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Robert Hills
| Age: | 64 |
| Died: | 2nd Dec 1886 |
| Accident: | 2nd Dec 1886 2:50 AM |
| Year Born: | abt. 1822 |
| Colliery: | Elemore |
| Company: | Hetton Coal Co., Ltd. |
| Occupation: | Deputy |
| Notes: | killed in the 1886 explosion (ignition caused by shot firing) |
| Buried: | Churchyard of St. Michael and All Angels, Lyons |
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| Description | |
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Perhaps one of the most extraordinary coal-dust explosions was that which occurred at the Elemore Colliery in Durham, in December, 1886. The evidence shows intake that the explosion originated in a main haulage road within 200 yards of the downcast shaft. It was an old colliery; the road had been made for many years, and there was a current of 37,000 cubic feet a minute of fresh air passing the place where it is said the explosion originated. On the night of the explosion some miners were at work enlarging the road at the place marked + on the plan (Fig. 339) and also on the section (Fig. 340). Several shots were fired by one shift of men, who were relieved by a second shift, who fired another shot, after which the mine exploded. The evidence seems to show that it was impossible for the explosion to have originated in any other part of the mine. The flame was seen to rush into the downcast shaft, and go down the shaft and enter a seam of coal on a lower level and pass along the intake haulage road, and go still further down the shaft and enter another seam on a still lower level. Everywhere the flame traversed intake haulage roads for a total length of 3500 yards. There was no explosion in the return air-roads; there was no explosion in the working places. The intake haulage roads were dry and dusty, and it is inconceivable that there could have been fire-damp in these intake roads and no fire-damp in the working places and returns. The conclusion is irresistible that this was an explosion of coal-dust.
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| Census Data | |
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1881 Census
Address: Elemore Pit, Pittington, Co. Durham
(Ref: RG11 / 4962 / 63 / 22)
| Name | Age | Rel | Mar | Occupation | Where Born | Born |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HILLS, Robert | 59 | Head | Mar | Coal Miner | DUR: Lumley | 1822 |
| HILLS, Ann | 61 | Wife | Mar | DUR: Rainton | 1820 | |
| HILLS, Ann | 12 | Dau | Scholar | DUR: Elemore | 1869 | |
| HILLS, Michael | 27 | Son | Wid | Coal Miner | DUR: Easington Lane | 1854 |
| HILLS, Robert | 9 | Son | DUR: Elemore | 1872 | ||
| HILLS, Margaret | 5 | Dau | Scholar | DUR: Easington Lane | 1876 | |
| HILLS, Sarah A. | 3 | Dau | Scholar | DUR: Easington Lane | 1878 |
Please note: the census extracts shown here are our 'best guess match' to the person shown on this page and is not intended to be definitive — only knowledge of the family would allow this.
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| Memorial: 1886 Elemore Colliery Disaster | |
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| Tombstone | |
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Hetton Lyons — St. Michael and All Angels Churchyard
Location: OS Map 88, Grid Ref NZ367457
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This is a low resolution image for web display, if you would like to have a higher resolution image, then please
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| Names on this tombstone | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Died | Age | Born |
| Ann HILLS | |||
| Robert HILLS | 2nd Dec 1886 | 64 | 1822 |
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| Related Articles | |
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| Pub. Date | Article (Newspaper) |
|---|---|
| 03 Dec 1886 | Fatal Colliery Explosion (The Times) |
| 04 Dec 1886 | The Fatal Colliery Explosion (The Times) |
| 06 Dec 1886 | The Elemore Colliery Explosion (The Times) |
| 07 Dec 1886 | The Elemore Colliery Explosion (The Times) |
| 21 Dec 1886 | The Elemore Colliery Explosion (The Times) |
| 22 Dec 1886 | The Elemore Colliery Explosion (The Times) |
| 23 Dec 1886 | The Elemore Colliery Explosion (The Times) |
| 16 Jun 1887 | The Elemore Colliery Explosion (The Times) |
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| Further Reading | |
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- Mines Inspectors Report into the 1886 Disaster (C. 5065)
- Durham Mining Disasters, c.1700 - 1950s by Maureen Anderson, Published by Wharncliffe Books, 2008, ISBN 1-845630-73-4
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| Sources | |
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- 1881 Census — taken 3rd April, 1881
- Church/Cemetery photograph (T-00216-00-0002) © Kev Duncan
- Headstone(s) and Memorial in St. Michael and All Angels Churchyard, Hetton Lyons
- Mining - an elementary treatise on the getting of minerals by Arnold Lupton, M.I.C.E., F.G.S., published in 1893
- Tombstone photograph (T-00296-00-0002) © Kev Duncan
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| Researchers | |
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| Researcher | Date | Interest | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heather J. Williams | 27 Sep 2008 |
Robert Hills is my 3x Great Grandfather |
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| Janet Atkinson | 27 Nov 2008 |
my grandmother was his grandaughter her name was elizabeth hills |
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| Olive Banwell | 12 Nov 2012 |
I have been researching my family tree Robert Hills was my 2nd Great grand father on my maternal side. My mother was Alice Hills. |
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| Donna Spottiswood | 08 Apr 2020 |
Robert Hills was my Great, Great, Great Grandad on my paternal side. My Grandad was Ronald Hill. |
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| Jane Livingstone | 15 Mar 2021 |
Robert Hills was my 3x Great Grandfather, |
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