	Old Durham Colliery	Index	Old Durham Colliery

Old Durham Colliery

Location:	Shincliffe, Durham 1½ miles [2 km] ESE of Durham
Map Ref:	(Sheet 88) NZ292415, 54° 46' 3" N, 1° 32' 45" W
Maps:	1898 map from Reid's Handy Colliery Guide
Opened:	1849
Closed:
Sinking Started:	1848
Pits:	Lord Ernest Pit
	Shaft details for Old Durham Colliery
Owners:	1849 - Lord Londonderry
Output:	1873 - Coal.
Employment:	1854 - 0 [Working]
	1882 - 0 [Standing]
	Catalogue of plans of abandoned mines for Old Durham Colliery
Notes:	1801 - Boring operations were in progress on the Old Durham estate, proving the Hutton Seam.
	1848 - Sunk the Old Durham Colliery, near to Shincliffe Mill, from the surface to the Hutton Seam.
	1849 - A new colliery was opened on the Old Durham estate by the marquis of Londonderry.
	1875 - Boring operations were in progress in the upcast shaft at Old Durham Colliery below the Hutton Seam, proving the Brockwell Seam.
	1876 - Hutton seam abandoned
	1883 - Low Main seam abandoned
	1935, 07 Oct - Low Main, Busty seams abandoned

Description

There were two collieries in the parish [Shincliffe], one in this township [Shincliffe] and one at Old Durham, which are now "laid in".

Bank Top or High Shincliffe is a somewhat deserted village, owing to the closing of the colliery in 1875.

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!

						Ayre, John, 26 Jan 1857, aged 13, Driver, he was found lying dead under the front tub of a set of four, it was thought he had been trying to get on the limmers and had fallen between the tub and his pony
						Connelly, John, 17 Jun 1878, aged 22, Collier, fall of stone while he was getting coal in a broken jud
						Coxon, George, 01 Sep 1869, aged 64, Driver, crushed between horse and waggon, Buried: Shincliffe, St. Mary the Virgin on 03 Sep 1869 {NBI}
						Defty, John, 07 Oct 1868, aged 13, Pony Driver, crushed by empty tubs on engine plane
						Grey, George, 24 May 1865, aged 44, Deputy, killed by a fall of stone
						Jones, John, 10 Jul 1859, aged 16, Pony Putter, kicked by his pony
						Pratt, Michael, 09 Sep 1867, aged 34, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Taylor, Richard, 15 May 1858, aged 11, He was oiling sheaves up the incline and when he got to the top, he oiled the horizontal wheel and then sat down on the framework with his legs dangling between the spokes. The wheel was suddenly set in motion and he was drawn in. His head and shoulders were severely crushed and his right arm broken. He died immediately on his removal from the pit
						Thompson, Hugh, 17 Feb 1873, aged 41, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Todd, Robert, 19 Feb 1870, aged 66, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Wandless, Richard, 16 Jan 1871, aged 16, Putter, got entangled with hauling ropes

						11 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 .

The following unnamed fatalities are listed in the Mines Inspectors Reports, once again this collection is not complete!

Date							Inspectors Remarks
01 Aug 1856	–	–	–	1	–	1	fall of stone

Collieries and Pits within 5 miles (8km)

a simulated map showing the immediate vicinity of Old Durham Colliery

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

Credits

Sources:

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
1859 Mines Inspectors Report
1859 Mines Inspectors Report, Southern District by John J. Atkinson, H.M. Inspector of Mines
1865 Mines Inspectors Report, South Durham District by John J. Atkinson, H.M. Inspector of Mines
1867 Mines Inspectors Report
1868 Mines Inspectors Report, South Durham District by John J. Atkinson, H.M. Inspector of Mines
1869 Mines Inspectors Report (C 124), South Durham District by John J. Atkinson, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1870 Mines Inspectors Report (C 456) Where to find this report
1871 Mines Inspectors Report (C. 653), South Durham, Westmoreland, and Cleveland District by James Willis, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1873-4 List of Mines - Government report from the Mines Department
1873 Mines Inspectors Report (C. 1056), South Durham, Westmoreland, and Cleveland District by James Willis, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1878 Mines Inspectors Report (C 2321), Durham District by Thomas Bell, H.M. Inspector of Mines Where to find this report
1881 Mines Inspectors Report (C 3241)
An Account of the strata of Northumberland & Durham as proved by Borings & Sinkings, Volume L-R, published by the North of England Institute of Mining & Mechanical Engineers, 1887
Contributions by members of the Public
Headstone(s) in St. Mary the Virgin Churchyard, Shincliffe
History, Topography, and Directory of the County Palatine of Durham by Francis Whellan. Second edition published in 1894.
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.
National Burial Index published by The Federation of Family History Societies & Associates
Victoria History of the Counties of England – Durham. Published in three volumes in 1907.

Further Research:

Research Notes for Old Durham Colliery

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