To add to your mining women Mrs M Maginnis owned a barytes mine at Wotherton
from 1875-81, a Mr Maginnis, presumable her husband had owned it previously.
Michael Shaw
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lynne Mayers" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, April 19, 2005 11:02 AM
Subject: [MINING-HISTORY] Women at mines
Thank you to everyone who contributed to this conversation. Most helpful! I
look forward to Mike Gill's paper very much, also to any other references
that people may have buried deep in the memory aomewhere!
I don't think there is an answer to this question, but I am puzzled by the
history of women partners and partnerships for dressing in
Weardale/Yorkshire Dales etc, which also seems to happen at the Calstock
smelters early 1300's, cf. dressing as part of the tribute team in SW later.
It wasn't an unquestioning acceptance of Roger Burt's assumption about women
not being employed after about 1840 'up north' - and while lack of written
record certainly doesn't mean absence - I'm guessing that relatively small
scale enterprises would probably employ boys before they employ women. But
obviously not so earlier. Similarly I am perplexed by the emergence of
female tin trades in Truro circa 1700, and active women mine or clay works
managers in Cornwall mid 19th century. They were all widows, presumambly
continuing in their husband's footsteps, but in a very active way. I do not
know whether there were certain social conditions prevailing that 'allowed'
these windows of opportunity, whether the general view on the employment of
women was more relaxed than we are led to believe, or whether these were
exceptional women grasping an opportunity (and succeeding), or a bit of all
three!
Lynne Mayers
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