Photograph of miners finishing their shift at a Clay Cross Company colliery

This photograph shows miners at an unidentified colliery, owned by the Clay Cross Company, being brought up to the surface in a cage at the end of their shift. These cages, one for ascending and one for descending, were moved using chains connected to a winding engine. Sadly, some accidents in mines were attributed to these mechanisms failing.

The Clay Cross Company was established in 1837 by George Stevenson as a small scale business to produce coal, iron and limestone for the railways. By 1860 it was in the top three coal producers in Derbyshire after Staveley Coal & Iron Company and the Butterley Company. The company was known for its progressive attitude towards technology, helping it to become a limited company in 1913.