MineArchiveAlderley Edge West Mine deaths
| Date | May 1929 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Alderley Edge Mines |
| Region | Cheshire |
| Primary type | Other |
| Associated types | Entrapment |
| Fatalities | 2 |
| Context | Post-closure — exploration/recreational |
| Status | Researched |
Two men, George Etchells and Alfred Hadfield, died after going into the disused West Mine and losing their way in its passages; their bodies were not found for three months.
Cause
The two men went exploring in the abandoned West Mine workings and became lost in its maze of passages.
What happened
In May 1929, George Etchells and Alfred Hadfield went into the disused West Mine at Alderley Edge and did not return. Search efforts failed to locate them at the time, and their bodies were not discovered until August 1929, three months later, lost somewhere in the mine's extensive and disorienting network of old passages. Partly as a result of this and other fatalities in West Mine, the West and Wood Mines were blocked in the early 1960s.
This account describes a post-closure incident in abandoned workings. It is not an access guide, and deliberately omits route detail beyond what's needed to understand what happened.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- George Etchells and Alfred Hadfield died exploring the disused West Mine in May 1929; their bodies were not found until August 1929. 1
- This and other fatalities in West Mine were part of why the West and Wood Mines were blocked in the early 1960s. 1
Sources
- (secondary) Alderley Edge Mines — Wikipedia
Record created: 20 August 2026 · Last researched: 20 August 2026