	Durham Main Colliery	Index	Durham Main Colliery

Durham Main Colliery

also known as Crook Hall Colliery

Location:

Durham
½ miles [1 km] N of Durham

Map Ref:

(Sheet 88) NZ274434, 54° 47' 7" N, 1° 34' 25" W

Maps:

1928 map from Reid's Handy Colliery Guide

Opened:

Closed:

1924

Pits:

Shaft details for Durham Main Colliery

Owners:

1880s - J. Lishman & Co.

1900s - Framwellgate Coal & Coke Co. Ltd.

Output:

1873 - Coal.

1888 - Coal.

1894 - Coal: Gas, Household, Steam.

1896 - Coal: Gas, Household, Steam.

1902 - Coal: Gas, Household, Manufacturing, Steam.

1905 - Coal: Gas, Household, Manufacturing, Steam.

1910 - Coal: Gas, Household, Manufacturing, Steam.

1915 - Coal: Gas, Household, Manufacturing, Steam.

1921 - Coal: Gas, Household, Manufacturing, Steam.

1923 - Coal: Gas, Household, Manufacturing, Steam.

1924 - Coal: Gas, Household, Manufacturing, Steam.

Employment:

Year	Total	Below	Above
1883	98	98
1894	119	96	23
1896	11	6	5
1900	151	125	26
1902	152	128	24
1905	201	179	22
1910	112	90	22
1915	77	62	15
1921	101	85	16
1923	4	1	3
1924	4	1	3
1924	Abandoned

Colliery Management (prior to 1970)

Seams Worked:

1905 - Brockwell, Busty, Harvey

1910 - Busty, Harvey

1915 - Busty, Harvey

1921 - Busty, Harvey

1923 - Busty, Harvey

1924 - Busty, Harvey [Abandoned]

Catalogue of plans of abandoned mines for Durham Main Colliery

Notes:

1893 - Durham Main Colliery, Crook Hall Royalty, was sunk from the Hutton to the Busty Seam.

Description

At Durham Main Colliery, by Lishman & Co., are worked the "Hutton," 3 ft. 6 in. at 20 fathoms ; and the "Low Main" of 2 ft. 8 in. is worked from the same level as the Hutton but reached through by a hitch.

Whellan's 1894 Directory of County Durham

Disasters (5 or more killed)

None Found

Names of those killed at this colliery

Please note that this collection of names is by no means complete!

						Brannen, Joseph, 01 Jun 1910, aged 41, Hewer, He was hewing in a broken lift in a seam having the following section :— Top coal 2 feet, band stone 1 foot, bottom coal 2 feet 4 inches. The custom is to kirve out the bottom section, block down the band and then fell the top coal which generally requires to be wedged down. He was wedging down band stone at the time of the accident, and had three jud props set. Two of these props were unfortunately right on slips running down through the seam. Without warning the top coal burst off and fell on to Brannen, Buried: St. Bede's Cemetery, Durham
						Carr, George, 21 Aug 1918, killed by a fall of stone
						Kenny, James, 18 Mar 1915, aged 40, Miner, killed by a fall of stone
						Mason, Thomas, 24 Aug 1885, aged 58, Shifter, took a fit while going inbye on the main road and died
						Patterson, George, 30 Nov 1888, aged 35, Deputy, fall of stone while drawing timber out of an old bord
						Proctor, John William, 26 Mar 1902, aged 46, Hewer, injured on June 4th last by a fall of band and coal ; he worked off and on afterwards, but died from heart disease
						Purdham, Richard, 05 Nov 1907, aged 39, Stoneman, when making width for a waggonway, some top coal and stone fell away and buried him ; the timber was swung out by the fall, Buried: St. Cuthbert's Churchyard, Durham [More information ...]
						Richardson, Samuel, 03 Aug 1886, (accident: 14 May 1886), aged 46, Shifter, injury to head by a tram; he worked a week after and died from an abscess in the brain
						Smith, William, 11 Oct 1907, aged 48, Pumpman, fell down a ventilating staple after going beyond two fences

						9 names found

If you know of any fatalities missing from the above list then please contact us with the details and we will add them to our database.

Those names marked with , have a web page providing individual details of the accident, the page may also include a photograph of the deceased. Click on the symbol next to the name to see the web page.

Some of the names of mining fatalities on this web site have been kindly provided by Jim Grainger from his research into early newspapers (primarily the Durham Advertiser and Durham Chronicle) and are marked with .

more information on some of the fatalities shown above

Collieries and Pits within 5 miles (8km)

a simulated map showing the immediate vicinity of Durham Main Colliery

list of collieries/pits etc. near to Durham Main Colliery

Credits

Sources:

1873-4 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1880 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1881 Mines Inspectors Report (C 3241)
1885 Mines Inspectors Report (C 4760) Where to find this report
1886 Mines Inspectors Report (C 5090) Where to find this report
1888 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1888 Mines Inspectors Report (C 5779), Durham District (No. 4) by Thomas Bell, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1890 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1894 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1896 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department, also available online at Peak District Mines Historical Society Ltd
1900 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1902 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1902 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 1590), Durham District (No. 4) by R. Donald Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1905 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1907 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 4045), Durham District (No. 4) by R. D. Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1909 List of Mines - from Reid's Handy Colliery Guide
1910 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1910 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 5676), Durham District (No. 3) by A. D. Nicholson, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1915 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1919 List of Mines - from Reid's Handy Colliery Guide
1921 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1923 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1924 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
An Account of the strata of Northumberland & Durham as proved by Borings & Sinkings, Supplement, published by the North of England Institute of Mining & Mechanical Engineers, 1910
Contributions by members of the Public
Headstone(s) in St. Bede's Cemetery, Durham
Headstone(s) in St. Cuthbert's Churchyard, Durham
History, Topography, and Directory of the County Palatine of Durham by Francis Whellan. Second edition published in 1894.
Mineral Statistics for 1883 - Government report from the Mines Department (C 4058), published in 1884 — includes List of Mines and Mineral Works
Mineral Statistics for 1884 - Government report from the Mines Department (C 4430), published in 1885 — includes List of Mines and Openworks
Victoria History of the Counties of England – Durham. Published in three volumes in 1907.