Looking back: Queen visits Rothes Colliery, 1958
It was hailed as the future of coal production and technology and given the grand title of a '˜super pit' with claims that it would be supplying coal until 2070.
And in June 1958, when Queen Elizabeth visited Fife to declare it officially open, Rothes Colliery, on the outskirts of Glenrothes at Thornton, was seen as the future of the coal industry.
Braking the age old miner’s superstition of not allowing a woman to visit the pit, Her Majesty, complete in her white boiler suit and hard hat, was greeted by employees as she descended the 1600 feet as part of a 45 minute visit to the coalface.
Sadly the dream of Rothes Colliery was shattered when it was forced to close in 1964 due to geological and flooding issues.