Soldiers and mining in Wales

[TrishaG]

Hi,

my 90 year old father in law's father ,Albert Cecil GREEN ,b 1890,Warborough was possibly in the Ox and Bucks Infantry(he was probably living at Piddington,Oxon or Boarstall ,Oxon at the time he joined).According to my father in law he served in France on the Somme and was wounded in France,suffering a gunshot wound to the right leg and was invalided home.

He had married in Marlow in 1915 but in 1917 my father in law was born in Church Village ,South Wales and his father was a miner.My point being if he was fit enough to be a miner he was fit enough to be at the front.So was he perhaps still a soldier who was now mining because there was perhaps a shotage of miners?

Does anyone know anything about this?

SusanPatricia

[Garron]

Not to my knowledge, I live in the Rhondda Valleys about 30 minutes away from Church Village,

Mining was a reserved occupation and they were vital for the war effort, which mean they didn't have to sign up as they were doing thier bit underground, saying that some did sign up it out of choice, the excitment of War.

I have never heard of soliders being used as miners, I am sure that would have been documented somwhere or atleast some of the older members of my family would have mentioned it as some still mention the strikes of the 20's which thier fathers were in.

I dont think there was a shortage of miners either, this was the hayday of the mines (after the 40's it started to decline slowly), pretty much every family had someone working down the mines sometimes two or three even more sometimes. Looking at the 1901 Census for my village, its mostly jobs related to the mines. Hauler, Miner, Surface worker, Cartwright, Winchman carpenter, sinker (dug the tunnels)

The chances are it was the other way around, not enough jobs for the population, as people were migrating to the Rhondda and surrounding towns to find work. (Now people move away to find work)

Gaz

[max7474]

My Great grandfather was one of those who left the safety of a rerserved occupation to enlist and siad it was the best thing he ever did as it got him out of the valleys.

Chances are your man was not fit enough to march as a solider but his leg injury did not preclude him from a mining job which was just a demanding but in one place.

Alab

[truthergw]

A man could fail a medical for the services and still be able to work in a physically demanding job. For instance, a limp would probably get him discharged but not stop him going down the pit. That assumes he was actually a face worker. There were lots of jobs for men who were not 100% fit in a colliery. Usually supplied by the pits themselves as a result of accidents. At the time of the Great War and just after, mining was an extremely dangerous job with a terrible toll of killed and injured.

[Cliff. Hobson]

There is a misconception about mining being a reserved occupation in the Great war probably brought about because it was in the 2nd World war. By the 1st of January 1915 an extract in the local paper said that 300 men from the Village pit had enlisted. Certainly some men in the Pits were looked on favourably when conscription came in my Uncle a miner volounteered under the Derby Scheme but was not called up.

With regard to their disabilities our near neighbour George Kitts ( 8th Lincs.,) lost a leg at Loos. In the 1950's I remember he was employed as an haulage engine driver underground, another chap who also lost a leg in the 14/18 war was employed in a similar capacity under ground. His engine was at the bottom of a sludgy hill he could get down with his crutch o.k. but coming back he would get a passing miner to get behind him and push him up. I am reminded on this when I see and know a number of people who are living on incapacity benefit who could do a job.

If you had suggested to the two fellows above they could have claimed Social Security benefits they would have done you an injury.

Regards Cliff.

[Chris_Baker]

It was quite possible for a soldier to serve in the mines. I have researched many cases of this. The man would have to be discharged to Class P Army Reserve. This was often applied to skilled men from various sought-after trades. They remained in the army from a pay and rations viewpoint but worked in their appointed industry.

[Moonraker]

There is a misconception about mining being a reserved occupation in the Great war ...

Regards Cliff.

In my ignorance, I would have guessed that it was a reserved occupation, and I would have thought there would have been issues about there being sufficient men in the mines. But some South Wales miners could still be spared to shovel stones onto the chalk roads of Salisbury Plain, badly cut up by military traffic. Recently I obtained a Press Bureau photograph taken on the Plain and showing such miners with an Australian Motor Transport column carrying the stones. Quite hard work, but surely not requiring miners' skills that could have been better used down the mines?

Moonraker

[david murdoch]

In my ignorance, I would have guessed that it was a reserved occupation, and I would have thought there would have been issues about there being sufficient men in the mines. But some South Wales miners could still be spared to shovel stones onto the chalk roads of Salisbury Plain, badly cut up by military traffic. Recently I obtained a Press Bureau photograph taken on the Plain and showing such miners with an Australian Motor Transport column carrying the stones. Quite hard work, but surely not requiring miners' skills that could have been better used down the mines?

Moonraker

As was raised on the previous thread, the bulk of miners were not actually regarded as skilled, as opposed to say foundry workers, shipyard workers. In my home town which was a mining town, they had a very high number of men away to the army, which must have included a fair percentage of miners. To fill the shortage older men and younger boys took up the vacant positions - apparently the accident/fatality rate was far worse! On saying that there were skilled men involved in mining eg. roadway builders, shaft sinkers, mine ventilation as opposed to underground pick and shovel navvies. I have found several local casualties who joined the infantry, but were later transferred to the Royal Engineers, and then to tunneling companies.

David