Croxdale Colliery

1876 - The Thornton Pit, Croxdale, or Sunderland Bridge Colliery, was sunk from the surface and continued down to the Victoria Seam.

1881 - Boring operations from the surface were in progress at Croxdale Colliery and vicinity, proving the Busty Seam.

1904 - A diamond boring was put down on the Croxdale Estate for the Weardale Iron and Coal Company, Limited, from the surface to the Busty Seam.

1931, 01 Jul - Brockwell seam abandoned

1935, 31 Dec - Low Main, Hutton seams abandoned

1936, 16 May - Harvey (known locally as Hutton), Busty seams abandoned

Backhouse, Thomas, 23 Oct 1877, aged 15, Wailer, left his work and went to drum house, where he had to climb over a fence, got on to belt to ride into engine, where he was caught by the drum and dashed round at a fearful speed

Clements, William, 14 Jan 1904, aged 59, Hewer, found dead in working place from heart disease; no accident; ventilation all right

Curran, John, Aug 1905, aged 48, he suffered a 'paralytic stroke' while working, he died as a result of the stroke; left a wife and eight children, Buried: St. Charles (RC) Churchyard, Tudhoe Village

Curry, Joseph, 01 May 1893, 4:00 p.m., 7th hour of shift, aged 41, Hewer, While assisting a deputy to draw out a broken jud a large stone fell from the roof and killed him. [More information ...]

Cuthbert, Eleazar, 22 Apr 1899, aged 26, Hewer, While taking up plates, preparing for the deputy drawing the timber out of a jud, a stone fell from the roof and caught and killed him instantly.

Gulliver, Robert, 12 Apr 1907, aged 37, Stoneman, he was caught by a boring bar and turned round and round once, Buried: York Road Cemetery, Spennymoor [More information ...]

Hocking, Samuel, 10 Jul 1895, 11:30 p.m., 3rd hour of shift, aged 29, Stoneman, head struck by winch handle; he was drawing in slack rope, when the engineman started the engine and threw the handle back

Hodgson, William, 25 Nov 1881, aged 55, Deputy, fall of roof while drawing timber out of an old bord

Hunter, James, 19 Aug 1893, 4:30 a.m., 2nd hour of shift, aged 23, Hewer, While taking off a loose end broken jud the roof suddenly fell. They had no doubt removed some timber. [More information ...]

Lowery, Thomas William Hunter, 08 May 1908, aged 17, Pony Putter, He was coming out of a broken jud when his tub got off the way. With the help of the hewers he put the tub on to the rails again, and was putting the pin into the shackle of the limbers when his pony suddenly started away before he had time to take his seat on the limbers. His head was crushed between the end of the tub and a prop standing 7 inches from the tub side, Buried: Croxdale Cemetery

Maddison, John, 02 Sep 1888, (accident: 31 Aug 1888), aged 47, Hewer, severely crushed by a fall of roof

Matthews, James, 06 Apr 1911, aged 26, Hewer, he was working with another hewer finishing a lift of which only a stook of coal remained; the place was well timbered; suddenly a huge piece of post stone, 21 feet long by 18 feet wide by 4 feet thick, fell and killed him; this stone fell mostly in the goaf towards which they were working; in removing the coal the men had exposed a slip running across the lift, and the stone came away from this slip and another running at right angles to it, in an old bord room breaking down or canting out several props, Buried: Croxdale Cemetery

Maughan, Henry, 18 Oct 1880, aged 21, Collier, fall of stone from a slip in the roof which gave no warning

McAdams, George, 14 Oct 1898, aged 34, Locomotive Fireman, Arm crushed very severely. He was leaning out of his locomotive with his back the way it was going, shouting to a boy to change some points, when a truck on another line caught and knocked him off the locomotive and the waggons ran over his arm. Died the same day after an operation at Durham Infirmary. [More information ...]

Naisbitt, Bright, 31 May 1899, aged 53, Deputy, He was drawing the last prop in a jud, when the roof came away and caught his foot, and, dashing his head against side, killed him instantly., Buried: St. Bartholomew's Churchyard, Croxdale Village

O'Connell, Patrick James, 22 Aug 1900, aged 36, Hewer, Two shots had been fired in his place, and he was commencing to drill a third hole, when a piece of coal fell upon and killed him., Buried: St. Charles (RC) Churchyard, Tudhoe Village

Owens, Daniel, 20 Jul 1887, (accident: 19 Jul 1887), aged 45, explosion of gunpowder [not a mining related death] [More information ...]

Pearson, Thomas, 23 Dec 1887, (accident: 26 Nov 1887), aged 44, Wasteman, leg broken and injury to head by fall of stone while pulling down a stopping in the waste

Pollock, George Henry, 18 Dec 1924, aged 26, Buried: York Road Cemetery, Spennymoor

Robinson, Charles, 19 Aug 1893, 4:30 a.m., 2nd hour of shift, aged 22, Hewer, While taking off a loose end broken jud the roof suddenly fell. They had no doubt removed some timber. [More information ...]

Scott, Robert, 12 Sep 1890, aged 44, Stoneman, while in the act of lighting a shot it exploded and killed him on the spot [More information ...]

Walton, William, 04 Jun 1897, aged 14, Driver, A set of tubs got detached by some means from a rope, and ran back into a landing and caught and killed him, Buried: St. Bartholomew's Churchyard, Croxdale Village

Wilson, George, 19 Nov 1922, aged 49, He left home on Sunday night, 19th November, to go to work. After descending the pit he was on his way to his workplace when he suddenly collapsed and died. He had been receiving treatment for heart trouble at Newcastle Infirmary.

Wilson, Thomas William, 13 Apr 1905, aged 41, Labourer, when cleaning small coal off the ledges of coal hopper, he overbalanced and fell a distance of 20 feet, landing upon a small engine in motion; died half-an-hour afterwards

Wood, William, 04 Oct 1854, aged 18, Sinker, he was killed by a gas explosion in Croxdale Colliery shaft on 4 October. He was blown against the uprights and fell to the bottom of the shaft. He died from severe head injuries and burns

Wood, William, 04 Oct 1875, aged 19, Sinker, explosion of firedamp

Young, Isaac, 08 Jun 1909, aged 16, Driver, He was helping to push some tubs inbye in a landing, when a full set was run into the landing from inbye. He was caught by this full set and run over and fatally injured. It was no part of his work to do what he was doing, but he wanted some empty tubs to take inbye. The two men pushing the empty tubs were engine plane men, and they should not have allowed this boy to help them, Buried: Croxdale Cemetery