A FORMER mining community is marking six decades since the closure of the biggest colliery in the region.

Frog Lane pit, in Coalpit Heath, was a way of life for hundreds of miners and their families for close to a century.

Sunk in 1853, the coal pit remained open for production until natural resources were exhausted and rising water levels became too dangerous to continue. But the hours and hours spent in darkness down the shaft have left a lasting legacy in the local community. And 60 years since its closure, a major project to remember the people from the pit has been launched. Ali Dent reports.

FOR the remaining members of the mining community in Coalpit Heath, theirs is a dying trade.

The men and boys who braved the shaft at Frog Lane colliery during the late 1800s through to 1949 battled the dangers of the dark below every day of their working lives. Literally risking life and limb to earn no more than £1 for a 10-hour shift, their contribution to the biggest industry in the region was nothing short of courageous.

Their efforts are now being commemorated in a project, Frog Lane 1949-2009, orchestrated by the South Gloucestershire Mines Research Group.

Steve Grudgings, from the group, said: "Over the past year the group and Yate Heritage Centre have been working together on an exciting oral history project to capture the memories of ex miners and their families.

"This is the first time that we know of that an oral history project, DVD, major exhibition and a significant publication have been combined in such a way to recall working and community life 60 years ago."

David Hardill, community heritage officer at Yate Heritage Centre, said: "There were lots of smaller pits around but Frog Lane was the big one.

"About 200 people would have been working there at any one time, not just on the face but working with the ponies, on the railway and as blacksmiths.

"It was very demanding work and many wanted to work in the mine because the more coal they came out with the higher the wage."

A series of public events, including an exhibition on life down the mines at Yate Heritage Centre, a book detailing the history of Frog Lane colliery and a series of walks around the area, were launched at a lunch for miners and their families.

It was opened by Northavon MP Steve Webb at the Coalpit Heath Miners’ Institute on Badminton Road.

He said: "It was a privilege to meet the miners and great fun chatting. I hope people will come to the exhibition and buy the book to understand more about how much who we are now, as a community, depends on these men and the communities their families forged."

The exhibition will be on display at Yate Heritage Centre until July 6.

Said Mr Hardill: "As well as learning all about the unique lives of miners at the pit and their families in Coalpit Heath, there will be a wide range of objects from the local mining industry including a full size dram and lamps.

"This should appeal to both general visitors and mining enthusiasts in equal measure."

The book, The History of Frog Lane, is also available to buy. Visit www.sgmrg.co.uk/2009froglane Mr Grudgings will be giving a talk on the history of the colliery at Yate Heritage Centre on Tuesday, May 19 (7.30pm). Call 01454 862200 to book a place.