The Industrial Revolution
David Bohner (as Mary Evans)
1781
Invention of the Steam Engine
• What year was the steam engine invented?
• How did this invention forever change the
lives of the people?
• Who invented it?
The anthracite coal(welsh coal)
with a high calorific value
1805
Merthyr Tydfil Iron Works Open
• What happened to Gwallter?
• How common was it for
people to move to the iron
works? (talk about there only
being 300 workers)
• What were the conditions
(safety) in the factory?
• Who opened the iron works?
The Blaneavon Iron Works
1842
Mines Act
• How did the new law affect the
living conditions of the people?
(less money, less food)
• What year was the law written?
• What did this law mean for the
women and children?
• Where did the children and
women go to find work?
• How did this affect the coal
miners and the production of
coal?
13 Year Old Miner
1876
Pendyrus Mine Opens
• How did the new mine change “our”
lives?
• Why did the miners move to Tylertown?
(employment benefits, more money)
• What year was the mine opened?
Working in the Mines
1896
Mine Disaster
• How many people were killed in the accident?
• How many pit ponies were killed in the accident?
• Why did Lewis decide to sell the mine? (talk about cost for
ponies, rebuilding the shafts, too much trouble)
• When did the explosion go off? (date, time)
• How did the explosion change our lives?
Pit ponies used for bringing
coal to the surface
1898
Not a day that I can rest peacefully. An elder lady now, 62 years of
age, I should take things slower. However, I cannot possibly do so.
Losing Gareth to the mines was bad enough, but I do not know what
I’d do if I’d lose Rhys, too. Or even if Idris died! I am especially worried
about Rhys, though. He’s the one mining. Every day, before sunrise
even, I wonder if the last I’ll see of him is him walking towards the
mine, turning round just before I cannot see him anymore, and waving
goodbye. Not only to me, but for the also to his wife and kids.
At thirty-two, he is now a handsome young man. Living next door
together with his own family, he seems to lighten up whenever he
reaches his home. And this is how it was for the past twelve years. I
live off just a little of his and Idris’s income. I always make sure that
they have plenty for themselves, too, however.
Sources Cited
Bourdenet, Nathalie. "The Mines Act, 1842." UFR LCE - Département D’études
Anglophones - The Mines Act, 1842. Université Paris, 11 Oct. 2003. Web. 2
Mar. 2014. <http://anglais.u-paris10.fr/spip.php?article88>.
Davies, Rhys. "Fidler Interviews." Personal interview. 12 Jan. 2014.
Information found from Mr. James Fidler, who found from Mr Rhys Davies,
Cowbridge Glamorgan, Wales, United Kingdom 2007