« Reply #4 on: Sunday 21 October 12 12:52 BST (UK) »
If your ancestor lived in a mining community there's a helpful page here which goes into great length about it. I've not seen such a good description in any of the Scottish mining sites.
A coal lumper was not a mining occupation, at least not in Scotland - the link you give refers to dock labourers.
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sorry about the mining reference I did know it was about ships (it said so) and I lived in the port of Hull. I haven't the foggiest notion why I typed mining but think this old brain picked up on the reference to "collier".
Looks like I've moved on from wondering why I'm in the centre of a room trying to remember what I was in the middle of doing

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