Addison Colliery	Index	Addison Colliery

Location:	Ryton 5½ miles [9 km] W of Newcastle
Map Ref:	(Sheet 88) NZ168643, 54° 58' 23" N, 1° 44' 14" W
Maps:	1898 map from Reid's Handy Colliery Guide
	1928 map from Reid's Handy Colliery Guide
	1951 map from the Guide to the Coalfields (Colliery Guardian)
Opened:	1865
Closed:	22 Feb 1963
Sinking Started:	26 Jan 1864
Pits:	Shaft details for Addison Colliery
Owners:	1864 - Stella Coal Co.
	1900's - Stella Coal Co. Ltd.
	1947 - National Coal Board (N.C.B.)
Output:	1882 - Coal.
	1888 - Coal.
	1890 - Coal.
	1896 - Coal: Coking, Gas.
	1902 - Coal: Coking, Gas.
	1914 - Coal: Coking, Gas. Fireclay.
	1921 - Coal: Coking, Gas.
	1930 - Coal: Coking, Gas, Household, Steam.
	1947 - Coal: Coking, Gas, Household, Manufacturing. (64,653 tons)
	1950 - Coal: Coking, Gas, Household, Steam. Fireclay.
	1955 - Coal: Coking, Gas, Household, Manufacturing. Fireclay.
	1960 - Coal: Coking, Gas, Household, Manufacturing. Fireclay.
	1961 - Coal: Coking, Gas, Household, Manufacturing. Stone. Fireclay.
Employment:	Year  Pit   Total  Below  Above 1896 377 240 137 1902 662 479 183 1914 907 753 154 1921 962 818 144 1930 324 226 98 1940 475 375 100 1945 360 275 85 1947 378 275 103 1950 365 256 109 1955 160 124 36 1960 374 88 286 1961 145 120 25
	NCB Employment Figures
	Colliery Management (prior to 1955)
Seams Worked:	1914 - Brockwell, Five Quarter, Stone Coal, Three Quarter, Tilley, Towneley
	1921 - Brockwell, Five Quarter, Ruler, Stone Coal, Three Quarter, Tilley, Towneley
	1930 - Brockwell, Five Quarter, Stone, Three Quarter, Tilley
	1950 - Brockwell, Five Quarter, Hodge, Marshall Green, Ruler, Stone, Three Quarter, Tilley, Towneley
	1955 - Brockwell, Five Quarter, Marshall Green, Ruler, Stone, Three Quarter, Tilley, Towneley
	1960 - Brockwell, Three Quarter
	1961 - Brockwell, Three Quarter
	Catalogue of plans of abandoned mines for Addison Colliery
Notes:	1953 - Tilley ('P') seam abandoned
	1955 - Marshall Green seam abandoned
	1963 - Brockwell ('S'), Five Quarter or Bottom Busty ('Q2'), Stone Coal or Top Busty ('Q1'), Three Quarter ('R'), Towneley or Harvey ('N') seams abandoned
	Miscellaneous Notes and Incidents for Addison Colliery

Description

According to ancient records, coal was worked in the "Grand Lease" royalty as early as 1390, a grant having been made by the then Bishop of Durham to a company to get coal from the upper seam. This same royalty appears to have been worked more or less up to the present time. The Stella Coal Co. is now working these extensive royalties at their Addison, Stargate, Blaydon Main, Emma, and Clara Vale collieries. The Addison is situated on the western boundary of this township, and is worked by two shafts, sunk in 1864, to a depth of 45 fathoms. The seams met here are the Townley, 4 feet 2 inches, 14 fathoms deep; Stone Coal, 3 feet 1 inch, 26 fathoms; Lower Five Quarter, 3 feet 9 inches, at a depth of 31 fathoms; and the Brockwell, 3 feet 10 inches, at a depth of 45 fathoms. This pit is ventilated by a 16-feet Guibal fan. At this colliery there are 180 beehive coke-ovens, and the daily output of coal amounts to 450 tons. The Emma pit is about half-a-mile south-west of Ryton village, and was sunk in 1863, having two shafts, the Emma being 83 fathoms deep. The following large order of seams have been met in the Stargate section: Main Coal, 6 feet, 8½ fathoms deep ; Crow Coal, 3 feet 9 inches, 14½ fathoms; Upper Five Quarter, 2 feet 9 inches, 15½ fathoms; Ruler, 1 foot 10 inches, 32 fathoms; Townley or Beaumont, 4 feet 4½ inches, 51 fathoms; Hodge, 2 feet 4 inches, 53 fathoms; Tilley, 2 feet 4 inches, 55 fathoms; Stone Coal, 3 feet 1 inch, 63 fathoms; Lower Five Quarter, 3 feet 7 inches, 68 fathoms; Three Quarter, 2 feet 6 inches, 70 fathoms ; Brockwell, 3 feet 3 inches, 83 fathoms ; lower measures, varying from 1 to 2 feet, have also been met from 90 to 100 fathoms deep. The three upper seams have nearly been exhausted by the earlier miners. The Emma has an output of 550 tons per day. Stargate colliery is about three-quarters of a mile south of the Addison, was sunk in 1800 to a depth of 64 fathoms, and yields about 500 tons daily. Clara Vale is situated in the township of Crawcrook, about a mile north of the Emma. It has been opened since the latter part of 1893, the sinking having occupied two years. Here two shafts, 68 fathoms deep, have been sunk to the Brockwell, when a feeder of considerable extent was met. Electric lighting has been adopted for the works at bank, and a brick work is also in operation, the daily output of coal being 300 tons, which will rapidly increase. In addition to their mining operations, this company farm about 400 acres.

The other villages in this parish [Ryton] are Addison, a colliery village on the main turnpike, about a mile east by south of Ryton. It is entirely inhabited by the employees of the Stella Coal Co. Stargate is another pit village, about three-quarters of a mile south of Addison.

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!

						Arkless, John, 05 Aug 1922, aged 20, Hewing Putter, killed by a fall of stone
						Clark, William, 25 Apr 1904, aged 45, Deputy, deceased, who during the course of his shift had complained of feeling unwell, was engaged with another man pulling up short rails and laying down longer ones, when he suddenly sat down and expired; no inquest was held
						Davison, Percy Seymour, 05 Feb 1941, aged 31, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone, Buried: Ryton Cemetery
						Elliott, William, 20 Aug 1895, 9:45 a.m., 1st hour of shift, aged 61, Stoneman, killed by a fall of stone canting some props out in a place which was considered by the official in charge perfectly safe, Buried: Ryton Cemetery
						Farrow, Joseph, 1900, Labourer, was assisting the removal of an old boiler when it was alleged he received a slight cut on the right arm; the jury returned a verdict "that he died from syncope, accelerated by injury to the right arm, but how the injury was received there was no evidence to show" [approximate date]
						Henderson, George, 25 Jul 1905, aged 76, Screenman, Deceased was returning from the privy to the screens across the Colliery branches and, after passing through an opening in a low retaining wall on to a line of rails, the Colliery locomotive, which had been standing 10 yards away, came forward, and he was caught by one of its buffers and thrown down under the ash pan between the rails. The locomotive driver stated he had whistled three times before starting and was going slowly when deceased was struck. Some full wagons obstructed deceased's view, and the engine driver was looking forward for a signal from his fireman from the opposite side to that from which deceased approached
						Hutchinson, John, 09 Apr 1901, aged 24, Loco Fireman, He was endeavouring to uncouple some waggons whilst in motion, and was crushed between them [Inspection made & inquest attended]
						Ions, John, 17 Mar 1881, aged 19, Hewer, fall of stone and coal
						Lackenby, Stephen, 19 Jun 1877, aged 54, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Lackey, W., 21 Oct 1928, (accident: 19 Oct 1928), aged 46, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone and died from injuries received
						Level, Frank, 18 Jan 1876, aged 40, Hewer, killed by a fall of roof
						Liddle, Robert, 22 Apr 1930, aged 63, Shifter, he was killed by a fall of stone in the Five Quarter Seam; he had started work at the pit at the age of ten, and had over 50 years of continuous employment there
						Maughan, W. R. P., 20 Jan 1924, (accident: 05 Apr 1923), aged 23, Hewer, died from injuries received
						McGuiness, P., 23 Oct 1950, (accident: 20 Aug 1943), aged 72, Rolleyway Man, died from injuries received
						McGuire, John, 24 Sep 1901, (accident: 08 May 1901), aged 37, Hewer, died, it was alleged, from injuries received when lifting coal into a tub; a post mortem examination proved that death was due to heart disease and dropsy
						Nevin, G., 07 Sep 1937, (accident: 24 Jul 1928), aged 43, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone and died from injuries received
						Pearson, Stephen, 08 May 1889, aged 45, Stoneman, killed by a fall of roof
						Priestley, N., 29 Jul 1946, aged 34, Stoneman, explosion [More information ...]
						Purvis, M. L., 03 Feb 1930, aged 54, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Rides, D. J. F., 26 Aug 1944, aged 49, Screener, struck by trucks
						Rowe, Thomas Bell, 25 May 1910, aged 30, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone
						Smith, John, 30 Sep 1937, aged 35, Pickman, killed by a fall of stone, Buried: Ryton Cemetery
						Sweeney, B., 29 Jul 1946, aged 16, Driver, explosion [More information ...]
						Swinburn, John, 07 Aug 1879, aged 53, Deputy, killed by a fall of stone, Buried: Ryton Cemetery
						Thompson, Lyall John, 29 Nov 1912, aged 17, Shaft siding lad, stone fell on him while improperly hewing coal near a refuge-hole on the rolleyway
						Veitch, Samuel, 17 Mar 1902, aged 18, Locomotive Fireman, with a coupling pole in his hand deceased crossed the rails, where there was a guard rail, in front of some slowly advancing coke trucks; he tripped and fell, and three of the trucks passed over his body
						Wood, G. W., 13 Nov 1946, (accident: 13 Nov 1936), aged 26, Pickman, died from injuries received
						27 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 Addison Colliery

  list of collieries/pits etc. near to Addison Colliery

Credits

Sources:

Related Links:

None found

Further Reading:

• Banners of the Durham Coalfield, Norman Emery, 1998, Sutton Publishing Ltd., ISBN 0-7509-1708-3, provides a brief history of the colliery along with the history of the associated Miners Lodge Banner

Further Research:

  Research Notes for Addison Colliery