THE MINE SHAFT

As we have a passion for all things to do with our Welsh mining culture and history, we have converted the corridor leading to the new toilets and accommodation into a “mine shaft”!

Equipped with genuine miners’ lamps, gas masks and “falling” beams the mine shaft is a bit of fun designed to give a little insight into being in a mine!

The pub itself is situated on the site of the old Elled Level drift mine, which was opened in 1871 on the site of the old Tranch Colliery. At its peak in 1923, the mine employed 310 men, working from the Big Vein and Old Coal seams. Whilst we don’t currently have a lot of information about the Elled Level and the men who worked here, we have found the tragic story of John Taylor, who sadly lost his life in an accident involving a broken rope around the year of 1930. Unfortunately, accidents like this were common and the local communities paid dearly for coal.

Whilst we know that the pub building itself used to be used as local businesses and offices, we’re not entirely sure when it became a Public House. We do know that some of the miners working in the local collieries were paid in tokens (otherwise known as “tallies”) which were used as a form of currency and apparently could be spent in the pub. These could normally only be spent in the “Truck” shops (otherwise known as Tommy Shops) which were usually owned by the company that owned the mines and were more expensive than other shops. Any information on when The Little Crown Inn opened as a Public House and who owned it would be more than welcomed!

The mining theme is being continued throughout the building, with the accommodation rooms being named after the local collieries and the men’s toilet ceiling has being decorated with articles from the 1984 Miners’ Strike; leading to much reminiscing around the bar of the tumultuous period that greatly affected the mining industry, not just in Wales but in the whole of the UK.