Coal Mining South Wales, Ironworks, Industrial Revolution Wales UK

Rhondda Heritage Park, Coal Mining in South Wales Heritage Park

Mining is the subject of history now it seems in the UK, and former miners guide you round old mines on underground trips accompanied by their commentary based on personal experience and indepth knowledge. The Rhondda Heritage Park is one of the best mining museums in the UK, situated in the heart of South Wales mining territory (there were around 66 pits in the Rhondda Valleys at one time) on the site of the former Lewis Merthyr Colliery at Trehafod. A popular attraction (especially with schools), it's a major source of income for an area previously dominated by coal mining and should be on everyone's itinerary for South Wales. You learn a lot from the guided tour, and watch out for the grand finale simulated ride on a mine cart - pretty hair-raising!

Lewis Merthyr mine closed in 1983, with the last pit in South Wales finally closing in 1990. Facing devastation, the area has revived by turning heritage into tourist attraction and alongside Blaenavon Ironworks, Big Pit and the Cefn Coed Colliery Museum, the Rhondda Heritage Park forms part of the South Wales Mining Trail (see South Wales Mining Trail weblink right). The Rhondda Heritage Park, which opened initially in 1989 as a visitor centre and saw further restoration of pit buildings throughout the 1990s, includes a trip underground to the coalface - the 'Shift in Time' Guided Tour, Black Gold Multi Media Exhibition, an Artefacts Museum, an Energy zone Adventure Playground and a restaurant, art gallery and conference facilities. The complex has excellent disabled access throughout with reserved disabled parking, ramps, lifts to the first loor and AV Loops and multilingual headsets if needed.

You'll need a good two to three hours here to get the best out of your visit. Hardships faced by mining families, strikes, resistance, unions and lockouts, and the power of bosses to lower wages and hire and fire at will are all explored in depth at this superb mining museum. The Rhondda pits had particularly deep coal seams, making them difficult to mine and highly gaseous. Explosions, roof collapses and minor accidents were common - bosses often blamed accidents on the miners themselves. Read all about this, the Tonypandy riots of 1910 and more here at the superb Rhondda Heritage Centre. Highly recommended. Watch out for the simulated rollercoaster ride at the end of the 'Shift in Time' tour!

Rhondda Heritage Park, Lewis Merthyr Colliery, Trehafod, Rhondda Cynon Taff, CF37 2NP. Tel: 01443 682036. Summer Opening Times from April to Spetember from 10am to 6pm (last tour is 4pm). Winter opening times from October to March are Tuesdays to Sundays 10am to 6pm with last tour att 4pm. It's well worth ringing to check availability of tours prior to your visit. The centre is closed from Christmas Day to early New Year.

Blaenavon Ironworks & Big Pit

Having achieved UNESCO World Heritage status in the year 2000, Blaenafon and the Blaenafon ironworks has officially been recognised as an area at the heart of Welsh mining history and a centre for iron production through the industrial revolution. It's one of the best preserved ironworks of the period on the planet! The ironworks, tourist information centre and nearby Big Pit form an entire historic mining and ironworks complex, and a key centre on the South Wales Mining trail. When building work was completed on Blaenafon Ironworks in 1788, it was one of the most technologically advanced ironworks of it's day. Fuelled by three enormous local mines, this industrial complex developed into a working industrial village with ironworkers cottages and local railway and canal transport networks. Essential visiting for those interested in social and industrial history.

Renovation work is underway, and the Ironworks is due to open to the public in April 2007. This enormous ironworks was once the world's biggest but soon overtaken by the bigger blast furnaces of Cyfarthfa at nearby Merthyr Tydfil, and there's a local social history display with plenty of photographs and press clippings offering an insight into the dire conditions that iron worker and coal mining families lived under in the late 19th and early 20th century.

At nearby Big Pit, the centre for the National Mining Museum of Wales, you can take an underground tour of the mine accompanied by ex-miners, and on the surface view the winding engine house, pithead baths and a blacksmiths workshop. Essential viewing, Big Pit was sunk in 1860 and ceased production completely in February 1980. Some parts of Big Pit's workings date as far back as 1810 - Big Pit actually sits on the site of the earlier mine Kearsley Pit. Called Big Pit for the size of it's elliptical shaft which could accommodation two trams of coal side by side, the first to do so. Nine different coal seems were worked here at one time!

Blaenavon Ironworks & Big Pit Mining Museum Visitor Information

Blaenavon Tourist Information Centre & Blaenavon Ironworks, North Street, Blaenavon, Torfaen, NP4 9RQ. Tel: 01495 792615. (Blaenavon Ironworks and Wales Underground/Big Pit websites are to the right).

Continuing on the South Wales Mining History trail, visit the Pontypool Museum which houses a fine local industrial collection of artefacts including items from mining, iron ore production, steel and glass making. Pontypool Museum, situated close to Pontypool town centre on the edge of Pontypool Park. Free parking, including disabled parking is adjacent, plus there's a gift shop and coffee shop on-site. Tel: 01495 752036 for details, and check the weblink right.