Housing Conditions of Miners

Extracted from “The Housing Condition of Miners” Report by the Medical Officer of Health, Dr John T. Wilson, 1910

Carluke Parish

Coal has been worked in this par from a remote date, and there is record of this so far back as 1650. In the year 1839 eight coal pits were at work. Ironstone was also wrought for a considerable time during the last century by the Coltness Iron Company and by the Shotts Iron Company. Table 1 shows that the parish now contains four mines, which give employment to 1106 workmen. The total number of houses in the parish is 2129 while the number occupied by miners is 550, or about 26 per cent of the total. The population of the parish according to the census returns since 1851 was as follows:-
1851 - 6283
1861 - 6176
1871 - 7066
1881 - 8552
1891 - 8058
1901 - 8966

Shotts Iron Company, Ltd., Shotts

Castlehill Mine - situated a little to the north of Carluke
Persons employed - underground 339, above ground 51, total 390

The employees reside in the following localities:-
In mine owners' houses, situated at Castlehill and Carluke 70
In rented houses, situated at Carluke, Braidwood and Waterloo 131
In houses owned by miners situated at Carluke 14

The mine-owners' houses, 95 in number, are described in groups as follows:-

Dyke Row - 29 houses in 4 blocks, two slated and two having thatched roofs
The slated block consists of 16 houses - 8 one apartment, rental, £5 4s; 8 two apartments, rental £7 16s

  • The houses were erected about 100 years ago, but five years ago were reconstructed - stone built - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - kitchens good size but rooms small
  • Garden ground for all the houses, some cultivated - two wash houses - coal cellar for each house
  • Two privy middens with six seats
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drainage system
  • Gravitation water standpipe in front of the houses
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


The thatched blocks consist of 13 houses - 2 one apartment, rental £3 9s 4d and £3 18s respectively; 10 two apartments, rental £4 11s to £5 4s, 1 three apartments, rental £7 3s

  • These houses were erected about 100 years ago - stone built - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - some needing repair - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings not in good condition - houses fairly comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Gardens for each house - wash houses - coal cellars at back of the dwellings, but some without doors.
  • Two privy middens with eight seats. These are of recent construction and in good repair
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drainage system
  • Gravitation water standpipe in front of the houses
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


Engine Row - 7 houses - 1 one apartment rental, £3 18s; 6 two apartments, rental, from £5 4s to £6 1s 4d

  • These houses were erected about 100 years ago - stone built and thatched roof - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Garden for every house - no special washhouse, although one of the tenants has constructed a wooden arrangement - coal cellar for each house.
  • one privy midden with three seats, in good order
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drain leading to the burn
  • Water from draw well situated ten feet from end of row
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense
  • One house was found to be in a dirty, insanitary state, and this was explained as due to the absence of a proper housekeeper


Furnace Row - 7 houses - 1 one apartment rental, £3 18s; 5 two apartments, rental, from £5 4s to £6 1s 4d; 1 three apartment, rental £7 16s

  • These houses were erected at least 80 years ago - stone built - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - with the exception of one, all have wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - house with stone floor said to be very damp - remaining houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Garden for each house - no special washhouse, although one tenant has constructed a wooden arrangement - coal cellar for each house
  • Three privy middens with 5 seats. These are of recent construction
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drainage system
  • Water supply from a pipe which evidently is led from the burn. The tenants have the option of going to the works, a quarter of a mile distant, for a gravitation public water supply
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


Gill Row - situated near the station, Carluke, 10 houses of two apartments, rental £5 4s

  • These houses were erected about 100 years ago - stone built and thatched roof - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, ventilated on the back wall, but are placed higher than the floor level - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • Two privy middens with ten seats, one for each house
  • Two wooden sinks situated at front of the rows and connected with underground drainage system leading to the burn
  • Water from a pipe leading from a closed well, situated at a short distance from the houses.
  • Scavenged at owners' expense


Heather Row - 7 houses - 3 one apartment, rental £3 18s, 4 two apartment, rental £6 1s 4d

  • These houses were erected about 100 years ago - stone built and thatched roof - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - four with stone floors and three with wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Garden for every house - no washhouses - coal cellar for each house
  • One privy midden with four seats, brick built, in bad repair, roof being almost wholly off
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with drains leading to burn
  • Water supply from a well situated near the burn and lower than the houses.
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


Honeybank Row - 3 houses - 1 one apartment, 2 two apartments

  • These houses were erected about 100 years ago - stone built and thatched roof - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - stone floors - wood ceilings - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Garden for every house - no washhouses - coal cellars
  • Two privy middens with two seats, one of them being brick built and of old construction
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drainage system
  • Gravitation water supply from standpipe opposite side of main road
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


Lochknow Row - 2 houses of two apartments, rental £4 11s - stone built, slated roof - no damp proof course

  • Garden for every house


Stable Row - 3 houses - 1 one apartment, rental, £3 18s; 1 two apartments, rental £6 1s 4d; 1 three apartments, rental £7 7s 4d

  • These houses were originally built for stables but have since been converted into dwelling houses - stone and lime built, slate roof - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Garden for every house - two wash houses, boiler in each, but no water - coal cellar for each house
  • Two privy middens with two seats
  • One sink situated at standpipe in front of the houses - surface channel connected with underground drainage system
  • Gravitation water, standpipe situated in front of the houses


Weighhouse Row - 23 houses - 7 one apartment, rental £5 4s; 16 two apartments (1 used as a mission house), rental £7 16s

  • These houses were originally erected about 100 years ago - stone and lime built, thatched roof - ive years ago a slate roof was put on - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Garden for every house - two wash houses, with boiler, but no water - coal cellar for each house
  • Two privy middens with eight seats. These are of recent construction and in good repair
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drainage system
  • Gravitation water supply from standpipe
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


Other houses owned by the company are storeman's house, manager's house, railway agent's house, and clerk's house, these being 2 three apartments and 2 four apartments, rental varying from £6 to £8 8s - stone and lime built - in good repair.

All these houses are in open country on the outskirts of Carluke, and rentals include occupiers' rates and taxes.

Castlehill Bridge Row - 3 houses, rented by miners - owner lives in a fourth house

  • These houses were erected at least 60 years ago - stone and lime built, slate roof - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Gardens for every house - one wash house at end of row, with gravitation water and boiler -coal cellar for each house
  • One privy midden with two seats
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drainage system
  • Gravitation water in wash-house
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


Wilsons & Clyde Coal Co. Ltd, 75 Bothwell Street, Glasgow

Brownlee Mine - situated near Law
Persons employed - underground 97, above ground 21, total 118

The employees reside in the following localities:-
In mine owners' houses, situated at Law 24
In rented houses, situated at Law, Overtown, Waterloo, Wishaw, and Carluke 87
In houses owned by miners situated at Law 7

Law Mine - situated near Law
Persons employed - underground 190, above ground 36 , total 226

The employees reside in the following localities:-
In mine owners' houses, situated at Law 36
In rented houses, situated at Law, Overtown, Waterloo, Wishaw, and Carluke 163
In houses owned by miners situated at Law 27

Shawfield Mine - situated near Law
Persons employed - underground 297, above ground 75, total 372

The employees reside in the following localities:-
In mine owners' houses, situated at Law 92
In rented houses, situated at Law, Overtown, Waterloo, Wishaw, and Carluke 246
In houses owned by miners situated at Law 34

The mine owners' houses, 106 in number, may be described in groups as follows:

Wilsons Row - situated at Law, comprises two rows of single storey dwellings, one with 25 one apartment, rental £4 15s 4d; and one with 25 two apartments, rental £6 14s 4d. All the rentals include rates and taxes.

  • The houses were erected about 36 years ago - stone built - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - the houses look comfortable and are in a good state of repair
  • No overcrowding
  • Garden for each house in front, cultivated - no common wash-houses - each house has a coal cellar
  • Privy for each house - three common ashpits
  • No slop sinks, but surface openings connected with underground drains, which join the sewerage system of the special district
  • Gravitation water at standpipes placed near the public road at intervals. Rain water is also caught and stored in barrels, there being one for every house. The collection of rain water is due to the face that the gravitation water is somewhat hard.
  • Scavenging is regularly carried out at the owners' expense, the privies being cleaned once a day, and the ashpits emptied at least once a week.


Thornton Row - 22 houses - 12 one apartment, rental £3 9s 4d; 8 two apartments, rental £5 8s 4d; 2 three apartments, rental £11 18s 4d

  • These houses were erected about 40 years ago - brick built - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls
  • wood floors, ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • Garden for almost every house - no special wash-houses, although some tenants seem to have constructed a wooden arrangement - coal cellar at the back of dwellings
  • Three privy middens with 7 seats at the rear of dwellings. These are of recent construction and in good order
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drainage system
  • Gravitation water standpipe situated in front of houses. one standpipe situated about the middle of the row
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


Whorleyburn - situated near Carluke - 34 back-to-back houses in three blocks - 20 one apartment, rental £3 9s 4d; 14 two apartments, rental from £4 19s 8d to £5 17s. 13 houses are empty - 8 one apartment and 5 two apartments. The owners are contemplating pulling them down and for that purpose are closing up each house as it becomes vacant

  • These houses were erected about 35 years ago - brick built - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses fairly comfortable
  • No overcrowding - one apartment houses good size, but in the two-apartment houses one of the rooms is small
  • Garden for each house - no wash-house - no coal cellars
  • No sanitary conveniences - no ash pit
  • No sinks - surface channels
  • Gravitation water standpipe in front of the houses
  • Scavenged once a week at owners' expense


Houses privately owned and rented by miners working with Wilsons & Clyde Coal Co

Woodlands Square, Carluke  - Consists of 26 houses - 8 one apartment, rental £3 18s; 18 two apartment, rental £5 17s. 12 are back-to-back houses (8 one apartment and 4 two apartments)

  • These houses were erected about 40 years ago - brick built - no damp-proof course - plastered on solid walls - wood floors, not ventilated - internal surfaces of walls and ceilings generally good - houses comfortable
  • No overcrowding - apartments good size
  • No gardens - no wash-houses - coal cellar for each house
  • Two privy middens with eight seats. These are not kept in a cleanly state
  • No sinks - surface channels connected with underground drainage system
  • Gravitation water standpipe situated near the main road. Rain water is also caught and stored in barrels, one for each house
  • Scavenged at owners' expense, but not regularly done