February 20, 2011

The Wigan of George Orwell – in pictures

The Road To Wigan Pier was published in 1937. Two years later Picture Post sent three photographers to document what they saw. Here are some of the results of Kurt Hutton's trip made in November 1939

Wigan 1939: Wigan Children — Children take a rest from playing games on the street Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Evening Class — Women attending an evening class in embroidery and needlework Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Wigan Drinkers — The original caption read: THE FACES OF WIGAN'S WORKERS – Men Whose Fate is Linked with Coal and Cotton. Early in the 19th century their great-grandfathers went down to the pits and their women found work in the mills. Today, 10 out of 15 mills, 17 out of 40 pits, are closed. In a town of 85,000 people, 9,500 men and women are unemployed. But the man in the pub is still friendly, still confident that pits and mills will open again - perhaps after the war Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Hungry Child — The caption on a variant of this picture read: The Boy Who Wants to be a Miner. His father and his grandfather were miners. It's his ambition to be a miner, too. He does not read the Ministry of Labour statistics of unemployment. He does not know how many pits have been closed. He does not even know that, of 19 houses in Greenhough Row, where he lives, often only four families have work Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Baker's Window — A woman looks longingly at the array of bread and cakes in the window of a baker's shop Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Labour Exchange — A group of men at the Labour Exchange Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Poor Family — A child sits on her mother's lap to drink, in a poor area Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Racing Pigeons — A pigeon fancier with racing pigeons Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Shelter Construction — The original Picture Post caption read: Shelters Against the Bombs... ARP [Air Raid Precautions] trenches are being dug in the areas where slum clearance is in progress. They will be covered with earth, on which grass, for playgrounds, will be sown Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Back-To-Back — ...And Shelters Against the Rain. He is 27. He is a miner by profession; but he has been nine years out of work. He lives in the Hardybutts - a row of slum houses which are to be replaced by council houses More than 2,000 council houses have been built; but there are still slums Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Unemployed Men — The original Picture Post caption read: The Men Who Stand and Wait. Our cameraman photographed these Wiganers standing outside a Labour Exchange. The authorities asked to have all pictures left with them to be checked up. When the batch was forwarded on to us, this and other pictures on these pages were missing. They were considered unsuitable. We made new prints of some of those missing pictures Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

Wigan 1939: Poverty In Wigan — An unemployed man leaning against a wall with two children looking on Photograph: Kurt Hutton/Getty Images

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