West Street Stories - Exhibition of heritage artwork for Futures Past

by the West Street Heritage Group for Futures Past

This artwork is produced by children at Compass Point School, who have learned about the West Street coalmine and the lives of the miners. The exhibition focuses on the pit explosion of 13th August 1891 when 10 men were killed.

In 2016, the West Street Neighbourhood Group organised a two day pop up museum in the United Reformed Church Hall. 500+ people visited, many with stories and photos of their lives on and around our high street. The Facebook page West Street Stories became our archive.

A partnership with local charity Gathering Voices is now enabling us to work within their Futures Past project to create:

• an on-line Storymap which will contain maps, memories, photos,

drawings, and voices of people who lived and worked here

• this exhibition in partnership with Compass Point School

COTTAGES TO TENEMENT With prehistoric and Roman origins, our neighbourhood remained rural and given over to agriculture throughout the 16th-18th centuries. By the early 19th century, with the advent of coal mining and other industries, a significant change from agricultural to residential was evident. COAL

By the end of the 18th century there were eighteen coal-pits operating in the Bedminster and Ashton Vale coalfield. In 1868 a UK report stated that coal worked in Bedminster was 3,776,587 tons and coal unworked 127,354,300 tons. The Malago and Argus shafts on West Street - where Tesco now stands - were opened in the 1840’s and closed in 1898. Rock Cottage, the home of Managing Director Mr Bennett, and the Mine Manager’s cottage at the corner of Argus Road remain to this day.

West Street Heritage Group exhibition - Gathering Voices Futures Past.pdf

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