Coal mining is not necessarily an activity that one would expect on the Mediterranean island of Mallorca. But, perhaps one should. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were a number of coal mines in operation in Mallorca, mainly in the Alaró, Lloseta, Selva, Binissalem, Consell and Sineu region in the centre of the island, giving employment to some 600 mineros.
Not so long ago, in 1989, the last active mine, run by the Lignitos S. A., a company owned by GESA, was closed down. In 2000, their old coal mine of Sa Truiola, in Lloseta, was restored to its former glory. Since that time, the surviving Mallorcan coal miners meet once a year, in December, to indulge in joyful reminiscence of past activities and to celebrate a church service in honour of Santa Bárbara, the miners’ patron saint.
The main photo was taken in Sóller, Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: July 17th, 2008. The time was 14:53:55. The small photo is published courtesy of Pedro Nadal, an ingeniero de minas. Gracias, Pedro.
Hola, vivo en Puerto Rico. Mi abuelo Jaime Canellas que nacio en Santa Eugenia en el 1884, me imagino trabajo en las minas de Alaro, de cuyo pueblo era su esposa , mi abuela Catalina Bibiloni. Viajaron a EUA y alli el trabajo en minas de carbon en West Virginia antes de regresar a Mallorca donde se establecio en Palma y murio en el 1966. Hay informacion de los mineros que trabajaron en las minas de Alaro?
mon grand père s’appelait Morro Ramon. je cherche le prénom, je crois que c’est Jean. arbona
I am Mark Wiersma and I am looking for old photos of the coal mine in Selva, Mallorca. Is there anyone who has photos of this mine?
I would also be interested in any information/photographs anyone has. Some video of small private mines in Wales on YouTube in pitponyman channel.