Norwood Colliery	Index	Norwood Colliery

Location:	Evenwood 13 miles [21 km] SW of Durham
Map Ref:	(Sheet 92) NZ147257, 54° 37' 34" N, 1° 46' 20" W
Maps:	1898 map from Reid's Handy Colliery Guide
Opened:
Closed:	Mar 1912
Owners:	1860's - W. Hedley & Co.
	1880's - Owners of Norwood Colliery
Output:	1873 - Coal.
	1888 - Coal.
	1896 - Coal: Coking, Manufacturing.
	1902 - Coal: Coking, Manufacturing.
Employment:	1896 - 227 (187 below, 40 surface)
	1902 - 86 (70 below, 16 surface)
	Colliery Management (prior to 1955)
	Catalogue of plans of abandoned mines for Norwood Colliery
Notes:	1912 - Five Quarter or Busty, Brockwell abandoned - available coal exhausted

Description

Coal is also extensively worked in this township [Evenwood], as will be seen by the following account of the several pits when in working order. The owners of Norwood colliery have two seams at work – the Brockwell, 5 ft. 6in., at the depth of 14 fathoms, which dips considerably to the north east, and the Busty, 4 feet thick, is worked by two drifts north and south. The annual output is 120,000 tons, and the number employed is over 200. Evenwood colliery, by the North Bitchburn Coal Co., have two pits working the Brockwell, 5 ft. 9 in., at the depth of 72 fathoms. Five Quarter from 1-9 to 3 feet at 58 fathoms, and the yard seam at 51 fathoms.

These seams are worked by a drift from Evenwood Colliery. The average output is 160,000 tons per annum, and the number employed is over 300. There are fifty coke ovens, but not in use at present. Storey Lodge Colliery, by the North Bitchburn Coal Co., working the Yard seam and the Five Quarter, 4 ft. 6 in. yielding an annual output of 80,000 tons, and employing 180 hands. Reiley Fell Colliery, by Messrs. Henry Stobart & Co. Here are the Busty, 3 ft. 8 in. to 4 ft., and the Brockwell, 5 ft. 10 in. This pit is at present idle ; but there are 70 coke ovens, which are supplied from the Lands Colliery, which was sunk in 1879, and at which are worked the Harvey, 2 ft. 4 in., the Busty, 4 ft. 6 in. to 6 ft., and the Brockwell, 5 ft. 10 in., employing 100 hands. At Morley Colliery, by Mr. Andrew Mein, is worked by a drift, the Main Coal seam, 5 ft. 6 in. to 6 ft., yielding 30,000 tons per annum, and employing 40 men and boys. Pit Close is another small colliery, where Mr. George Lowson is working also the Main Coal seam.

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!

						Bowman, Matthew, 13 Feb 1893, aged 23, Hewer, found dead in the pit; he had suffered from heart disease for some time, and it is supposed this was the cause of death; the ventilation of the mine at this place was good [fatality reported during the year but not classified as a colliery accident]
						Clark, James, 27 Jun 1890, aged 19, Water Leader, fall of a large stone while filling a tub with water
						Cummins, William, 14 Jan 1867, aged 47, Shifter, died after being crushed when the judd fell on him while he was working
						Longstaff, Richard, 04 Nov 1891, 4:00 p.m., 1st hour of shift, aged 55, Horse Keeper, while walking along engine plane to his work he failed to get into a refuge hole, was caught by the set and run over [More information ...]
						Miller, William, 03 Aug 1897, aged 38, Temporary Shaftman, When at the bottom of a pumping shaft. a wooden wedge used to steady the pumps fell 154 feet and fractured his skull, and he died about an hour afterwards [More information ...]
						Million, Thomas, 09 Jun 1890, aged 15, Water Leader, drowned in a dip place by a hewer holing into some drowned workings without the necessary precaution of boreholes [More information ...]
						Place, Stephen, 18 Apr 1898, aged 24, Hewer, skull fractured by a fall of stone from roof of his working place
						Richardson, George William, 21 Mar 1894, (accident: 15 Mar 1894, 7:00 p.m., 2nd hour of shift), aged 18, Putter, Head badly crushed between a tub and a prop by pony starting too soon. Died on 21st.
						Robinson, William Adamson, 30 May 1896, aged 52, Onsetter, caught, by some means between the cage and buntings, as the cage was leaving the shaft bottom, and crushed to death, Buried: Evenwood Cemetery [More information ...]
						Smurthwaite, Thomas, 05 Apr 1851, (accident: 03 Apr 1851), crushed against the cage by tubs [More information ...]
						Stephens, John, 09 Mar 1864, aged 12, Attending waggon, smothered by small coals in a waggon
						White, George, 18 Oct 1894, 10:00 a.m., 5th hour of shift, aged 22, Hewer, Fall of stone which canted out some timber, Buried: Evenwood Cemetery
						12 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 Norwood (Evenwood) Colliery

  list of collieries/pits etc. near to Norwood (Evenwood) Colliery

Credits

Sources:

Pictures:

Related Links:

	On this site
	Pictures in the Gallery section for Norwood Colliery

Further Research:

  Research Notes for Norwood Colliery