04/06/2026
– When Newarthill was a pit village ⛏️🏠
Before Newarthill was roundabouts, retail parks and school runs, it was very much a **mining village**.
All along this bit of Lanarkshire – Newarthill, Holytown, New Stevenston, Motherwell – the ground underneath was full of coal. By the 1800s the place was dotted with pits and mineral railways, and families came here because there was work “doon the pit”.
A few wee bits of history:
• ⚒️ **Coal at the heart of the village**
Local histories describe Newarthill growing up around rows of miners’ cottages and small pits in the 19th century. If you weren’t in the steelworks later on, chances are somebody in your house or your street was a miner.
• 🚂 **Pits and railways everywhere**
From Legbrannock and Holytown through to Motherwell, seams were worked and lines laid to get coal out to ironworks and, later, the steel plants. What’s now “a quick run into Motherwell” used to be busy with mineral lines, wagons and pit-head gear.
• 👨👩👧👦 **Tight‑knit communities**
Life followed the pit – shifts, sirens, and the constant dust. But it also meant strong streets and strong unions. It’s no coincidence that **Keir Hardie**, the first leader of the Labour Party, was born just along the road at **Legbrannock** – right in the middle of this coalfield.
The photo we’ve used shows coal waste in North Lanarkshire – a wee reminder of the bings and spoil heaps that used to be a normal backdrop for families round here. For a lot of Newarthill folk, that was the view out the back door.
👉 Over to you lot:
• Who in your family worked in the pits around Newarthill / Holytown / Motherwell?
• Do you remember bings, pit-heads or mineral lines that are long gone now?
• Any stories of coming in from playing absolutely black with coal dust (and getting a row for it)? 😅
Stick your memories in the comments, and if you’ve got old photos of the pits or the rows, we’d love to see them. Tag someone whose granda was “doon the pit” and never tired of telling the tales. 🧡
