Auckland Park Colliery fall, 1907

On 3 May 1907 an extraordinary fall of stone in the Harvey Seam killed two hewers and injured a third at Auckland Park Colliery, near Bishop Auckland in County Durham.

Cause

A very heavy fall of stone in a broken working near a downthrow fault: the stone came away from the fault leader on one side and from a slip on the other, forming a huge dome of roof that fell without warning.

What happened

The coal was being worked out near a downthrow fault when a dome-shaped section of roof came down on the men, giving no warning. James Henry Hodgson (23) and Isaac Wailes (42), both hewers, were killed and one man was injured. The fall was about 18 to 20 yards long, 12 yards wide and 18 feet thick, and was reckoned to weigh 400 to 500 tons; the supports were crushed to matchwood, though witnesses said the place had been chocked and timbered. It was the only multiple-fatality accident in the Durham district that year. The Inspector was R. D. Bain.

Sources

1. (primary) Auckland Park Colliery fall of stone, 3 May 1907 (from the 1907 Mines Inspector's Report, Cd 4045, Durham District, R. D. Bain) — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Auckland Park Colliery — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 4 September 2026 · Last researched: 22 September 2026