Ouston Colliery

1824 - The Ouston B Pit was sunk from the surface to the Hutton Seam.

1896 - A sinking was made below the thill of the Busty Seam in the E Pit, Ouston Colliery, proving the Three Quarter and Brockwell Seams.

1915 - Maudlin seam abandoned

1930, 17 Jul - Brockwell seam abandoned

1934 - Hutton, Five Quarter seams abandoned

1948 - Towneley & Busty seams discontinued

1950 - Towneley & Busty seams discontinued

Anderson, Thomas, 02 Jan 1911, aged 44, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone

Ball, Stephen, 02 Mar 1908, aged 14, Putter, jumped off set of waggons on which he was riding and fell before them

Barker, James Johnson, 06 Feb 1955, aged 37, Buried: Pelton Cemetery

Baxter, John jnr., 06 Dec 1913, aged 17, Locomotive Fireman, whilst engaged in shunting operations, deceased neglected to use one of the coupling poles provided on the engine; he uncoupled two wagons by hand and in doing so got his foot fast between the switch and the stock rails at the points; the wagons were moving very slowly, but he received injuries from which he died the same day; his lamp had gone out immediately before the accident and the arc lamps in the siding were of little value owing to fog

Brabban, John Greener, 05 Feb 1906, aged 53, Deputy, Buried: Pelton Cemetery [More information ...]

Bradley, Mark, 19 Apr 1888, aged 29, Deputy, fall of roof whilst drawing a jud

Campbell, William, 26 Dec 1901, aged 36, Stoneman, Deceased and two others were building a pack wall at a longwall face, and in order to make room for the wall deceased knocked out a prop. Sometime afterwards the stone which had been supported by the prop fell and caught him [Inspection made & inquest attended]

Carr, John, 02 Aug 1868, aged 47, Deputy, explosion of gas

Carr, William, 24 Nov 1899, aged 34, Hewer, He was helping a putter away with a tub at the face of a gateway, when a stone fell from slips and crushed him against the end of the tub [Inspection made & inquest attended]

Cockburn, Robert, 12 Nov 1886, aged 33, Deputy, killed by a fall of stone

Cummins, Hylton, 05 Nov 1897, aged 14, Driver, He was sitting in a tub driving a pony when the tub canted over, and deceased got a blow on the head. He worked for some time afterwards, but then complained of pains in the head. He gradually got worse, and died [Enquiries made], Buried: Ropery Lane Cemetery, Chester-le-Street

Dawson, Robert Casson, 10 Feb 1916, aged 18, died from injuries received on the railway while following his employment, Buried: Holy Trinity Churchyard, Pelton

Dixon, David, 08 Apr 1893, (accident: 29 Dec 1892, 2:00 a.m., 5th hour of shift), aged 60, Shifter, The evidence went to show that Dixon was engaged taking up rails or plates, and injured his knee, from which injury he subsequently died, on the 8th April 1893 [Inquest attended]

Dixon, Sam, 19 Jun 1928, (accident: 19 Sep 1927), aged 36, Cutter, killed by a fall of stone

Duncan, Arthur Robert, 24 Nov 1916, aged 14, Rope Lad, He has apparently been riding on the rope bringing a set inbye and was caught by the knock-off. His body was crushed between the haulage rope and the angle irons of the knock-off. He was still alive when taken to bank, but died as he was being taken to the office. It has been common practice for lads to ride the ropes

Fawcett, John, 06 May 1913, aged 44, Timber Drawer, whilst drawing timber in a loose end lift, a large fall of stone occurred, completely burying them; a slip was visible in the roof after the accident [More information ...]

Gartland, James, 07 Feb 1929, aged 55, Stoneman, fatally injured by a fall of stone [More information ...]

Giles, Henry, 10 Mar 1925, aged 16, Landing Lad, caught by set

Godbold, Harry, 09 Apr 1940, aged 26, Buried: Holy Trinity Churchyard, Donwell (Usworth Parish Church)

Haigh, J., 11 Mar 1931, (accident: 09 Mar 1931), aged 59, Wasteman, died from injuries received

Harbottle, Thomas, 11 Nov 1896, aged 24, Hewer, The deceased and his brother were working at the coal, when a heavy fall of stone took place from slips in the roof and crushed him [Inquest attended]

Hardy, John Watson, 06 May 1913, aged 26, Assistant to Timber Drawer, whilst drawing timber in a loose end lift, a large fall of stone occurred, completely burying them; a slip was visible in the roof after the accident [More information ...]

Heel, David, 16 Mar 1883, aged 65, Wasteman, killed by a fall of stone

Heel, Joseph, 30 Jun 1883, aged 35

Hindmarsh, Thomas, 26 Jul 1893, 8:30 p.m., 3rd hour of shift, aged 50, Winding Engineman, Whilst oiling some parts of the winding engine from the top of the vertical cylinder he appears either to have taken a fit or slipped and fallen from the ladder [Inspection made & inquest attended]

Hopkinson, George, 09 Jan 1913, (accident: 07 Jan 1913), aged 45, Shotfirer, deceased was engaged stemming a shot hole when a small piece of stone fell from the roof between two bars from a slippery parting; his lung was torn by fractured ribs; the roof had been jowled three hours before the accident; he died on 9th January, 1913

Hunter, T., 24 May 1934, aged 25, Putter, killed by a fall of stone

Jobling, Ernest, 15 Aug 1906, (accident: 14 Aug 1906), aged 6, [Not Employed] [More information ...]

Jopling, Joseph, 05 May 1904, Joiner, Deceased, who was not employed by the colliery company, was riding on the hinder end of a rolley drawn by a pair of horses along a public road which crosses the colliery railway by a level crossing. The driver of the rolley failed to see that some wagons were crossing the road and his rolley was caught by them, and his horses jumped forward, and deceased fell off and was run over by three of the wagons. The crossing has been in use 80 years

Killen, John, 28 Jun 1912, aged 37, Timber drawer, deceased was drawing a jud and was cutting a prop out with his axe when a fall occurred; he stepped back, but a stone weighing four or five tons fell on him, fatally injuring him

Lambert, George, 20 Feb 1912, aged 26, Horse Driver, run over by a slowly moving timber truck belonging to the Railway Co., lost his balance when putting on the brake, which was defective

Lynn, William Robert, 07 Jun 1922, aged 53, Hewer, fall of band, Buried: Ropery Lane Cemetery, Chester-le-Street

Maddison, John, 21 Jul 1875, aged 25, Hewer, Chester Ward Coroner's Inquest, place: Ouston, cause: fall of stone Hutton seam, A Pit, Ouston (DRO Ref: COR/C/2/342)

McGrath, Joseph, 15 May 1906, aged 14, Pony Driver, run over by tubs [More information ...]

Morgan, Edward, 29 Jun 1888, aged 54, Hewer, fall of roof; Deputy (who was injured) in place about to set timber

Morgan, Philip, 26 Jul 1906, (accident: 08 Mar 1904), aged 59, Shifter [More information ...]

Muncaster, Robert, 25 Mar 1902, aged 16, Pony Putter, deceased was found at a flat in the Low Main seam covered with stone which had fallen from the side ; the stone fell away from slips, and the deputy states he had examined the place an hour before the accident and thought it safe, Buried: Pelton Cemetery

Murphy, Peter, 18 May 1905, (accident: 03 May 1904), aged 53, Hewer [More information ...]

Newman, Harold, 26 Apr 1911, aged 16, Driver, fell from cage

Pallister, James, 09 Jun 1923, aged 62, died from injuries received, Buried: Pelton Cemetery

Pattison, George, 03 Jul 1911, aged 25, Hewing Putter, killed by a fall of stone

Pearson, Stephen, 14 Nov 1907, (accident: 13 Nov 1907), aged 16, Pony Putter [More information ...]

Peart, Thomas Henry, 09 Nov 1955, aged 27, Shot firer, On hearing an oncoming main & tail set approaching whilst travelling inbye to the South Tilley, the deceased took refugeбin a refuge hole. Unfortunately the set became derailed and in doing so dislodged a steel girder which was protruding into the refuge hole and thereby striking and fatally wounding the deceased, Buried: Ropery Lane Cemetery, Chester-le-Street

Ranson, T., 22 Oct 1931, aged 63, Datal, crushed [More information ...]

Richardson, Stanley, 26 Nov 1906, aged 4, [Not Employed], This accident occurred at the same point as the accident already described to another infant on August 14th. In the present case some children were returning from school and arrived at the crossing while sets were being run. The set rider on the first of the 10 empty waggons when about 30 yards from the crossing saw an elder boy hold up his hand to warn deceased, who stopped for a moment and then went on again and fell against the rope, as it was rising out of the groove it runs in at the crossing and the set passed over him.

Robson, J., 12 Aug 1929, aged 25, Putter, crushed

Saiger, Thomas Baker, 21 Feb 1910, (accident: 15 Feb 1910), aged 20, Hand Putter, slipped and fell against tub and sprained his neck

Smith, Lawrence, 29 Jun 1922, aged 59, Stoneman, injuries to his chest whilst lifting a stone

Speight, Isaac, 03 Apr 1888, (accident: 29 Mar 1888), aged 56, [Not Employed - Ship Wright], died from injuries received by being crushed between coal waggons, on which he was riding as a trespasser on the Ouston Colliery waggonway

Steele, Joseph, 30 Jun 1873, aged 26, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone

Stevens, Walter, 06 Jun 1914, aged 50, Platelayer [More information ...]

Unwin, William, 18 Sep 1912, aged 22, Electrician, he was riding, contrary to rule, on a full set of tubs going out-bye, main and tail haulage, when he was crushed between the tubs and a side wall

Venus, Robert, 02 Oct 1904, aged 16, Greaser, run over by set [More information ...]

Walker, James, 27 Dec 1910, aged 52, Hewer, fall of side stone

Weams, James, 18 Aug 1888, (accident: 07 Aug 1888), aged 64, Cartman, crushed between a truck and timber which he was loading into his cart

Wilde, James William, 17 Jan 1894, 11:00 a.m., 5th hour of shift, aged 13, Screener, The boy was engaged about the screens, and was sent by the chargeman on an errand, and not returning search was made, and deceased was eventually found at the bottom of a loaded waggon. No one could say how he got there, but it is thought that he fell through the hole which was unfenced at the end of the belt screens [Inspection made & inquest attended] [More information ...]

Wilde, Solomon, 22 Nov 1929, aged 45, Erector, he was crushed to death by a boiler he was helping to seat in the boiler house [More information ...]