Medal awarded to William Hill Ross McCartney, 1911, by the Scottish Society for the Promotion of Kindness to Pit Ponies
This medal was awarded to William Hill Ross McCartney in 1911 by the Scottish Society to promote kindness to pit ponies and was donated to the National Mining Museum Scotland in 2025. The medal displays three concentric elements on its front face. The innermost is circular and made of copper or bronze showing an embossed image of a miner and pit pony. This appears to be a separate piece of metal set into the remainder of the medal, which is made of silver. The central element is inscribed ‘SCOTTISH SOCIETY TO PROMOTE KINDNESS TO PIT PONIES’. The outer part is decorative and displays what may be foliate decoration. The rear face is smooth, with a hallmark stamp towards the top side and ‘1911’ engraved in the centre. An integral suspension loop would have allowed the medal to have been displayed, perhaps from a watch chain.
While the Coal Mines Regulation Act of 1887 allowed mine inspectors to check on the condition of pit ponies, their efforts were widely believed to be inadequate and pressure groups formed to promote better working conditions for pit ponies. The Scottish Society for the Promotion of Kindness to Pit Ponies was probably one such pressure group. The society was formed in the early 20th century (no later than 1907) to improve the living and working conditions of pit ponies. Representatives from the society would visit mines and award medals to those, often young men and boys, whose ponies were well cared for [1]. In the year this medal was awarded a Royal Commission issued the Pit Ponies Charter, requiring certain welfare, safety, inspection, and recording standards to be met [2]. The number of pit ponies used in UK mines reached a maximum of c.70,000 in 1913.
[1] Scottish Shale (undated) Pony Driver. Available at: https://www.scottishshale.co.uk/people/occupations/pony-driver/ (Accessed 08 September 2026).
[2] Hollows, Derek (2010) Voices in the Dark: Pony Talk and Mining Tales. London: Lulu Press, p. 1
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