There was a great spirit at ‘pit of nations’ – but life was hard
This year for Black History Month, the Nottingham Post has chosen to feature the contributions of the black community to one of the county’s best-known industries - coal mining. Reporter GURJEET NANRAH talks to a retired black miner about his experiences.
Gedling was known as the pit of nations due to its diverse workforce. Picture taken in the 1960s
LOOKING back on his time as a coal miner at Gedling Colliery, Lincoln Cole has warm memories of the camaraderie he enjoyed with his fellow workers.
Mr Cole, now 87, was one of a large number of black miners who worked there. Due to its ethnically mixed workforce, it became known as the ‘pit of nations.’
Coal-mining is not an easy job and, on top of that, as a mining historian has confirmed, some black workers experienced racism.
Born in Kingston, Jamaica Mr Cole, 87, travelled to the UK at a time when people from Commonwealth countries were being employed in British industries.
Mr Cole took a boat to Britain and, after settling in Nottingham, began working at Gedling in 1965.
The former coalface worker, who now lives in Wollaton, said: “I came here when I was only 19. England as the mother country was recruiting us so anyone could come to England at the time.
“It was a boat trip at £75 or a plane at £85.
“I had no family in Nottingham and I was staying in London first with a man who was asked to look after me. It was around 1959 when I came to Nottingham.
“There were one or two black people around at the time. I had a friend in Nottingham so I came to visit him for a drink and ended up staying here.”
Mr Cole’s first job was at a manufacturing plant in Spondon, where items such as batteries were made. He then moved to into the mining industry and worked at
Gedling. Mr Cole said there were quite a few other West Indians working at Gedling when he started. “I lived in the Arboretum at the time but moved to Radford.
“I had training in the Hucknall area for around six weeks and started in Gedling doing the nights as a trainee. Then I went on to the coalface.
“It was quite a scary job. It was rough, but honestly, there was always someone to give you a helping hand. I had lots of people who I worked with who I was good friends with. I got to work with a friend who picked me up or had to pay to get on the bus.
“Back then it could be dangerous for you as a black man, especially after 6 o’clock. It was very, very hard in those times and I kept telling myself not to retaliate.
“Overall, there was a great spirit and there were always jokes to play on each other.”
Mr Cole also reflected on a bad injury he sustained at work.
He said: “I got caught in a machine once and crushed my hip. I spent three or four months in hospital and then I worked until I was fit again.
“To me, it’s sad that the coal industry isn’t here any more. I think it should be still going because we are paying money for gas now instead.
“I left the mine in 1987 and during my time there I progressed to be a charge-hand.
“At the end, there was a note on my lamp saying I could take severance or I was told I could go to another pit. I chose to leave and finished quickly after then.”
Norma Gregory, a mining historian from Gedling who has focused on the experience of black miners, said: “Mining museums should not just be about the machinery we used, it should be about the people who made great sacrifices to work down in the pits.
“There were a lot of black miners who worked at Gedling before it closed in 1991. It was where most of them in Nottinghamshire worked. Many of them stayed in the mines for years doing tough work and their contributions are part of British industrial history.
“We will never know exactly how many black miners there were in the county because the records are not that accessible any more.
“I think all the miners I’ve spoken to remember it as a great job, particularly the camaraderie between workers. The reality is that some of them did have experiences of racism and sadly, that’s just what it was like at the time.”
To me, it’s sad that the coal industry isn’t here any more. I think it should still be going.
Lincoln Cole