A pit pony pulling a tub full of coal at Brinsley Colliery, Nottinghamshire, 1913. Artist: Rev FW Cobb

A pit pony pulling a tub full of coal at Brinsley Colliery, Nottinghamshire, 1913. Coal has been mined in the Eastwood area for nearly 700 years. Originally , the monks of Beauvale Priory held the coal mining rights and there may have been shallow workings dating further back to Roman times. By the 1870s the good quality 'top hard' coal at Brinsley had been almost exhausted and a second shaft was sunk in 1872 to a depth of 780 feet. At its peak of production the colliery produced around 500 tons of coal a day and employed 361 men, 282 of whom worked at the coal faces. The Brinsley Colliery site has now been landscaped and turned into a picnic area. Many of his photographs were taken under extremely difficult and dangerous conditions and combined to make a remarkable Many of his photographs were taken under extremely difficult and dangerous conditions and combine to make a remarkable contribution to mining history during the early part of the 20th century Artist: Rev FW Cobb