South Pelaw Colliery

1769 - Boring operations were in progress from the surface on the Low Flatts estate at South Pelaw in the township of Harraton.

1890 - South Pelaw Colliery was restarted and sunk from the surface to the Busty Seam.

1896 - Low Main, Hutton Seams - Exhaustion of seams. Royalties re-let in lower seams, 1890

Ainsley, Robert, 18 Mar 1914, aged 14, Driver, Deceased was found lying between the first full tub of his set of two tubs and the side. The pony stood quiet and the tubs were on the rails. He was dead when got out, the base of his skull being fractured. Doubtless he fell off the limbers and was crushed between the tubs and props at the road side.

Armstrong, Henry, 17 Dec 1883, aged 14, Driver, run over by full tubs

Bates, Thomas, 15 May 1944, aged 40, Puller Up, killed by a fall of stone, Buried: Pelton Cemetery

Blews, George, 25 Nov 1863, aged 11, Coupler, crushed by tubs in engine plane

Bulmer, Henry, 17 Feb 1868, aged 22, Hewer, fall of stone; the overman and deputy had shortly before examined the stone

Calvert, Joseph, 29 Apr 1926, aged 22, Putter, killed by a fall of stone, Buried: Pelton Cemetery

Carroll, John, 23 Dec 1918, aged 37, Hewer, he was filling a tub when a slip came away from the face and buried him; it took three-quarters of an hour to get him out, the stoen weighed about 7 cwts.

Chrisp, William, 11 Jan 1921, aged 42, Drawer, killed by a fall of stone

Clarke, Robert, 09 Dec 1928, aged 15, Buried: Ropery Lane Cemetery, Chester-le-Street

Coates, Thomas, 28 Jul 1915, aged 41, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone [More information ...]

Curtis, Thomas, 08 Oct 1863, aged 14, Driver, killed by a fall of stone

Dowson, W., 12 Sep 1935, aged 31, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone

Edwards, George, 21 May 1920, aged 34, Hewer, he and his brother Alfred were hewing when the roof suddenly gave way and he was struck on the head by a large stone; he was killed on the spot

Graham, Thomas, 06 Jul 1909, aged 42, Nightshift Banksman, The Master Shifter shouted up the shaft to tell him to go and call the horsekeeper whom he thought had overslept himself. He answered and then fell down the shaft. He was at the horse hole and had opened the gates to speak to the Master Shifter. There was no need for him to have opened the gates, as he could easily talk to the Master Shifter, who was at the Main Coal level, without doing so. He had been previously warned about opening the gates

Harbottle, Matthew, 14 Apr 1899, aged 16, Greaser, When following his occupation on the engine plane he was caught by a full set and killed., Buried: Ropery Lane Cemetery, Chester-le-Street

Harris, David, 26 Dec 1899, (accident: 20 Dec 1899), aged 42, Shifter, By some means the timber at the bottom of the downcast shaft got on fire, and deceased, who was working in the workings at the time, was so affected by the fumes that he died on the 26th inst. from inflammation of the lungs and failure of the heart's action. [More information ...]

Henderson, J., 27 Dec 1946, aged 47, Stoneman, killed by a fall of stone

Hudson, Charles, 01 Sep 1860, crushed by a set of coal tubs

Hurworth, Edward, 25 May 1864, aged 10, Switchkeeper, crushed by tubs in incline plane

Jackson, John, 16 Aug 1924, (accident: 02 Jul 1924), aged 25, Hewer, of 4 Menceforth Cottages, Chester-le-Street, death certificate: "Secondary Haemorrhage consequent upon fracture of the malor? bone with rupture of the right internal Maxillary Artery caused by his having been accidentally struck by a fall of coal", died in Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle-upon-Tyne [Inquest: 19 Aug 1924]

Laidler, Taylor, 13 Sep 1913, aged 33, Shifter, deceased and another man (who was injured) were engaged in making height in a roadway; they had drawn four balks, and dropped some stone, which they were engaged in filling away, when a piece of overhanging roof stone fell, killing Laidler and injuring his companion; the stone had just been examined, but was of such weight and size that the men failed to detect its true character

Leathard, Mark, 04 Apr 1868, aged 45, Brakesman, death caused by boiler explosion

Lock, T., 10 May 1948, aged 61, Overman, killed by a fall of stone

Manning, William, 01 Feb 1865, aged 19, Hewer, crushed by tubs on underground engine plane

Morrison, Joseph, 14 Mar 1874, aged 59, Rapper Man, run over by engine set

Murphy, John, 11 May 1927, (accident: 19 May 1925), aged 41, Deputy, died from injuries received

Neave, John (Jack), 25 Jan 1911, aged 31, Deputy, he was drawing a jud in company with two other deputies and when almost finished the whole roof from which they had removed the timber fell, and deceased was caught; the stone was sandstone; some chocks had been drawn and no additional props had been set; the men had a "pout" or appliance for drawing timber but had not used it at all, Buried: Ropery Lane Cemetery, Chester-le-Street

Nicholson, Arthur, 08 Sep 1892, (accident: 06 Aug 1892, 8:30 a.m., 3rd hour of shift), aged 17, Putter, injury to spine by a sprain, while lifting a tub on to the way

Percival, George, 14 Dec 1923, (accident: 29 Mar 1923), aged 28, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone

Pigg, Robert, 29 Apr 1926, aged 20, Putter, killed by a fall of stone, Buried: Ropery Lane Cemetery, Chester-le-Street

Richardson, John, 13 Apr 1894, (accident: 12 Apr 1894, 8:00 a.m., 2nd hour of shift), aged 17, Putter, Side severely crushed between tub and prop. Died on the 13th.

Sanderson, Ralph, 26 Nov 1946, (accident: 25 Nov 1946), aged 32, Waggonway Man, crushed by tubs

Stoner, William Henry, 18 Jun 1922, (accident: 13 Feb 1922), aged 29, Deputy, killed by a fall of stone

Straughan, James O., 05 Oct 1943, aged 29, Filler, killed by a fall of stone, Buried: Pelton Cemetery

Tindale, Thomas, 26 Mar 1928, aged 59, Hewer, killed by a fall of stone

Watson, J., 16 Jan 1940, aged 18, Haulage, struck by tubs

Waugh, Joseph Heslop, 02 Jun 1905, aged 36, Deputy, while drawing timber in a jud a fall of roof came away at a slip and buried him; the place was apparently safe, Buried: Ropery Lane Cemetery, Chester-le-Street

Weatherby, F., 14 Jan 1930, aged 39, Shifter, killed by a fall of stone

Wilson, J. R., 04 Nov 1937, aged 55, Filler, killed by a fall of stone

Wilson, Robert, 19 Jan 1928, aged 46, Filler, killed by a fall of stone

Young, John William, 30 Dec 1912, aged 27, Assistant banksman, some broken tubs had been sent down to the surface level from the heapstead and it appears that deceased's water bottle had gone with them; deceased put his head over the shaft gate to look down, regardless of the fact that the banksman had shouted to the engineman to raise the cage again, with the result that the ascending cage lifted the gate and crushed his head against a cross piece of the pulley framing