This is a diary of a lead miner and covers the period from 1877 to 1886. Coincidently, his name Bradwell is identical to the same named village here in the Peak District. The Bradwell name goes back a number of generations. Jabez reflects the phenominal change that Britons have endured as industry comes and goes. Lead mining was a tough job and lots of miners died, and many were injured. Consequently, as they reached retirement, being forced into charity was all too common. That was the workhouse. Consequently, they could only hope that their children could support them and keep the family independent. The lead mining declined and this diary mirrors that period. The politicians in Westminster removed the tariffs with no thought about the lead industry. The Jabez Bradwell diary is both uplifting and depressing.

Mining life

The miners could live a raucus life and many did. However, there were many fine aspects. Firstly, many miners put the money from lead ore into buying houses and land. Consequently, the village of Bradwell had a lot of house owners and each one had a vote. That meant the hustings came to the village and people felt that they could influence politics. Secondly, the village, and mining, was also somewhat counteractive to the Anglican Church. Primitive Methodists and other free churches dominated and they both educated children and managed society. The pomposity of the Church of England had little sway. Their ministers often lacked all understanding of the mining culture. It could not last, of course, and as the mining declined then so did these alternative religions. A whole way of life disappeared.

The Jabez Bradwell Diary

A visitor to Bradwell today would find it difficult to identify this mining world. Firstly, the limestone region of the Peak District was the principal lead supplier to the Roman Empire, of which there is now no mining evidence. Secondly, that the area was, as we entered the Industrial Revolution, still the principal lead centre of the world. Today, the miners cottages are second homes and the lead rakes have been manicured. The vertical shafts have been covered over and all the miners are dead and buried. Nonetheless, here is a diary that will display the spirit, innovation and sheer grit of hardy hill people. Consequently, Jabez was the last of the miners, but he left a fascinating record.

PS: For a copy of the diary at £5.00 go to Bradwell Historical Society