Hello everyone:
I'm new to this list and have been lurking for a couple of weeks. I am
working on a comparative history of workplace accidents and injured workers
in England and the United States, 1800-1880. Of course, much of the primary
research I have turned up has been about colliers; although my study isn't
limited to coal miners, much in the way of workplace accidents of course
revolves around them. I have found good firsthand testimony embedded in
autobiographies or in Select Committee reports or other government
investigations; in the paperwork generated in the wake of each mine
accident, at the Public Records Office; in letters to the editor of various
working-class newspapers, etc. But even having spent 5 months researching
in England last year, there were two kinds of sources that I wanted to find
and didn't:
1. Pre-1880 Personal letters or diaries from colliers or mineowners with
substantial reference to the human toll of mine accidents, or
2. Pre-1880 company records with reference to the human toll of mine
accidents (I found, for example, an accident book for a mine in Scotland,
with good descriptions of the types of accidents workers suffered, but it
was well-post-1880).
Does anyone know whether this sort of material is likely to exist for
England and Wales for this early period, or am I just thinking wishfully? I
apologize in advance if this discussion has already happened once, in which
case I hope someone will point me toward the relevant archives.
Thanks in advance for any information!
Jamie Bronstein
Assistant Professor
History Department
New Mexico State University
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