Sherburn Colliery

1873, Oct 07 - Commenced to sink the upcast shaft at the Lady Durham Pit, Sherburn Colliery, from the surface to the Hutton Seam.

1904 - Five Quarter seam abandoned - Not profitable to work under present conditions of trade

1910 - Harvey seam abandoned

1935, 07 Oct - Low Main, Busty seams abandoned

Alderson, Ralph, 18 Oct 1895, (accident: 16 Oct 1895, 7:30 a.m., 2nd hour of shift), aged 14, Driver, fracture of skull; while getting onto limbers when his set was in motion, he fell and was crushed between tub and side

Appleby, Peter, 23 May 1876, aged 69, Shifter, killed by a fall of stone

Bell, James, 16 Jul 1864, aged 10, Wailer, falling into hot water

Blakey, Thomas, 12 Oct 1918, aged 57, Drawer, killed by a fall of stone

Bolton, James, 29 Apr 1857, (accident: 18 Apr 1857), Onsetter, he was cleaning out the cage hole when the brakesman lowered the cage on him. Signals were made to get the cage taken up, but, in his confusion, the brakesman lowered it a second time onto Bolton, who suffered severe crush injuries and died on 29 April [More information ...]

Clayton, Charles, 26 Oct 1861, aged 7, [Not employed], crushed by surface waggons on branches when coming from taking his father's tea

Cook, Peter, 13 Feb 1874, aged 29, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone

Cresswell, Peter, 02 Aug 1890, aged 46, Hewer, died from apoplexy while following his employment in the pit; no falls in his place and ventilation all right [fatality reported during the year but not classified as a colliery accident]

Dodds, Charles, 14 Jun 1920, aged 41, Winding Engineman, he was discovered lying on the floor on the engine room; a verdict of "death from heart disease of long standing, accelerated by shock through probably falling from a sofa upon which he was lying on the floor, and sustaining injuries to his face and head" was recorded

Embleton, Joseph, 11 May 1901, (accident: 07 May 1901), aged 66, Shifter, he was renewing timber when a piece of stone dropped from roof and broke his jaw and right leg

Forster, John, 02 Oct 1865, aged 11, Apparatus Boy, crushed by tubs from his work

Francis, William, 14 Apr 1853, aged 13, Driver, he had left his work to do the duty of another boy who was employed as a putter, and being unacquainted with the place, his head became jammed between the tub and the timber supporting the roof, he died instantly

Garside, John, 29 Sep 1914, aged 65, Hewer, Deceased and his mate were turning away a split wall from an old bord room in a seam 4 feet 6 inches thick. A panel of stone, 7 inches thick, was down on the old bord, so they started under an overhanging canch. They set a plank, propped at each end under the canch, and had worked in about 3 feet, when the whole of the freshly exposed roof fell. The stone had been broken on the coal, and when this was removed it fell away, canting out the timber.

Golightly, Thomas, 05 May 1893, 11:15 a.m., 8th hour of shift, aged 14, Driver, Neglecting to put the cotter into limber's bolt, they became detached from the set and he fell before the tubs and was run over., Buried: Churchyard of St. Mary the Virgin, Sherburn

Grainger, John Henry, 14 Nov 1911, aged 25, Deputy, he was drawing timber after the coal had all been worked out at each side of a gateway, and was sometimes using a punch and at other times a drawing axe; he had knocked out eight props and then came back into the gateway cut where there was more height, and was in the act of knocking out the ninth prop when the roof collapsed and he was caught by the fall; it was afterwards seen that there were several old joints lined with clay in the post roof, indicating the former presence of water; it was an accident which was difficult to guard against, Buried: St. Mary Magdalene, Belmont

Gutteridge, John, 08 Dec 1891, 3:30 p.m., 6th hour of shift, aged 39, Hewer, a very large fall of stone took place without warning while they were finishing a broken lift in a jud or stook, Buried: St. Mary Magdalene, Belmont [More information ...]

Hall, Abraham, 07 Dec 1869, aged 55, Overman, killed by a fall of stone

Harker, Simon, 11 Jul 1879, aged 23, Attending pump, fall of top coal while resetting a prop which had been knocked out by a pony while passing with a tub of coals for the furnace

Hartley, John, 12 Dec 1874, aged 12, Driver, run over by set of empty tubs

Hindmarch, William, 15 Feb 1854, Deputy Overman, crushed to death by a large stone falling from the roof. [The Durham County Advertiser - 24/02/1854]

Hope, Alfred, 02 Jun 1898, aged 18, Putter and Hewer, he was hewing in a jenkin by the side of an old place, when the stone broke down the timber and crushed him, died before being got to the shaft

Hopper, George, 08 Dec 1891, 3:30 p.m., 6th hour of shift, aged 34, Hewer, a very large fall of stone took place without warning while they were finishing a broken lift in a jud or stook [More information ...]

Hudspeth, William, 03 May 1884, (accident: 14 Apr 1884), aged 41, Stoneman, burnt by large shot exploding in a shot hole

Hunter, William, 02 Nov 1866, aged 35, Deputy, killed by a fall of stone

Hutchinson, John, 04 Jun 1861, aged 35, Hewer, crushed by cage at pit bottom while passing under it

Lathlane, James, 10 Apr 1884, aged 39, Hewer, fall of a large stone while cutting up a fault slip [More information ...]

Lowery, George, 21 Oct 1862, aged 16, Water Leader, burnt by explosion of gas

Lynn, William, 10 Nov 1868, aged 60, Deputy, fell down shaft from hole at branches

Malabar, Charles, 12 Apr 1877, aged 14, Driver, crushed between tubs - his horse fell and the set went over him

Matthews, P., 18 Jul 1859, aged 38, Hewer, fall of coal and stone while kirving

Melvin, Michael, 26 Dec 1864, aged 21, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone

Merrington, Robert, 07 Apr 1934, aged 37, Cutter, he was working with his brother on a coal-cutting machine, he was caught between the machine and a pit prop and killed instantly, Buried: Holy Trinity Churchyard, Cornforth

Minto, John, 10 Jun 1846, aged 11, Driver, While working at the bottom of the shaft he was crushed to death by the cage descending on him. He had been a driver, but changed jobs with his brother that day. "He had been repeatedly cautioned by a man working in the same place to keep clear of the cage"

Morrow, Spoors, 24 Jun 1869, aged 18, Hewer, run over by set on engine plane

Murry, William John, 29 Mar 1853, he was crushed by a large stone which fell from the roof, he died the same night after being taken home

Padgett, John Alexander, 01 Feb 1912, aged 41, Stoneman, he was engaged with another man in taking up a bottom canch; the roof was very treacherous owing to a series of "rolls," and at the point where they were working it was thickly timbered; they had almost completed their work and were engaged in strengthening the timbering when the roof above them collapsed knocking all the timber out, and killing deceased instantly; a shot had been fired some time before which may have disturbed the timbering

Pratt, Mark, 29 Sep 1893, aged 60, Shifter, Died from blood poisoning from alleged injuries to his arm. No evidence to show that be even received any accident or sprain in the mine.

Robson, Thomas, 25 Aug 1884, (accident: 14 Aug 1884), aged 37, Rolleywayman, severely crushed by a fall of stone

Self, Charles, 08 Mar 1905, aged 58, Shifter, died of heart failure whilst setting timber underground

Sewell, Bennett, 30 Nov 1882, aged 41, Hewer, fall of roof while working in his bord

Seyburn, Thomas, 19 Nov 1891, 3:30 p.m., 9th hour of shift, aged 36, Waggonman, in attempting to get on to a set of waggons while in motion he fell and was run over

Stead, Joseph Clark, 03 Mar 1856, (accident: 14 Feb 1856), aged 19, Coal Miner, accidentally crushed by a fall of stone from the roof of Lady Durham Pit, Buried: 6th March 1856 at St. Lawrence, Pittington

Symons, James, 23 Jun 1911, aged 18, Surface Hand, no one witnessed the accident, but it is probable that he was crushed between a four-ton black waggon with inclined sides and a truck under the screens; the distance between the buffers on the black waggons being less than between the buffers of the trucks, and at a lower level; the former pass inside the latter when they are joined up, and the truck buffers come against the inclined sides of the black waggons; the method of coupling used on the black waggons is by a pin and shackle which makes the use of a coupling pole difficult, and it is customary to bring both waggon and truck to rest by chocking the wheels; apparently he had neglected to do this on the present occasion

Taylor, John Thomas, 24 Nov 1902, aged 16, Driver, when driving, his pony crossed out and the limber end caught and displaced a prop which let down a stone upon him and killed him

Taylor, Matthew, 22 Jul 1864, aged 54, Deputy, fall of stone while drawing timber

Trainer, Hugh, 07 Jan 1859, (accident: 16 Dec 1858), aged 44, Hewer, killed by a fall of coal

Vickers, Joseph, 29 Nov 1884, aged 14, Wailer, left his work and went among the small coal waggons and was run over

Weir, Thomas, 18 Nov 1867, aged 15, Pony Putter, crushed by full tub of coal

White, Joseph, 25 Sep 1858, aged 10, Trapper, supposed to have fallen down the shaft [More information ...]

Wood, Christopher, 22 Feb 1888, aged 16, Putter, coming outbye he got his head too high and was crushed between top hoop and roof

Wood, William, 11 Mar 1882, (accident: 25 Feb 1847), aged 35, Stoneman, of Gilesgate Moor, Durham, died from burns received in a gas explosion while working in the Low Main seam of the Lady Durham Pit, Sherburn Colliery on 25th February. He was using a candle instead of a Davy lamp at the time (Mines Insp.: burnt on face and neck by going where he ought not to go with a naked light)

York, Ottiwell, 08 Nov 1905, aged 30, Sinker, The banksman on landing a full kibble had not seen that it was flat on the bogie. On the winding rope being disconnected the bogie was about to be moved back when the kibble overturned, and parts of its contents fell down the shaft, some hitting a man and fracturing his skull [More information ...]