Just Henry, by Henry Bairsto, subtitled 'Memories of Bradford and Moston Collieries, Manchester'
Booklet published by Neil Richardson in 1991, 38 pages. A4 size booklet (N4090).
The author was born in Manchester in 1917, and when he was 14 he left school and started work at the Ridgefield Mill. But some months later the Mill closed, and Henry was forced to seek work again, eventually securing a job at Bradford Colliery. H worked in the coal mines for the next 8 or 9 years, leaving in 1939 for a job in a factory making aircraft. In this booklet he writes about his experiences working down the pit, and it offers a fascinating insight into what life was like for miners at that time.
From the introduction: My main purpose in writing this book is to illustrate the harsh conditions endured by all those men who worked in the many coal mines throughout the British isles...... Sections in the booklet include:
- The shadow of poverty
- A new beginning
- Guardians of the street
- Looking for work
- First day at Bradford Pit
- Deeper down
- The Mine inspector and others
- Philips Park
- Moston Colliery
- The unpaid holidays
- The Public Houses
- The sick visitor
- Pit routine
- Farewell to the pit
Condition of the booklet is excellent. The cover is clean and bright, the staple spine is tight and intact and all pages are clean, intact, unblemished and tightly bound. Has an old price printed on the front cover, and a small price sticker on the rear side
Condition | New |