Sources of information on coal, its uses, its drawbacks, its hazards are too numerous to document here. The Wikipedia entry on coal has many links to such sources. It can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal For the ‘anti-coal’ point of view try the site at Our Energy.
Wikipedia has a wealth of material on most subjects, and links to other sites for further information. These include entries on Durham Miners’ Gala, Rug making and Clootie mats , the industrial and agricultural revolutions, whippets, pigeons, pit ponies, The Peterloo Massacre, and many, many more.
For information on the geology of coal, or geological eras in general the University of California, Berkley site has an excellent introduction. It can be accessed at www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/help/timeform.html. In addition, the Geological Museum has huge resources. Since 1985 the Geological Museum in South Kensington, London, has been amalgamated with its neighbour, the Natural History Museum which is more than worth a visit for every reason you can imagine.
Durham Mining Museum and has a great deal of information with regards to individual pits in County Durham.
The United Kingdom Government’s site, the The Coal Authority has nationwide information and statistics.
Further information on in situ gasification can be found at www.ucgp.com/.
The Durham Miner Research Projects contains a wealth of material compiled over a number of years by many researchers, about individual mines and villages in County Durham, including timelines, personal interviews, etc. It is essential viewing for anyone with a specific interest in the mining industry in this county.
Some contemporary accounts of working conditions in the mines can be read at The Peel Web site, which also has links to other sites with material on child labour and mine working.
The most recent UNICEF report on child labour worldwide can be downloaded from www.unicef.org/sowc97/download/sow2of2.pdf. It is a long report (63 pages) but indicates that few children are working in coal mines at present, apart from in Columbia.
At www.dmm2.org.uk/childemp/names_a.htm you can read and download the summary of the report which lead to the 1842 Factories Act, into the ages, conditions of work and hours of work of children and women working in our country’s coal mines at that time.
Durham University Library has a large amount by way of resources for teaching at each Keystage level. Their Teaching Resources Home Page is at www.dur.ac.uk/4schools/. This collection includes a study of village life in County Durham during the nineteenth century, using the villages of Crook & Willington as typical examples, located at www.dur.ac.uk/4schools/Localhistory/default.htm.
The American Coal Foundation has much material developed over many years to help with teaching about coal and the coal industry, including sets of ‘work sheets’ suitable for various ages.