Work in progress
The Coal Miner’s Son John and Annie Baugh left England in 1923 to work the Hikurangi coal mines with a bunch of other Lancs. Their son Cliff wrote vividly and well, mainly about depression-era dairy farming, coal mining and his personal experiences during World War 2. I’ve posted his stories ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next Now he was in the Army he was unsure what he’d like to do, assuming he had any choice. It looked like it might be hard to get into Signals — he knew a Postmaster who’d tried and failed. The motor cycle platoon would be interesting ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next There was little more than a year between Cliff’s leaving Hikurangi and his sailing for the Middle East in 2 NZEF. During that year he’d met, fallen in love with and been engaged to nineteen year-old Dorothy McCarroll. In the following chapters I’ve tried, through ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next In September 1939 Hitler invaded Poland. According to Cliff’s diary, by the time he moved to Paparoa in March 1940 6,000 New Zealand men had enlisted for service overseas and wartime rationing had begun. Although he was still working for the Post Office and Telegraph ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next In early 1936 Cliff started attending Bible classes, mainly because some of his friends were. Working on farms had meant few opportunities for socialising, and there were boys and girls in Bible class. The fact they were getting home from church as late as 11pm ... Read more
Contents | Next There are large gaps in Cliff’s story between 1936 and 1940, but I’ve done my best to piece together what’s available. Over those four or five years Dad was improving himself. Always energetic, he started Correspondence School, learned Morse Code and finally got a job in the ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next From Cliff’s notes ~ Ian. There was a large winch to haul skips of coal up the long underground drive — the tunnel that led to the coal face. A heavy, endless wire rope was used, which at the top and bottom of the drive ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next After Cliff was fired by the miserable WH on January 7th 1936 he moved back home to his parents and started his second stint at the mine. Once again this is partly in his words, partly in mine from his notes. ~ Ian Cliff was ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next These pages, which cover Cliff’s coal mining stories, are partly written by him, and partly by me, in the third person, based on his notes. His first job was at the Ackers mine, where he worked on at least three separate occasions, he said, as ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next Notes to give context to Cliff’s coal mining stories ~Ian. Coal was discovered in Waro (North of Hikurangi) and Kamo (North of Whangarei) in the 1860s, and commercial mining began in the ’70s. Cliff’s father John, or Jack, was just one of several miners and ... Read more