European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 16, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Photos by Gus Schuettler retired Miner Wilf Hayes is now a our visitors Don hard hats to go info the mines by King Cruces Bureau chief Britain development As a great Industrial nation was based on and that Energy was now you can Trace the Story of Coal and descend 700 feet underground at the Chatterley Whitfield mining museum at the mining history of the potteries area is considerably longer than for the making of the monks of Hulton Abbey Are said to have come for Coal in the 14th and 15th centuries to a Little North of the at one the Chatterley Whitfield mine was the largest in it stopped production in reopened three years later As a mining and today is one of the few in Britain that open to the Chatterley Whitfield Coal is mined from the Wolstanton Colliery four Miles away Chatterley Whitfield Coal was Ideal for firing the kilns of the potteries and with the expansion of the potteries Industry in the 1870s and its growing need for new railway lines were added from the mine to enable Coal delivery to the very doors of pot Coal output grew steadily with the opening up of additional seams and newer techniques at the mine and by 1900 it became the first pit in Britain to disgorge 1 million tons a in that men and boys were employed on the surface and Chatterley Whitfield reached its Peak in 1937 when million tons were by 1957 output had dwindled to tons a the mine closed completely in 1977 and plans were made to open a the National Coal Board handed Over 18 acres of Plant and machinery to the City of which in turn leased it to a museum the Trust had one great problem it simply could not afford to pay the salaries of the skilled men needed to ensure the safety of the but the Trust found the Ideal it sought the support of local retired miners and came up with a team of 4050 they include electricians and guides who All enjoy the Chance to go underground our oldest Harold is he can remember when All the work below was done by hand and pit ponies worked underground with the Bob the museums told a couple of recent visitors before turning them Over to guide Wilf who first went Down to work in the mines in led the visitors to the mines which once housed lamps for men at one visitors Are outfitted with safety Cap lamps and Riding checks Little tags that serve to count people in and out of the the lamp room now also includes visitor exhibitions and a museum shop Selling mining books and first after visitors Are outfitted is the Drift gallery containing reconstructed scenes of miners at showing the methods of yesterday together with the advanced technology of the modern mining a notice warning of penalties for carrying contraband inflammable materials underground not Only still remains still and All elevator towers wheels now Only turn for display shows the Early Days of another display of the Early Days of some miners started to work at the age of automatic Coal Cutter with conveyor called the but advancing props and roof support remained a manual a look into a control room of a modern combustibles Are surrendered by visitors before going Down in the pit the colossal steam winding capable of hauling tons of Coal to the surface 50 times an is still in immaculate condition and it is used to lower visitors and guides Down 700 feet at 10 feet per second in a rickety some five feet High with Chain mesh As its the atmosphere is cold and Damp so deep below the although Coal miners working at the Coal face used to strip to the fort five stalls for the pit ponies Are still Down although the last Pony was retired from the mine in the visitors learn much to their Surprise that 74 ponies still labor underground elsewhere in British the tour below ground takes about an hour and visitors cover about three quarters of a during that seams radiate five and six Miles from the main Shaft but they Are closed now for safety scenes of min working Flash on and off in the beam of visitors lamps As they pass by reconstructions of what conditions were like in the our explained that conditions were pretty primitive in the mines in the not Distant until 1938 the Chatterley Whitfield miners had no pit head Baths in which to Wash and Only primitive refreshment up until the time of world War when helmets were introduced from the United states to hold the electric he miners wore Only cloth Caps on their before going Down below we were a bit apprehensive about the once we had returned to the we had experienced a Little of life Down a mine and knew that it want for the museum is open every Day 9 to 5 last tour starts at from March 1 through the end of september and during the rest of the year its open every Day but allow at least two hours for the whole visit and Wear Stout shoes and serviceable clothing the museum will provide the visitors Are taken in groups of about 11 children under 10 Are not normally allowed in the mine but All other including the Drift Are open to admission is pounds about for adults arid pounds about for a special family ticket costing pounds about admits two adults and up to three for further Telephone Stoke Trent 0782 the museum is served by buses from Newcastle under Lyme and by follow signs to Tunstall and the museum is signposted from ample free parking is 10 stripes Magazine May May stripes Magazine 11