	East Pontop Colliery	Index	East Pontop Colliery

East Pontop Colliery

Location:

Annfield Plain
9 miles [14 km] SW of Newcastle

Map Ref:

(Sheet 88) NZ162526, 54° 52' 4" N, 1° 44' 51" W

Opened:

Closed:

1930

Owners:

1880s - E. M. Bainbridge & Partners

1880s - East Pontop Coal & Coke Co.

1890s - East Pontop Coal Co. Ltd.

Output:

1882 - Coal. Fireclay.

1883 - Coal.

1888 - Coal.

1890 - Coal.

1894 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1896 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1900 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1902 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1905 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1910 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1915 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1921 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1923 - Coal: Coking, Gas, Steam.

1924 - Coal: Coking, Gas, Steam.

1925 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1927 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1929 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

1930 - Coal: Coking, Gas.

Employment:

Year	Total	Below	Above
1894	324	204	120
1896	270	179	91
1900	302	233	69
1902	357	292	65
1905	331	259	72
1910	356	296	60
1915	422	360	62
1921	362	296	66
1923	288	236	52
1924	206	160	46
1925	208	161	47
1927	182	134	48
1929	135	97	38
1930	90	57	33
1930	Abandoned 28/6/30

Colliery Management (prior to 1970)

Seams Worked:

1905 - Brass Thill, Hutton, Shield Row

1910 - Brass Thill, Five Quarter, Hutton, Shield Row

1915 - Crow Coal, Hutton (Section), Shield Row

1921 - Brass Thill, Crow Coal, Five Quarter, Hutton (Section)

1923 - Brass Thill, Crow Coal, Five Quarter, Hutton (Section)

1924 - Brass Thill, Crow Coal, Five Quarter, Hutton

1925 - Brass Thill, Five Quarter

1927 - Brass Thill, Five Quarter

1929 - Brass Thill, Five Quarter

1930 - Brass Thill, Five Quarter [Abandoned 28/6/30]

Catalogue of plans of abandoned mines for East Pontop Colliery

Notes:

1920 - Shield Row seam abandoned

1930, 28 Jun - Five Quarter, Brass Thill seams abandoned

Description

East Pontop Colliery, the property of the East Pontop Coal Company, Limited, was reopened in 1868, and is working the following seams : Shield Row, 10 fathoms, 6 feet in thickness ; the Brass Thill, 35 fathoms, 5 feet 8 inches, separated from the Five Quarter by a band of 2 feet, 35 fathoms deep ; the Hutton, 65 fathoms, 7 feet 6 inches. There are eighty coke ovens, in which the small coal is converted into coke. The average output is 160,000 tons per annum, giving employment to 250 men and boys.

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!

						Allison, Joseph Thompson, 12 Dec 1905, aged 20, Hewer and Putter, Buried: St. John the Evangelist Churchyard, Dipton [More information ...]
						Balleny, Arthur Wetheral, 28 Jul 1904, aged 19, Hewer [More information ...]
						Dawe, James Henry, 08 May 1911, aged 31, Hewer, fall of stone and coal
						Dawson, John, 08 Sep 1875, aged 25, Furnaceman, fell down air shaft, 45 fms, apparently intentional, Chester Ward Coroner's Inquest, place: East Pontop Colliery, cause: fell down airshaft, Lower Pit, E. Pontop (DRO Ref: COR/C/2/382)
						Dixon, John, 11 Sep 1873, aged 49, Back Overman, killed by a fall of stone
						Herdman, John, 16 Mar 1908, aged 20, Hewer, fall of coal at the working face
						Hodges, Ralph Calvert, 08 Dec 1920, aged 23, Hewer, he was caught by a fall of stone only five minutes after starting work; he was killed instantly
						King, F., 03 Oct 1871, aged 33, Hewer, crushed by cage
						Lightburn, Atherley Graham, 01 Oct 1907, aged 20, Onsetter [More information ...]
						Lightburn, Matthew William, 24 May 1900, aged 23, Deputy, The deceased and a hewer were drawing timber out of a "broken" working, when a fall occurred and caught him. [Inspection made & inquest attended], Buried: Harelaw Cemetery (old)
						Newstead, Lancelot, 23 Oct 1917, aged 16, Pony Putter, crushed between two tubs
						Sparks, Hugh, 08 Sep 1880, aged 16, Putter, killed by a fall of coal and stone
						Webb, William, 03 Apr 1895, Putter, died from inflammation of the brain; an allegation was made that it must have been due to a blow received in the pit, but there was no evidence whatever to support the theory [fatality reported during the year but not classified as a reportable accident]

						13 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 East Pontop Colliery

list of collieries/pits etc. near to East Pontop Colliery

Credits

Sources:

NEEMARC - Ref: NUMDA/1/6/43, D.M.A. Minutes, Circulars etc. for 1918 (two volumes: covers Jan-Jun, Jul-Dec)
1871 Mines Inspectors Report (C. 653), Northumberland, North Durham, and Cumberland District by George William Southern, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1873 Mines Inspectors Report (C. 1056), Northumberland, North Durham, and Cumberland District by George William Southern, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1875 Mines Inspectors Report (C. 1499), Newcastle-on-Tyne District by James Willis, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1880 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1880 Mines Inspectors Report (C 2903) Where to find this report
1881 Mines Inspectors Report (C 3241)
1888 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1890 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1894 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1895 Mines Inspectors Report (C 8074), Newcastle District (No. 3) by J. L. Hedley, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
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
1900 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 536), Newcastle District (No. 3) by John L. Hedley, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1902 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1904 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 2506), Newcastle District (No. 3) by J. B. Atkinson, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1905 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1905 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 2910), Newcastle District (No. 3) by J. B. Atkinson, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1907 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 4045), Newcastle District (No. 3) by J. B. Atkinson, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1908 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 4672), Newcastle District (No. 3) by J. B. Atkinson, 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
1911 Mines Inspectors Report (Cd 6237), Newcastle District (No. 2) by J. B. Atkinson, 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
1925 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1927 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1929 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1930 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
Contributions by members of the Public
Headstone(s) in New Cemetery, Harelaw
Headstone(s) in St. John the Evangelist Churchyard, Dipton
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