London Underground Miners

[Glemor]

My great-grandfather is listed on the 1891 census as a tunnel miner. As he lived in Bermondsey, London at the time and had always lived in London I am assuming the tunnels must have been those for the London Underground? Can anyone with better historical knowledge tell me if this is a reasonable assumption?

[Elwyn Soutter]

Various bits of the underground were still being dug in 1891, so it is possible that is what your g/grandfather was doing. As examples the Inner Circle line opened on 6th Oct 1884, with the extension to Wimbledon opening on 3.6.1889, and a further extension to Whitechapel on 1.6.1902. The City & South London Railway from King William St to Stockwell (now the Northern Line) opened on 18.12.1890.

[Peter Goodey]

Reasonable. The deep lines (the tube) were being dug around that time.

[Mutley]

There are also the tunnels under the Thames but looking at this Timeline (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunnels_underneath_the_River_Thames)on Wikipedia most of the dates are different.

Means the underground sounds more likely. :)