Albert Raymond Roberts (1919 – 1948)

“When he left school he worked as a gardener in the Sanitorium, Pontsarn, later he went underground. He was then called up for National Service (WW2) He served in the Royal Corp of Signals where he learned to drive. When the war ended he worked for the Royal Mail driving a van, but wages being better underground, he became a miner, on the 19 March 1948 he was killed in a simple accident – while working with another man they were what was known underground as ‘Packing’ (straightening a roadway) his mate left him working alone for a short while, when he returned he found Ray face down in a pile of ‘small coal’ – a pit prop had fallen, hit him on the back of the head into the ‘small coal’ where he suffocated.

He played the accordion – self taught, he was an exceptional swimmer, and a wonderful ‘groaper’ (‘groaping’ the art of catching fish with your hands – a practice never used today!”¹