Collier Lads & Steel Men

1. Collier Lads & Steel Men A song written by Year 4 children at St. Mary’s and St. Catherine’s with help from Ray Hearne.

2. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.

3. My Grandad was a miner, He worked at Maltby Pit And digging out the coal Never bothered him a bit. They started every morning with faces nice and clean. Lowered down into the dark, With all the other team

4. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.

5. Beating out the coal face to feed the industry. Taking home a hard day’s pay And going off for tea. My grandad drove a paddy train Full of heavy coal. He went to towns and cities And the coal went from our hole.

6. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.

7. My uncle thumped the rocks clear Aunty cooked the meals Both of them together Kept the country on its wheels. The loco driver took the black gold To keep the houses warm. While Grandad drove the dinter, Thrashing up a coal dust storm.

8. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.

9. When they got off the pit bus, It stopped outside the pub. They had a beer to quench the thirst And wash away the dust. My grandad didn’t get too much So off they went to strike. He couldn’t ever go to work But finally got his rights.

10. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.

11. Steel it made the aeroplanes, Cars and weapons too. Knives and forks for fish and chips Yes all of this is true. My nana buffed the cutlery, My grandad in the mill. They only managed to get by, But there wasn’t much for silk.

12. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.

13. The women did not go to work They stayed at home to clean. Washing, cooking, a tin of brasso Made the silver clean. Coal miners and steel workers Pleased their families. Although the job it was so hard They always tried their best.

14. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.

15. Rotherham and Sheffield were crumbled in the blitz. Cities, towns and villages All bombed to tiny bits. The army trained so very hard To protect our country. They sacrificed themselves So that others could be free.

16. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.

17. Now the song is ending, The mills and mines are gone. We must always remember And our stories will live on. From different schools we gather With different tales to tell. But united in our hearts and minds The future will be well.

18. Collier lads and steel men in their mills and underground, With their wives, sons and daughters make the world go round and round.