I thought I would use my journal to introduce myself and let you know what is going on in regards to my research.
My name is Lynsey and I am a 20 yr old history student from Scotland, studying at Glasgow Caledonian University. My main historical interests are WW1 and the history of occupational health 1850-1914. Currently living inbetween my parents' house and my boyfriend's in Ayrshire, which was essentially a mining and industrial community until Thatcher's reign of terror and now it's down the pan like other similar communities.
My interests in mining started with my father's career. Who left the UK in the early 1960s to move to Cassiar, British Columbia to start as an asbestos miner. He lived there for several years until his divorce from the evil ex-wife led him to move to Papua New Guinea to work with Rio Tinto and other related companies. He lived in Bouganville for a couple of years doing copper mining I think. He moved all over the world really doing all types of mining where jobs came up, his passport heralds work in countries such as, South Africa, Japan, America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand to name but a few. The only mine he worked in for a couple of weeks in the UK was a tin mine in Cornwall, can't remember the name for the life of me! When he moved back formally in the late 1970s, god knows why, the majority of mines were on the brink of collapse and jobs were few in our area. So essentially, he was left with a trade and no work, so he left mining to get into quarrying and now he is self-employed.
Occupational health was also an issue for my father. He has not lived in Cassiar for years but he has extremely itchy hands now, which the doctors have attributed to handling and working close with asbestos. This made me fascinated in the occupational health of miners, so I started reading into the broader history of occupational health. I have came across an industrial illness called ankylostomiasis, which affected the lives of many Cornish miners in the 19th and early 10th centuries, which is essentially an intestinal complaint caused by hookworms, which has been attributed to the lack of sanitation and toilet facilities underground during this period. This is going to be the focus of my honours dissertation, which i shall be researching 2009-2010. If anyone has any information in regards to this complaint in Cornwall or anywhere else in the UK, I would be more than glad to hear from you.
Anyways, enough rambing for now...I hope to hear from you all soon 🙂