Big Pit - Blaenavon Industrial Landscape
Blaenavon, Wales
01.09.2017
The Big Pit:
The Big Pit is a former coal mine located in Blaenavon, Wales. It was in operation from 1860 until 1980 and is now a museum and tourist attraction. The mine played a significant role in the industrial revolution in Wales and was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000.
The town of Blaenavon, located in the Welsh county of Torfaen, was founded in the late 18th century as a result of the Industrial Revolution. The town grew rapidly thanks to the abundance of coal and iron ore in the area. The Big Pit was the largest and most important coal mine in Blaenavon, with a depth of 300 meters and a network of tunnels that stretched for miles.
The miners who worked at the Big Pit were known as "pitmen" and their work was physically demanding and dangerous. The mine was also notorious for its poor working conditions, with long hours and low pay. In 1890, a group of miners went on strike to protest these conditions, leading to the formation of the South Wales Miners' Federation, which became one of the most powerful trade unions in the UK.
During World War II, the Big Pit was an important source of coal for the war effort. Many of the miners were exempt from military service due to the crucial role they played in supplying coal to power factories and transport systems. However, the mine was also a target for bombing by the German Luftwaffe, resulting in the deaths of several miners.
After the decline of the coal mining industry in the late 20th century, the Big Pit was closed in 1980. In 1983, it was reopened as a museum, allowing visitors to experience what it was like to work in a coal mine. The museum offers guided tours, underground exhibitions, and a chance to descend into the mine in a cage lift, providing a unique and immersive experience.
Today, the Big Pit is not only a popular tourist attraction, but also an important piece of Welsh industrial heritage. It serves as a reminder of the hard work and sacrifices made by the miners and their families, and the impact of the coal industry on the development of Wales.
Weiterführende Links:
The area around Blaenavon is evidence of the pre-eminence of South Wales as the world's major producer of iron and coal in the 19th century. All the necessary elements can still be seen - coal and ore mines, quarries, a primitive railway system, furnaces, workers' homes, and the social infrastructure of their community.
Big Pit National Coal Museum (Welsh: Pwll Mawr Amgueddfa Lofaol Cymru) is an industrial heritage museum in Blaenavon, Torfaen, Wales. A working coal mine from 1880 to 1980, it was opened to the public in 1983 as a charitable trust called the Big Pit (Blaenavon) Trust. By 1 February 2001 Big Pit Coal Museum was incorporated into the National Museums and Galleries of Wales as the National Mining Museum of Wales. The site is dedicated to operational preservation of the Welsh heritage of coal mining, which took place during the Industrial Revolution.
Located adjacent to the preserved Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway, Big Pit is part of the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape, a World Heritage Site, and an Anchor Point of the European Route of Industrial Heritage.
Blaenavon Industrial Landscape, in and around Blaenavon, Torfaen, Wales, was inscribed a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2000.
The Blaenavon Ironworks, now a museum, was a major centre of iron production using locally mined or quarried iron ore, coal and limestone.
Raw materials and products were transported via horse-drawn tramroads, canals and steam railways.
The Landscape includes protected or listed monuments of the industrial processes, transport infrastructure, workers' housing and other aspects of early industrialisation in South Wales.
