The town's years as a coalfield were unhappy. Living conditions in many of the hastily erected cottages were insanitary, lacking water and drainage. There was a serious outbreak of cholera in Jarrow and northeast England in the winter of 1831–32, as part of an epidemic that spread from Europe and resulted in more than 200 deaths in Newcastle alone. Relations in Jarrow between employer and employee were poor; workers were held by the "bond" system whereby they were tied to a particular employer for a year, whether or not that employer could provide work.Wilkinson, pp. 20–21 Working conditions in the mines were dangerous: there were explosions in 1826, 1828 and 1845, each with large loss of life.Wilkinson, pp. 27–28 and 55 Attempts by workers to organise into a trade union were fiercely opposed by the employers. Nevertheless, miners conducted lengthy strikes in 1832 and 1844, each ending when hunger forced them back to work.Wilkinson, pp. 29–35 and 51–55 After the easier seams of coal were exhausted, the Jarrow pits became less profitable, and in 1851 the owners abandoned them altogether.Wilkinson, p. 57
