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A hurrier, also sometimes called a coal drawer or coal thruster, was a child or woman employed by a collier to transport the
The Worst Jobs in History - Hurrier
. Accessed from the
The Nature Of Work
". Accessed 17 February 2007. Some children came from the
Ages at which children and young persons are employed in coal mines
". Accessed 17 February 2007.Rev. T. M. Eddy. July 1854.
. Freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com, Accessed 17 February 2007. The younger ones often worked in small teams, with those pushing the corf from the rear being known as thrusters. The thrusters often had to push the corf using their heads, leading to the hair on their crown being worn away and the child becoming bald. Some children were employed as coal trappers, particularly those not yet strong enough to pull or push the corf. This job saw the child sit in a small cutting waiting for the hurriers to approach. They would then open the trapdoors to allow the hurrier and his cargo through. The trappers also opened the trapdoors to provide ventilation in some locations.Durham Mining Museum,
. Accessed 19 February 2007.Riley, Bill. Pitwork.net.
". Accessed 13 November 2009. As mines grew larger the volume of coal extracted increased beyond the pulling capabilities of children. Instead, horses guided by coal drivers were used to pull the corves. These drivers were usually older children between the ages of 10 and 14.
In August 1842 the Children's Employment Commission drew up an act of Parliament which gave a minimum working age for boys in mines, though the age varied between districts and even between mines. The Mines and Collieries Act 1842 also outlawed the employment of women and girls in mines. In 1870 it became compulsory for all children aged between five and thirteen to go to school, ending much of the hurrying. It was still a common profession for school leavers well into the 1920s.
The 1969 song ''The Testimony of Patience Kershaw'' by Frank Higgins (recorded by Roy Bailey and The Unthanks) is based on the testimony of Patience Kershaw (aged 17) when she spoke to the Children's Employment Commission. Her testimony includes: "The bald place upon my head is made by thrusting the corves ... I hurry the corves a mile and more underground and back; they weigh 3 cwt ... The getters that I work for are naked except for their caps ... Sometimes they beat me if I am not quick enough". It was published in ''My Song Is My Own'' (compiled by Kathy Henderson, Pluto Press, 1979)."Although the Honourable Gentlemen of the Commission may have been hearing the shocking news for the first time, contemporary songs and broadsheets, like "The Collier Lass", had made the predicament of the women and children working in the mines common knowledge in the streets."--Henderson, K. et al. ''My Song Is My Own''; pp. 151-52
Mining in the Victorian Age
– National Coal Mining Museum for England.
The Pit in Poems
– This Is Lancashire. Child labour Coal mining History of mining Obsolete occupations Resource extraction occupations
coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen.
Coal is formed when ...
that they had mined. Women would normally get the children to help them because of the difficulty of carrying the coal. Common particularly in the early 19th century, the hurrier pulled a corf (basket or small wagon) full of coal along roadways as small as in height. They would often work 12-hour shifts, making several runs down to the coal face and back to the surface again.Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...
. The Worst Jobs in History - Hurrier
. Accessed from the
Wayback Machine
The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by the Internet Archive, a nonprofit based in San Francisco, California. Created in 1996 and launched to the public in 2001, it allows the user to go "back in time" and see ...
on 13 November 2009.HalifaxToday.co.uk. The Nature Of Work
". Accessed 17 February 2007. Some children came from the
workhouse
In Britain, a workhouse () was an institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. (In Scotland, they were usually known as poorhouses.) The earliest known use of the term ''workhouse' ...
s and were apprenticed to the colliers. Adults could not easily do the job because of the size of the roadways, which were limited on the grounds of cost and structural integrity. Hurriers were equipped with a "gurl" belt – a leather belt with a swivel chain linked to the corf. They were also given candles as it was too expensive to light the whole mine.
Roles
Children as young as three or four were employed, with both sexes contributing to the work.North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers
The North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers (NEIMME), commonly known as The Mining Institute, is a British Royal Chartered learned society and membership organisation dedicated to advancing science and technology in the N ...
. 2007. Ages at which children and young persons are employed in coal mines
". Accessed 17 February 2007.Rev. T. M. Eddy. July 1854.
. Freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com, Accessed 17 February 2007. The younger ones often worked in small teams, with those pushing the corf from the rear being known as thrusters. The thrusters often had to push the corf using their heads, leading to the hair on their crown being worn away and the child becoming bald. Some children were employed as coal trappers, particularly those not yet strong enough to pull or push the corf. This job saw the child sit in a small cutting waiting for the hurriers to approach. They would then open the trapdoors to allow the hurrier and his cargo through. The trappers also opened the trapdoors to provide ventilation in some locations.Durham Mining Museum,
. Accessed 19 February 2007.Riley, Bill. Pitwork.net.
". Accessed 13 November 2009. As mines grew larger the volume of coal extracted increased beyond the pulling capabilities of children. Instead, horses guided by coal drivers were used to pull the corves. These drivers were usually older children between the ages of 10 and 14.
Working conditions
Workers in coal mines were naked due to the heat and the narrow tunnels that would catch on clothing. Men and boys worked completely naked, while women and girls would generally strip to the waist; but in some mines might be naked also. In testimony before a Parliamentary commission, it was stated that working naked in confined spaces "... it is not to be supposed but that where opportunity thus prevails sexual vices are of common occurrence."Legislation
In August 1842 the Children's Employment Commission drew up an act of Parliament which gave a minimum working age for boys in mines, though the age varied between districts and even between mines. The Mines and Collieries Act 1842 also outlawed the employment of women and girls in mines. In 1870 it became compulsory for all children aged between five and thirteen to go to school, ending much of the hurrying. It was still a common profession for school leavers well into the 1920s.
The 1969 song ''The Testimony of Patience Kershaw'' by Frank Higgins (recorded by Roy Bailey and The Unthanks) is based on the testimony of Patience Kershaw (aged 17) when she spoke to the Children's Employment Commission. Her testimony includes: "The bald place upon my head is made by thrusting the corves ... I hurry the corves a mile and more underground and back; they weigh 3 cwt ... The getters that I work for are naked except for their caps ... Sometimes they beat me if I am not quick enough". It was published in ''My Song Is My Own'' (compiled by Kathy Henderson, Pluto Press, 1979)."Although the Honourable Gentlemen of the Commission may have been hearing the shocking news for the first time, contemporary songs and broadsheets, like "The Collier Lass", had made the predicament of the women and children working in the mines common knowledge in the streets."--Henderson, K. et al. ''My Song Is My Own''; pp. 151-52
See also
* Glossary of coal mining terminology * CarusuReferences
External links
{{WiktionaryMining in the Victorian Age
– National Coal Mining Museum for England.
The Pit in Poems
– This Is Lancashire. Child labour Coal mining History of mining Obsolete occupations Resource extraction occupations