Upside down in a pipeline

@JudyEv (363900)
Rockingham, Australia
August 26, 2025 9:50am CST
Charlie Miller was employed on the goldfields pipeline during the depression. The pipeline was established to take water from Mundaring Weir near Perth to Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie. After working as a stockman in the state’s north, he took a job on the pipeline. For eight and a half years, eight hours a day, he laid on a small trolley and pushed himself along the inside of the pipes, cementing the interior as he went. The conditions were wet and it was hard work but Charlie was happy to have work during these times. The photo shows a 1971 newspaper article about him. He was 84 at the time.
11 people like this
9 responses
snowy
@snowy22315 (197398)
• United States
26 Aug
Doesn't sound like a fun job does it? Especially not if you have claustrophobia.
1 person likes this
Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
27 Aug
I think men in those days would have tackled all sorts of very difficult jobs just to keep the family together.
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snowy
@snowy22315 (197398)
• United States
27 Aug
@JudyEv Friend's brother worked on the Alaska pipeline. That must have been dirty, cold work.
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
28 Aug
@snowy22315 Very cold, I imagine. I imagine this guy would have been suffering from the heat.
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rakski
@rakski (149182)
• Philippines
27 Aug
What an incredible story of endurance! Hard to imagine spending years inside those pipes doing such tough work
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rakski
@rakski (149182)
• Philippines
27 Aug
@JudyEv probably
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
27 Aug
Compared to other workers on the pipeline, he was probably quite well paid.
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Always smiling
@allknowing (154216)
• India
28 Aug
It is how one enjoys working no matter the hardship He was a good example of that his age notwithstanding
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
28 Aug
During the Depression, he would have thinking of the money I think.
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Four Walls
@FourWalls (79383)
• United States
28 Aug
Obviously he wasn’t claustrophobic…or if he was, he hid it and overcame it!
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
28 Aug
I was thinking about that. Maybe he was in the last length but one so he had light at the end of the tunnel . He couldn't have been totally in the dark. It would still have felt very 'enclosed' of course.
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RasmaSandra
@RasmaSandra (89772)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
26 Aug
Sounds like a guy who really enjoyed what he was doing,
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
27 Aug
During the Depression years he would have been grateful for the money.
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LindaOH
@LindaOHio (203168)
• United States
27 Aug
That was a tough job; but as you said, it was the Depression; and Charlie was happy to have work.
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
27 Aug
It would have paid better than the purely manual labour-type jobs on the surface.
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rebelann1949
@rebelann (114868)
• El Paso, Texas
26 Aug
Yikes, a job like that would have freaked me out, it amazes me the kinds of jobs people used to do.
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
27 Aug
I can't iimagine pushing yourself along on a little trolley and dealing with wet cement all day.
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Eva James
@wolfgirl569 (123549)
• Marion, Ohio
26 Aug
That would be hard work
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
27 Aug
It would indeed. I'm sure his shoulders and back would have been feeling it.
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Tendz
@Tendz09 (511)
•
26 Aug
Eight hours a day on a small trolley sounds exhausting, yet it’s inspiring that Charlie was grateful for the work. Thanks for sharing this fascinating piece of history.
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Judy Evans
@JudyEv (363900)
• Rockingham, Australia
27 Aug
You're welcome. It would certainly have been hard work.
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