Berry Hill Colliery explosion, 1872

On 12 March 1872 an explosion of firedamp at Berry Hill Colliery, Fenton, killed six men. The inquest blamed the careless use of naked lights where gas was present.

Cause

Firedamp ignited by a naked light. The inspector, Mr Wynne, had found gas in places at the colliery that March and thought the explosion was caused by using mixed lights, naked flames alongside safety lamps.

Contributing factors

The bailiff, Wooliscroft, had cautioned Phoenix about using naked lights when firing shots.

What happened

Six men died in an explosion of firedamp at the colliery on 12 March 1872.

Investigation & inquiry

The inquest was held by the coroner, Mr Booth. The jury returned a verdict of accidental death caused by the careless use of naked lights, which it strongly condemned.

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• Six men, Joseph Roberts, Robert Hughes, Isaac Hughes, Michael Matthews, John Phoenix and Martin Duffey, were killed in an explosion at Berry Hill on 12 March 1872. ^1,2
• The six were killed by an explosion of firedamp. ¹
• Mr Wynne had visited in March, found gas in places, and thought the explosion was caused by mixed lights in the mine. ²
• The jury's verdict was accidental death caused by the careless use of naked lights, which they strongly condemned. ²

Related terminology

Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “On 12 March 1872 an explosion of firedamp at Berry Hill Colliery, Fenton, killed six men. The inquest blamed the careless use of…”
• Firedamp (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “On 12 March 1872 an explosion of firedamp at Berry Hill Colliery, Fenton, killed six men. The inquest blamed…”
• Naked Light (contextual relationship)
  Named 5 times in this record, first in the summary: “…Fenton, killed six men. The inquest blamed the careless use of naked lights where gas was present.”
• Safety Lamp (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s cause: “…explosion was caused by using mixed lights, naked flames alongside safety lamps.”

Photographs & further reading

This page doesn't try to reproduce everything — these are the best original sources found for this disaster.

Sources

1. (primary) Durham Mining Museum - Berryhill Colliery (UK) — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Berry Hill Colliery Explosion - Stoke-on-Trent - 1872 - Northern Mine Research Society — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 1 October 2026 · Last researched: 1 October 2026