Geraint from Northampton has been in touch with this query:
"I'm doing research on the Frongoch mine up by Pontrhydygroes. In 1900, the mine decided to employ 80 miners from Italy. I am trying to find out where they came from and what happened to them. Their stay was turbulent to say the least! Does anybody know?"
Angela got in touch to say her family used to work in Ceredigion's old lead mines:
"An ancestor of mine (Dan Jones) wrote a small book in Welsh which I have had translated into English. Dan was born at the end of 1888, the book was written a little after the end of the Second World War, but recalls earlier times from the turn of the century onwards.
One paragraph of the book reads as follows:-
Though life was poor and hard in that period he had his own special humour. It was a humour that arose from peculiar circumstances. I heard an example once when I was in the cobblers workshop one time in Bontgoch, a mountain village near Talybont, Ceredigion. It was quite common for a person from Goginan to hear someone asking him "Do you know Isaac the Banc" This was the question the old cobbler asked me, and when he discovered who I was he said he remembered my father following the wagon.
One event had made an impression on him, he remembered a man with a monkey coming to Bontgoch. He was an Italian and earned his living by playing a hand organ to the monkey's tricks. The organ was tied around his shoulders and supported on a wooden leg.
The monkey was a very strange creature in rural Cardiganshire and the people of Bontgoch had gathered on the road to watch it, and listen to the music.
I cannot imagine there were many Italians in Bontgoch or the mining areas at that time, so perhaps this Italian had been injured or was earning some extra money on the side.
Good luck with your research. My ancestors lived in and worked the mines of Goginan and Cwmbrwyno."
Geraint from Northampton has another brief query for Angela:
"Further to Angela's reply, does she know whether this book is still available (in the National library for example) or was the translation published?"
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your comments
Peter Lloyd Harvey
I run the Lead Mining Museum site at Llywernog, near Ponterwyd. Stories of the Italian Miners at Frongoch are familiar and I've heard many versions from older folk (now long departed) in the neighbourhood. Many of the local Welsh lead miners by that time (around 1900) had either worked in the Collieries of South Wales, or had relatives who had already moved down to the 'Valleys' from Cardiganshire. There was a growing awareness of Socialism and exploitation creeping up from the South! Things were not helped by the fact that this period was also the time when the Vale of Rheidol Railway was being construct! ed by Pethick Bros. of Plymouth. Large numbers of Irish navvies were also lodging in the area around Devil's Bridge!!! There was an explosive atmosphere in every sense of the word. I would love to see the translation of the little local book written by a lead miner. Perhaps it could be published?A fascinating period of our mining heritage.
Sun Dec 13 19:56:06 2009
Miranda Spiers, Brighton, east Sussex
Mly great grandfather was from Bardi in Northern Italy and worked in a Welsh mine in the early 1900s. His surname was Castelli. Does anyone have any information regarding what mines Italian migrants may have worked in or if there is any record of him.
Mon Aug 4 08:22:27 2008
Geraint ex Aber
I am surprised at the term 'bickering miners'. Most of the disputes were directed at the company. The Welsh strikes were based on the company's policy and working practices. The Italians struck for the same reason. The Welsh animosity for the Italians was based on their being allowed to work extra hours. Many Italians had left before the strikes. One Italian was murdered, but it appears down to a bar-room brawl. The police presence was precautionary and the Chief Constable actually praised the conduct of the strikers. The perpetrators of the explosions were never caught, although a search of the Italian barracks did locate some illicit dynamite. This was however not surprising, breaches of the explosives act appear to have been common practice in the mining belt in general. The mine was fined for the insecurity of their stores. I fervently hope Boomerang do not want to sensationalise the event by playing the race card, which may get in the way of research of the actual history. There are precious few records of the events.
Thu Jul 12 15:35:33 2007
Dafydd Llyr James, Cardiff
Those interested in the Frongoch story and in particular the dramatic events involving the Italian miners may be interested to hear that Boomerang television has recently been awarded a grant to commission a writer to produce a tv drama script based on this historical event. The grant was awarded from the 'Spirit of the Miners' fund, the aim of which is to promote the history and economic regeneration of the former lead mining areas of Ceredigion.It is hoped that this dramatic screenplay will translate to the small, and possibly big, screen in the near future.We would be keen to hear of any further information that could assist our research for the writing of this drama. We'd especially like to hear more from Giordano in Italy.
Wed Mar 28 15:52:40 2007
Eleri Davies, Penygroes, Carmarthenshire
There were a number of different strikes but mainly about money and that the Italian miners were given preference over the local men. In April 1900 there was trouble because the Italian miners worked on Saturday afternoon and were also allowed to work underground which attracted higher wages. They agreed not to work on Saturday afternoon.
There were further strikes in August and November - more police were brought to the area because of all the problems.
Finally in March 9th 1901, after 25 Welsh miners were laid off because of a slip in the mine, there was a dynamite explosion near! the barracks where the Italian miners were living. The Italian miners had been allowed to continue working. On the following Wednesday there was an expalosion near Cwmnewyddion the home of Captain Heine when several windows were smashed, nobody was hurt in either incidents. On April 13 1901 part of the lander which carried water from the leet to the top of the wheel used for pumping was blown away.
There are also reports of 6 Italians being attacked on the way home form a public house in Pontrhydygroes.
Mon Feb 12 10:04:39 2007
Giordano Sivini from Italy
The italian miners came from Bergamo area (Northern Italy), engaged from Bernardino Nogara, an Italian engineer who previously worked in a mine in Italy the area for the same Society (based in Glasgow) that controlled Frongoch. Nogara was in Pontrhydygroes in charge for the construction of the dressing plant. He lived there for two years (1899-1900) with his wife Ester. In Pontrhydygroes was born the first son, Johnny. Should Geraint from Northampton inform me about the reasons of the turbulences of the Italian miners? Thanks.
Wed Jan 17 16:49:08 2007
Brenda Haines, Aberystwyth
I was very interested in what Angela had to say. I knew a Dan Jones in my childhood in Goginan. Is this the same person? Where can I get a copy of the book?
Mon Jun 19 12:02:15 2006
Gwenda Page, Pontrhyd-ygroes
My husband and I are the current owners of the Miners Arms Hotel. We were intrigued to hear of your grandmother living here. We are refurbishing the place and looking for photos and stories from the area - do you have any further stories?
Tue Jun 13 11:46:30 2006
Eleri Davies, Penygores, Carmarthenshire
By the time of the 1901 census there were only 41 Italians living in the barracks on Frongoch itself. Not all of them were Italians some were of Swiss origin. One died and is buried in Llantrisant church which looks down onto the mine. However they worshiped at 'Capel Saeson' (The Chapel of the English) which was an old Weslyan Methodist chapel that had closed down. According to the sale catalogue, there were 72 beds in the barracks so it's likely that some had already left before the census. Most had left by April 1901, to north of England, south Wales and some went home.
I have no information about where they came from although I know the dates of their arrival. They probably came through Liverpool - but that's a pure guess.
Tue Jun 6 09:10:14 2006
Steve Pitman, Stroud, Gloucestershire
My ancestors used to own the Miners Arms Hotel in Pontrhydygroes. They were there during the 1901 Census. This shows one of their borders was an Italian mining engineer from Milan (Emilio -surname unreadable). I have looked through all the 11 census pages for Ysbtty Ystwyth but Emilio is the only Italian listed in this area. My grandmother was 9 years old at the time and lived in the hotel with her parents. She used to talk a lot about her years in Ponty but I do not remember any mention of Italians being there. I am fascinated by Geraint's comment "Their stay was turbulent to say! the least!" I'd love to learn more.
Mon Apr 24 09:50:33 2006
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Mid Wales was once a lead mining mecca. The old works may have closed down but the history is as fascinating as ever - and we've had a very specific question about some of the people who used to work here. 
