Street along with attending most public liv events. Our town also carries out miners teas which wife’s of miners attend to be able to talk about there memories and family’s that worked and lived within the mines. 

 

The only women that were able to work within the mining industry worked on the surface areas such as the Canteen. No women where to be seen or work in the underground areas of the mining industry as it was known to be to dangerous and was focused to be a mans job. Due to the dangers known in the mine there would be a bored known as tallies. These would be a board with hooks on that every miner would have there own number and tags that were referred to as tallies. Each miner when going into the system would have to hang on of their tallies and take the other down with them. So if there was an event to happen they would know who was down in the mining systems, this would also help to identify those that may of lost there lives by matching there tallies together. Although the modern day mines are different to the mines in our past they are still just as dangerous.