Liz Swift 1848-1938, part 1

Thursday 18th February, 2010

In the 1930s Liz Swift was often seen sitting outside her house in City Road, Kitt Green. The drawing opposite (copied from a photograph) shows her dressed in an apron and clogs. She is smoking a clay pipe.

This exceptional woman, then in her late eighties, bore testament to an earlier, harsher era. She signed documents with a cross as she had received no schooling and therefore could neither read nor write. Even more extraordinary, it is said that she worked down the mine when she was only 12 years old.

Liz was born at Higher Lane, Upholland in 1848. The 1851 census shows that her father was John Swift, a “delph labourer” (quarryman), and her mother was also named Elizabeth. She had two older sisters, three older brothers and one who was younger.

This was a typical Victorian working class family. Like all such families at that time, their lives were harsh and peppered with tragedy.

By 1861, the household had become very large. Liz now had 10 siblings and her two parents living with her. Also listed is her nephew James, aged 3 months. He was almost certainly the son of her eldest sister, Mary, who was still living with the family. She was described as “widow aged 23”.

In total there were 14 people occupying what must have been a small house. It is impossible today to fully imagine the overcrowded conditions and inevitable lack of privacy endured by Liz and her family at that time.

Liz's dad and three of her brothers (Edward, John and Nehemiah) were described as “stone quarriers”.

It was about then that Liz was reputed to have worked underground in the mining industry. This, of course, is not mentioned in the census returns as, since the passing of the Mines Act in 1842, it was illegal for women and girls to do so.

The truth about Liz's alleged occupation at this time is very much open to doubt. It is generally accepted that some women still worked underground after the Act - especially if the family was short of money, but it is difficult to find concrete proof of Liz's connection with any mining activity.

None of her immediate family were miners and, although there were many mouths to feed, her father and three of her brothers were earning wages. By the standards of the day they were not too badly off.

One positive aspect of the family's lives at this time is the fact that three of the family were described as “scholars” – they had escaped the illiteracy trap that had ensnared Liz. One of her younger brothers (Emmanuel, aged 11), however, was forced to work as a “stone dresser”, possibly in the same quarry as his father and brothers.

part 2