	Eden Colliery	Index	Eden Colliery

Eden Colliery

Location:

Leadgate
10½ miles [17 km] SW of Newcastle

Map Ref:

(Sheet 88) NZ132520, 54° 51' 47" N, 1° 47' 35" W

Maps:

1928 map from Reid's Handy Colliery Guide

1933 map from the Colliery Engineer magazine, shows the disposition of pits in the Consett Iron Co., Ltd. group and the railway links between them

1951 map from the Guide to the Coalfields (Colliery Guardian)

Opened:

1844

Closed:

18 July 1980

Pits:

Air Shaft, locn: (Sheet 88) NZ147515

Shaft details for Air Shaft

Shaft details for Eden Colliery

Owners:

1844 - E. Richardson

1840s - Derwent Iron Co.

1840s - Consett Iron Co. Ltd.

1850s - Edward Richardson & Co.

1947 - National Coal Board (N.C.B.)

Output:

1855 - Coal.

1860 - Coal.

1865 - Coal.

1888 - Coal.

1894 - Coal: Household, Manufacturing.

1896 - Coal: Household, Manufacturing.

1900 - Coal: Household, Manufacturing.

1902 - Coal: Household, Manufacturing.

1905 - Coal: Household, Manufacturing.

1910 - Coal: Household, Manufacturing.

1915 - Coal: Household, Manufacturing.

1921 - Coal: Household, Manufacturing.

1925 - Coal: Coking, Household, Steam.

1930 - Coal: Coking, Household, Steam.

1935 - Coal: Coking, Household, Steam.

1947 - Coal: Coking, Gas. (209,000 tons)

1950 - Coal: Coking, Household, Steam.

1955 - Coal: Coking, Steam.

1960 - Coal: Coking, Steam.

1965 - Coal: Coking. Fireclay.

1970 - Coal: Coking.

1975 - Coal: Coking.

1980 - Coal.

Employment:

Year	Total	Below	Above
1854	Working
1883	158	158
1894	270	222	48
1896	325	264	61
1900	303	244	59
1902	265	206	59
1905	240	182	58
1910	314	227	87
1915	488	423	65
1921	874	786	88
1925	1,172	1,013	159
1930	862	711	151
1930	inc. Castle Drift
1935	929	764	165
1940	858	858
1945	684	517	167
1947	828	665	163
1950	951	746	205
1955	919	751	168
1960	885	750	135
1965	565	482	83
1970	283	240	43
1975	307	273	34
1980	194	169	25

NCB Employment Figures

Colliery Management (prior to 1970)

Seams Worked:

1905 - Hutton, Little Coal, Main Coal

1910 - Busty, Hutton, Main Coal

1915 - Brass Thill, Busty, Five Quarter, Hutton, Main Coal, Shield Row

1921 - Brass Thill, Brockwell, Busty, Five Quarter, Hutton, Main Coal, Shield Row

1925 - Brass Thill, Brockwell, Busty, Five Quarter, Hutton, Main, Shield Row

1930 - Brass Thill, Brockwell, Busty, Five Quarter, Hutton, Towneley

1935 - Brass Thill, Brockwell, Busty, Five Quarter, Hutton, Main, Towneley

1950 - Brockwell, Busty, Towneley

1955 - Brockwell, Busty, Hutton, Towneley

1960 - Brockwell, Busty, Hutton, Little Coal, Towneley

1965 - Little Coal, Towneley

1970 - Harvey

1975 - Harvey

1980 - Brass Thill, Busty, Low Main/Top

Catalogue of plans of abandoned mines for Eden Colliery

Notes:

1883 - Five Quarter and Main seam abandoned

Miscellaneous Notes and Incidents for Eden Colliery

Description

The Eden Colliery, by the Consett Iron Company, is now working the Hutton and the Main coal seams. This pit has been working for about fifty years. The first named seam is met at a depth of 30 feet, and has an average thickness of 7 feet 6 inches of workable coal, and contains a band of from 7 to 9 inches wide, and about 1 foot of bad coal at the foot of the lower section. Six feet below the bad coal is met the Low Hutton seam, which has not yet been worked. The Main coal is 30 feet below the Hutton, and averages 4 feet of clear coal. Besides the above seams, there exist the Townley, Hodge, Hand, and the Tilley, all more or less thin. The Busty, which has not yet been opened out, lies at a depth of 210 feet below the Main coal, and gives a thickness of 5 feet. The output, which amounts to 5500 tons per fortnight, is almost entirely used for making gas for the steel furnaces, the remainder, about one-ninth, being disposed of by land sale. The number of men and boys employed is 261.

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!

						Aisbitt, J., 09 Dec 1931, (accident: 17 Aug 1931), aged 36, Stoneman, fall of girder, died from injuries received
						Allan, Robert, 15 May 1940, aged 20, killed during shot firing operations, address: Bradley Square, Leadgate
						Basham, John William, 17 Mar 1922, aged 15, Set Rider, run over by full tubs
						Boyles, William, 11 Jun 1930, (accident: 10 Jun 1930), aged 19, Rope end lad, crushed between a tub and the side of the road way
						Brown, James, 15 Feb 1915, aged 18, Labourer, killed by an explosion of gelignite whilst the same was being softened on a fire [More information ...]
						Brown, Matthew Coulson, 01 Oct 1912, aged 24, Hewer, he was kirving in a broken lift in a seam with the following section ;- top coal, 2 feet; band, 1 foot; bottom coal, 3 feet; hewers were not allowed to prop up the top coal, but had to work out the whole seam as near as possible with a straight face; the roof was hard post stone, and the previously worked lift was upstanding; he had improperly worked out the bottom coal so that the top coal was overhanging for a depth of 4 feet, when a large piece of it fell on to him and broke his back; this accident should not have occurred
						Brown, William, 24 Sep 1897, aged 36, Assistant Enginewright, He got into cage at Hutton Seam, and after it had gone about 14 feet up the shaft he fell out and to the bottom of the shaft, a distance of 18 fathoms, and died within three hours. There was nothing wrong with the cage or shaft and he must either have slipped or taken a fit [More information ...]
						Close, Joseph, 26 Mar 1879, aged 54, Collier, went down the pit in cage with other men as far as main coal and got out. He turned and walked into opposite side of shaft and fell down to the Hutton seam, about 5 fathoms
						Costello, William, 25 Feb 1930, aged 34, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Crowther, J., 17 Jan 1938, aged 16, Conveyor Asst., runover by tub
						Crowther, Joseph, 15 Feb 1915, aged 42, Stoneman, killed by an explosion of gelignite whilst the same was being softened on a fire [More information ...]
						Davison, John, 07 Nov 1927, aged 74, Fore Overman, explosion of firedamp [More information ...]
						Dickson, Andrew, junr., 07 Nov 1927, aged 17, Mason, explosion of firedamp, son of Andrew senr. [More information ...]
						Dickson, Andrew, senr., 07 Nov 1927, aged 49, Mason, explosion of firedamp, father of Andrew junr. [More information ...]
						Elliott, G. P., 05 Aug 1936, aged 56, Stoneman, killed by a fall of stone
						Elliott, George, 11 May 1915, (accident: 17 May 1912), aged 57, Shifter, he had his right hand crushed in 1912 at Delves Colliery, died from a fracture of the skull from falling down the stairs, it was alleged that the fall was due to the condition he was in as a result of the accident
						Foster, George, 07 Aug 1925, aged 32, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Greener, George T., 04 Nov 1965, aged 43
						Harrison, John, 27 Sep 1926, (accident: 01 Apr 1926), aged 22, Putter, fall of stone
						Harvey, John, 27 Dec 1972, aged 45, Deputy, shot firing accident ; residence: Grange Street, Delves Lane, Consett
						Hewison, John, 26 Feb 1930, aged 26, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Hughes, Eugene, 04 Mar 1958, aged 22, killed by a fall of stone, address: First Street, Watling Bungalows, Leadgate
						Hughes, Robert, 11 Feb 1908, (accident: 10 Feb 1908), aged 32, Hewer, he was taking down top coal when it fell and knocked out a prop. As he was jumping clear the prop hit him on the head; he died the following day
						Lee, Thomas, 13 Apr 1905, (accident: 31 Aug 1904), aged 49, Deputy, Stumbled while carrying a prop on 31st August, 1904, and fell forward upon it, severely bruising his side. Sarcoma supervened, and he died 13th April, 1905
						Loughran, Peter, 22 May 1906, aged 26, Stoneman, The shaft was being repaired. By reason of the peculiar arrangements, it was necessary for him to get into a kibble to ascend the shaft at a lower point than that at which the repairs were being done. As he was being drawn up in the kibble a piece of stone fell from the side of the shaft and, striking him, knocked him out of the kibble.
						McCance, John Thomas, 14 Aug 1958, aged 56, Stoneman, he was found lying dead under some tubs on an incline, he had sustained fatal neck and head injuries
						McKenna, C., 06 Jan 1931, (accident: 28 Aug 1930), aged 36, Hewer, crushed by tubs, died from injuries received
						Rowe, W. H., 15 Oct 1933, (accident: 01 Sep 1933), aged 40, Conveyor Puller, died from injuries received
						Slane, Patrick, 21 Dec 1892, aged 24, Putter, alleged to have sprained himself while at work in September last, but on a post mortem being made it was found that he died from disease of the mesenteric glands with localised peritonitis [fatality reported during the year but not classified as a reportable accident]
						Straughton, P., 15 May 1868, aged 33, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Tearney, Philip, 31 Aug 1888, aged 55, Water Leader, took a fit and died in the pit; ventilation all right
						Temple, Joseph, 04 Jun 1907, (accident: 08 Sep 1906), aged 21, Hewing-Putter, he was hewing in a place and had not set any timber although previously cautioned; his spine was injured by the fall and he died 4th June 1907
						Thompson, E., 06 Dec 1945, aged 49, Filler, killed by a fall of stone
						Tighe, Thomas, 18 Aug 1868, aged 55, Waiter on, fell down staple [More information ...]
						Urwin, William, 06 Jun 1870, aged 15, Pony Putter, killed by a fall of stone
						Waite, Frederick William, 25 Aug 1922, aged 53, Rolleyway Man, crushed between tubs
						Watson, Matthew, 23 Jul 1869, aged 12, Driver, crushed by tubs
						Young, George, 11 Sep 1952, aged 30, Hewer, trapped by a fall of coal, as help reached him a second fall occurred which killed him, left a wife and two children, Buried: St. Mary Magdalene Churchyard, Medomsley

						38 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 .

Some of the names of mining fatalities on this web site have been extracted from material deposited at the North East England Mining Archive and Research Centre (NEEMARC) — principally the records of the Durham Miners' Association 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 Eden Colliery

list of collieries/pits etc. near to Eden Colliery

Gallery Images:

Credits

Sources:

NEEMARC - Ref: NUMDA/1/6/40, D.M.A. Minutes, Circulars etc. for 1915 (two volumes: covers Jan-Jun, Jul-Dec)
1854 List of mines by T. Y. Hall, published in Vol II (1853-4) of the Transactions of the North of England Institute of Mining Engineers
1868 Mines Inspectors Report, Northumberland, North Durham and Cumberland District by George William Southern, H.M. Inspector of Mines
1869 Mines Inspectors Report (C 124), Northumberland, North Durham and Cumberland District by George William Southern, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1870 Mines Inspectors Report (C 456) Where to find this report
1879 Mines Inspectors Report (C 2604) Where to find this report
1880 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1881 Mines Inspectors Report (C 3241)
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
1892 Mines Inspectors Report (C 6986), Durham District (No. 4) by Thomas Bell, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
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
1897 Mines Inspectors Report (C 8819), Durham District (No. 4) by R. D. Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1900 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1902 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1905 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1905 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 2910), Durham District (No. 4) by R. Donald Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1906 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 3449), Durham District (No. 4) by R. Donald Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1907 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 4045), Durham District (No. 4) by R. D. Bain, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1908 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 4672), 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
1912 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 6983), 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
1925 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1930 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1935 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1940 Colliery Year Book and Coal Trades Directory published by Louis Cassier Co. Ltd.
1945 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1947 The Colliery Year Book and Coal Trades Directory. Published by The Louis Cassier Co. Ltd., from a copy held in the Scottish Mining Museum, Newtongrange, Midlothian
1950 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1955 Guide to the Coalfields published by the Colliery Guardian
1960 Guide to the Coalfields published by the Colliery Guardian
1965 Guide to the Coalfields published by the Colliery Guardian
1970 Guide to the Coalfields published by the Colliery Guardian
1975 Guide to the Coalfields published by the Colliery Guardian
1980 Guide to the Coalfields published by the Colliery Guardian
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
Banners of the Durham Coalfield, Norman Emery, 1998, Sutton Publishing Ltd., ISBN 0-7509-1708-3
Contributions by members of the Public
Headstone(s) in St. Mary Magdalene Churchyard, Medomsley
History, Topography, and Directory of the County Palatine of Durham by Francis Whellan. Second edition published in 1894.
Mineral Statistics for 1855 (Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great Britain, and of the Museum of Practical Geology), compiled by Robert Hunt, F.R.S.
Mineral Statistics for 1860 (Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great Britain, and of the Museum of Practical Geology), compiled by Robert Hunt, F.R.S.
Mineral Statistics for 1865 (Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great Britain, and of the Museum of Practical Geology), compiled by Robert Hunt, F.R.S.
Mineral Statistics for 1869 (Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great Britain, and of the Museum of Practical Geology), compiled by Robert Hunt, F.R.S.
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
Text kindly provided by Jim Grainger from his research into early newspapers (primarily the Durham Advertiser and Durham Chronicle).

Further Research:

Research Notes for Eden Colliery

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