"A meticulous mixture of social and family history . . . Whether or not you have mining connections, this is an interesting socio-economic read." —Your Family Tree
In the 1920s there were over a million coalminers working in over 3000 collieries across Great Britain, and the industry was one of the most important and powerful in British history. It dominated the lives of generations of individuals, their families, and communities, and its legacy is still with us today—many of us have a coalmining ancestor.
Yet family historians often have problems in researching their mining forebears. Locating the relevant records, finding the sites of the pits, and understanding the work involved and its historical background can be perplexing. That is why Brian Elliott's concise, authoritative and practical handbook will be so useful, for it guides researchers through these obstacles and opens up the broad range of sources they can go to in order to get a vivid insight into the lives and experiences of coalminers in the past.
His overview of the coalmining history—and the case studies and research tips he provides—will make his book rewarding reading for anyone looking for a general introduction to this major aspect of Britain's industrial heritage. His directory of regional and national sources and his commentary on them will make this guide an essential tool for family historians searching for an ancestor who worked in coalmining underground, on the pit top or just lived in a mining community.
As featured in
Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine and the
Barnsley Chronicle.

- 266 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
About this book
Information
Print ISBN
9781848842397
Subtopic
British HistoryTable of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Contents
- Acknowledgements
- ‘A day I shall never forget’
- Glossary
- Introduction
- Part 1: The Miner in Context
- Part 2: Where to Find Information
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Yes, you can access Tracing Your Coalmining Ancestors by Brian Elliott in PDF and/or ePUB format. We have over 1.5 million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.