The Leicestershire & South Derbyshire Miners 1840-1914 - Volume 1
By Colin Griffin
Published by N.U.M Leicester Area: Coalville c1981
"This authoritative study examines the social, economic, and industrial history of coal mining in the Leicestershire and South Derbyshire coalfield during the critical period from 1840 to the outbreak of the First World War. Colin Griffin presents a rigorously researched account that moves beyond technical mining history to explore ownership structures, capital investment, technological change, labour organisation, wages, safety, and living conditions. Drawing on archival sources, union records, and contemporary accounts, the work situates the coalfield within the wider context of Victorian and Edwardian industrial Britain, revealing how regional mining communities were shaped by both local conditions and national economic forces.
Structured thematically, the volume traces the development of the mines themselves before turning to the lives of the miners, and finally to the emergence and consolidation of trade unionism, culminating in a detailed analysis of collective organisation up to 1914. Published by the National Union of Mineworkers (Leicester Area), the book carries particular authority as both an academic study and an institutional history, and is enhanced by maps, tables, and illustrative material that support its analytical depth. This volume would appeal especially to historians of British industry, labour and social history researchers, genealogists tracing mining ancestors, and collectors of regional and trade union history."
Light wear to covers. Pages clean, binding is excellent and the book presents well. Very good condition overall. Please study photos to further understand condition.