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Object of the Month – October 2023

Coal Miners’ Pocketbook: Principles, Rules, Formulas and Tables

BEKMM: 2023.110.1

This month, we will be taking a look at a lovely historical text from 1928.

This book, Coal Miners’ Pocketbook: Principles, Rules, Formulas and Tables, originally belonged to Joseph David Johnson, father of KMM volunteer Mick Johnson. Joseph was a ventilation officer at Betteshanger Colliery.

This “pocketbook” is a hefty 1,273 pages full of information, explanations, graphs, tables, and formulas relating to the mines and mining methods. Some of the content includes:

  • Weights and measures
  • Mathematics
  • Strength of materials
  • Hydrostatics
  • Hydraulics
  • Masonry
  • Heat and Fuels
  • Steam Engines
  • Electricity
  • Surveying
  • Opening a mine
  • Explosives and blasting
  • Mine drainage and pumping machinery
  • Ventilation of mines
  • Mine Safety

This is the 12th edition of this pocketbook, with updates to new technologies and methods. The book’s introduction states: “The most noticeable advancement in coal mining during recent years has been the adoption of coal-loading and coal-conveying machinery.” This has resulted in new descriptions and illustrations, as well as new sections such as Cutting, Loading, and Conveying Machinery.