Photo-a-Day (Tuesday, 9th February, 2021)
Number Five Pit, Aspull
Bottom left: the girl under the arrow is my Grandma who worked at the Pit until she married in 1916.
Middle: In 2002 the shaft was uncovered and underground dereliction was cleared up before the site was made safe and the area restored.
Bottom right: A map of the area when the Mine was working.
Photo: Dennis Seddon (Sony DSC-WX500)
Too close to the shaft ,
Where men bled with graft ,
Toiled every day ,
To bring back a pay ,
So kids could be fed ,
Have roof overhead ,
So respect where you build ,
Some left to be spilled ,
So we could be warm ,
And cotton mills born ,
For engines to run ,
From coal by the ton ,
So respect where you build ,
This land that’s now filled ,
Is not a bare piece of space ,
But land with a face ,
Of those who once toiled here before ...
' e ' that is such a good verse, to the point & should make us all remember things are not what they appear to be. Thank you.
I should also have said thank you for a very interesting photo Dennis !
What a great bit of history in three photos, and the poem says it all doesn't it.
How lovely Dennis to have a photo of your Grandma as a young girl...thank you for the photo and the details.
Very interesting photos and a lovely, thought-provoking poem.
It's as if the land we call Mother Earth is indifferent and oblivious to the lives of mere mortals. She stifles their groans and weariness with new growth. As bleak as it sounds the land will always be there but we move on. There's only echoes left of what was.
I think I'd best go and lie down now.
Forgot to say what very interesting photos Dennis , I knew they were yours as soon as I looked at them. A bit of work has gone into the posting. x
Well done, Dennis.
A then and now with a good deal of historical interest.
Interesting photos Dennis ,from past and present, well presented .
Rev David, put a photo and bit info about this pit on this albums.
Carol Littler's image of the pit plaque for No.5 Moor Pit, Aspull (subject of today's - 9/2/2021 - Photo-a-Day). It is in the Royal British Legion Club across Scot Lane from the site of the pit.
The first name on the list is that of Lt. George Stanley James, one of the four sons of the Vicar of Haigh who were killed in the Great War. He was Assistant Manager at the pit, and was killed, alongside many miners from Wigan, with the 1st/5th Manchesters at Gallipoli
What a great bit of history in three photos, and the poem says it all doesn't it.
How lovely Dennis to have a photo of your Grandma as a young girl...thank you for the photo and the details.
A very intriguing story, Dennis, also good to have your Grandma's photo too e the poem says it all.
Well Dennis, what a fantastic piece of history for everyone to enjoy. Being a lad from Aspull it does hold special memories for me, as young lads we played here and I remember the shaft very well. Though it had been backfilled many years previously when the mine closed sometime during the 1950s the shaft wall became visible again and as kids we would jump down into it, perhaps about 3 ft deep by then as the backfill was sinking. As children we played on the rooks that were created from the waste from that mine, long before any shops, houses or school. Thanks for bringing back so many fond memories of childhood days Dennis, well done.
Many a battle with the Indians were fought out on those rooks Walt. The Cowboys always won, just like in the films.
Sometimes we battled with the Germans and, strangely enough, we always beat them as well!
the dutch house on the right as subsidence because of it good photo dennis
YES Dennis ! why was I always dressed as an Indian ?
Honestly, I can remember when we uncovered a WW2 hand grenade in that shaft, thankfully, it had been made safe but ,we didn't know that we were about 7 tears old at the time.
ooops ! 7 years old I meant Dennis.
Ooh, what stories you all have and thanks to Dennis. Childhood was a wonderful part of life.
Lovely set of photos Dennis,of my favourite area of Wigan and district.Perhaps somehow invoking thoughts of our own relatively short lifespan.
Sometimes I think we forget how much mining was done in the Wigan area and that many live not far from some form of mining or workings
Thank you 'e' for the photograph and thank you Mick for the history, it made interesting reading. The No.5 Pit Aspull photo is brilliant Dennis.
Peter, its recorded that there was 1016 pit shafts within a 5 mile radius of Wigan Parish Church, some just family Bell pits others small drift mines.