Mining in South Wales 1956 - Archive Film 19559

South Wales mining. Three stories from Wales. Glamorgan.
The Groesfaen pit in the Rhymney Valley. The story of how the colliery manager has overcome the problem of dropping barometric pressure and shot firing. The pit head and winding wheel. The shot firer Tom Jones. He checks barometer and collects his lamp. Two men with illuminated lamps descend in the lift. Lamp room attendant writes in ledge. Colliery manager rigs up device to enable messsage to be passed to shot firer when he is down the pit. Barometer reading 28. Man in lamp room winds telephone and picks it up. He speaks into mouthpiece. Miner below ground uses telephone. Miners leaving pithead. Miners walk up long curving external staircase.
Monmouthshire. In valley between Crumlin and Pontypool. Coal mine of Aber Gurynys? Railway man holds out flag to steaming steam train. Passenger train passing camera position. The construction of a new pre-fabricated concrete bridge. Surveyors at work. Large caterpillar tracked vehicle with 'Wimey' (sic) on side. A Wimpey crane. Men manhandling crane hook. Moving bridge into place. Children are amongst a party touring the work site. They wear miners' hats. The party in a small line of trucks travelling in a drift into the new mine towards the mine in the adjoining valley - Glyntillery. Underground, several loaded coal wagons pass the camera position. Electric locomotive transports rock away from workface along a newly lined tunnel. Line of rock laden wagons. Lifting last span of bridge into position. Men look on. Crane has Wimey written on it. Preparing the new coal preparaion plant. Crane working. Miners leave pit.
Glamorgan - Aberdare. Centre of the town and a statue of a conducor silhouetted. Bas passing through. Various views of roof tops in Aberdare area. Lines of washing and the backs of back to back housing. Three tall industrial chimneys, one smoking with a stationary coal bucket cable way passing in front of them. Road sign for the A470 road to Merthyr Tydfil. Road signs of town names - Trharris and Mountain Ash. Cyfartha Castle and ruins of the early nearby iron and steel industry. Dowlais industrial dereliction and pan along town. Man holds child by hand as they walk past a line of terraced single storey wooden shacks - real slums with slate roofs. Very poor housing conditions with pit head behind. A steep road in a town with two children in foreground. Nigh time shots of local factory including Bondor factory. Day time shot of a smart new factory with coal slag heap in background. Commentary says 'Many men left mining to work in the factories which were set up to exploit the new skills to which pitmen could turn their hands'. Men walking into pit cage - 'Today men are beginning to come back on the coal'. Machinery digging coal automatically in this area near Aberdare. Automatic coal extracting machine works with water spraying over attendant miner. The man closes his eyes as he gets soaked. Trelewis Colliery has waterlogged coal seams. Coal on conveyor belts. Machine is called a 'continuous miner'. Roof drips. Deep Duffryn Colliery pit head. Modernised layout underground. New lined tunnels. In the eight years since nationalisation, output has been raised by one quarter. Miner pushes button on automated machine below ground. The showpiece pit of Maerdy at the head of the Little Rhondda valley. Mountain side. Bwllfa Pit. Aberdare College of Further Education. Apprentices walk down staircase. In a practical class, man shows boys machinery. Training apprentice colliery electricians and mechanics. The Furnacite Plant at Aberaman is expanding. The neighbouring power station. The interior with man rushing up stairs to the power room which has been modernised and re-equipped. Long shot of new housing in the valley bottom.