14/01/1981

Ponies were originally introduced to replace women and children in the arduous and backbreaking task of hauling coal and machinery from surface to coalface. The ponies were usually stabled at the base of the shaft and only saw daylight during the colliery's annual holiday.

Despite these harsh conditions there were strict regulations governing the treatment of the animals and a close bond often developed between man and horse where a driver typically worked with the same animal for the duration of its working life.