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Boy dragging coal wagon with harness and chain in mine
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Boy dragging coal wagon with harness and chain in mine
A boy with a harness and chain between his legs drags a heavy coal truck along a low underground passage in a mine at Halifax, Yorkshire. An official investigation in 1842 revealed that children as young as seven were being apprenticed to work in mines, in some cases placed there by workhouses
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Media ID 4470413
© Mary Evans Picture Library 2015 - https://copyrighthub.org/s0/hub1/creation/maryevans/MaryEvansPictureID/10424747
1840s 1842 Apprentice Apprenticeship Chain Coal Conditions Dragging Halifax Harness Heavy Investigation L Aw Legs Mine Mines Mining Official Passage Poor Poverty Pulling Truck Under Ground Workhouse Workhouses Apprenticed
EDITORS COMMENTS
This evocative photograph captures the harsh realities of child labor in the Victorian-era coal mines of Halifax, Yorkshire, during the 1840s. The young boy in the image, no older than ten or eleven, is seen struggling to drag a heavy coal truck along a low, damp underground passageway. He is harnessed to the wagon with a thick chain, which is secured between his legs, forcing him to use his entire body weight to move the load. The scene is a stark reminder of the poverty and destitution that drove families to send their children to work in the mines, often as apprentices, in place of starving in the workhouses. An official investigation in 1842 revealed that children as young as seven were being employed in the mines, with some being placed there by the workhouses themselves. The conditions in the mines were notoriously dangerous and unhealthy, with long hours, low wages, and a high risk of injury or death. The use of child labor was a common practice in the mining industry during this period, and the image serves as a poignant reminder of the human cost of the industrial revolution. The photograph is a powerful testament to the resilience and determination of the children who labored in the mines, as well as the inadequacy of the social welfare systems in place during the time. It also highlights the importance of historical investigations and the role they play in shedding light on the often overlooked aspects of our past.
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