South Wales Collieries, Railways & Docks BW1 27 6x4 Black+White Prints

Coal was the lifeblood of the industrial revolution and of the railway age, and one of the greatest coal fields was South Wales, due to high quality coal and short runs to the ports. We open with a 20 ton fixed hoist at Barry Docks in 1925. A wagon is being tipped into the ship at the quayside. In the 1920s the GWR encouraged the move to 20T wagons hence the three new movable 20T hoists at Queen Alexandra Dock Cardiff.This required a lot of power and we see the interior of the electrically driven new No 3 hydraulic power station at Cardiff where 4 power stations were set to replace ten in 1925.At Port Talbot, a new belt conveyor No 10 entered service in 1925. Backing this was the provision of 20T steel bodied coal wagons such as 109831 which was dedicated to a specific user, whilst 109956 is the nearest wagon waiting unloading at a South Wales port. At the other end of the ‘chain’ were the collieries, and we open with Penallta colliery of Powell Duffryn with the twin winding gear and a tall chimney dominating the view.  Bargoed Colliery commenced in 1886 and we see the twin shafts, two chimneys and an inclined elevator to the left at the washery.’PD’ wagons flank a pylon outside Bargoed washery. To use small coal, regenerative coke ovens were opened at Bargoed and the hot coke is being quenched.The gas so produced called for a gas holder and gas washing and scrubbers. The interior of the engine house at Penallta shows the extent of the above ground plant. The electric winding engine at Britannia Colliery Pengam shows the massive cable needed and the engineman at the controls behind a safety screen. The washery and power station at Middle Duffryn carry a PD 1902 inscription on the end wall. We see the chief commercial offices for Powell Duffryn in Cardiff. From PD we move to ‘the first family’ of the South Wales coalfield and David Davies of Llandinam, born 1818. Before he was 21 he had to look after his mother and sisters, but was successful in farming, railway contracting and mining. He founded Ocean Coal Co in 1864 and we include a map of the Ocean pits! Park Pit was commenced in 1864. Clouds of steam drift from R to L with OCEAN wagons at two levels. Maindy, another original pit was more open and we see internal user wagons in the lower centre. Dare pit of 1871 in the Rhondda valley shows the rugged terrain with rows of pit housing above the pit itself. A bridge carries internal user wagons over the rail lines at the lowest level. Western pit started production in 1873, the view providing an excellent study of the lattice contruction of the pithead gear and its twin wheels or sheaves. Eastern Pit on a cramped multi level site opened in 1877. Garw colliery followed, and the massive chimney and rectangular base can be seen on the right. In 1916 pit head baths were erected at Treharris the new stone contrasting with the grimy older buildings and the pithead gear beyond it. Major David Davies MP was the grandson of the founder of Ocean and chairman in 1919. The fair haired Thomas Evans joined Ocean in 1884, becoming manager in 1905. Our last view is of Avon Pit, bought in 1912, with a chimney to the left and right centre, and terraced housing in the background. A copy of these notes accompanies the set. These views are copyright; Reproduction is prohibited without our prior written permission

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South Wales Collieries, Railways & Docks BW2 21 6x4 Black+White Prints

Sir David R Lleywllyn Bt (1879-1940) was the son of the manager of Bwllfa & Merthyr Dare colliery and studied mining engineering at Cardiff and in America. He pioneered narrow seam electric coal cutters in S Wales. Seen as a moderate, Llewellyn [A baronet in 1922] mixed well with the miners. We see the Bwllfa board in 1919 with DR on the left and his father, Alderman Llewellyn, at  the head of the table. A map lists the companies mines. Steam drifts across Bwllfa No 1 tho we see wooden chauldron wagons on the left and the two winding shafts. At Bwllfa No 2 the lattice construction of the ‘Yorkshire’ pit head gear is apparent. They were made in Yorkshire hence the name in S Wales. The sharp curves of the internal tracks is apparent in the L foreground. A vertical shot of Bwllfa No 3 recalls the tall chimney of the power house. No 3 was closed by Powell Duffryn but reopened by Llewelllyn. A Bwllfa coal wagon is tipped at Penarth Dock. A rake of Bwllfa wagons are at Penarth Dock. From one pit in 1905, Llewellyn controlled one seventh of the S Wales coalfield by 1920, including Cwmaman Coal Co. We see Cwmaman colliery on the left with the Trewen shaft in the R distance. The Cwmaman board on 1-1-18 included D R Llewellyn, his father Rees Llewellyn and on L his son William Llewellyn. Fforchwen Colliery has a power station and cooling pond in the left foreground. The Cwmaman offices were not a big city block. D R Llewellyn is with directors and miners after a visit underground at Fforchwen. A sloping drift access to the upper measures at Trewen opened in 1919 and tubs are hauled up the incline. C T Bowrings 4393 grt steamer of 1911, SS Tafna, loads coal for the Italian State Railways at Cardiff Docks. We see a 250hp electric hauling engine at Cwmaman. Baldwins Ltd  with iron foundries and tin works in S Wales wanted their own collieries and iron tubs are pulled out of a much weathered drift at Aberbaiden. Bryn Navigation has a rake of Baldwin wagons at low level and chauldrons higher up. Another view of Bryn shows rakes of Baldwin wagons. Coytrahen Park includes a Coytrahen wagon at the lower level. Chibbwr Fawr includes Chibbwt Fawr, Baldwin and Ton Phllip wagons. A copy of these notes accompanies the set. These views are copyright; Reproduction is prohibited without our prior written permission