Fall Field Trip Seminar

Delta Slate and Welsh History

Greetings from Thomas Lippiard!

In the 1840’s the Welsh sailed across the In the 1840’s the Welsh sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to Delta. The Welsh heard Atlantic Ocean to Delta. The Welsh heard that there was good slate in that area so that there was good slate in that area so since they already knew how to mine and since they already knew how to mine and split slate they decided to settle there in split slate they decided to settle there in Delta. Delta.

Boat Slate Tools

The Welsh were happy in Delta. Back in Wales they were under the rule of Queen Victoria, the queen of England. She didn’t let them speak their own Welsh language. In some parts of the small country, they weren’t even aloud to mine their own slate! In Delta, they were free to speak their own language and mine slate wherever and whenever they wanted.

Cynorthwyo ninnau!

Fast Fact: The Welsh built amazing castles to protect themselves from armies such as Queen Victoria’s.

( Help us!)

Queen Victoria

You Welsh will follow my orders!!

For some reason the Welsh must have still honored Queen Victoria in a way because they built a type of house and named it after her. They called that type of house a Victorian.

But some Welsh lived in small cottages that could make a home for six to ten people.

cottage

Victorian

Slate quarries can be all different sizes. This particular quarry has water pumped through it so that it makes a river going in between the high walls of slate. Once in a while people would jump off the walls of slate into the water and sometimes even die.

Slate from quarry

Slate quarry

There are many different tools for mining and splitting slate. You use a special type of chisel for splitting slate. You use the back of a slate hammer to make holes in the slate so you can put nails in the holes to make a slate roof. Back then in the 1800’s people used hand-held tools. Now people use machinery. There is also a special tool used for cutting straight edges on the slate called a trimmer.

trimmer

Slate tools

Thanks for watching! I hope you learned something because I know I sure did. Good-bye! WELSH FLAG