Bigge Pit explosion, 1841

In the early afternoon of 19 April 1841 an explosion in the Bensham seam of the Bigge Pit at Matthew Bell and partners' Willington Colliery, between Newcastle and North Shields, killed 32 of the 35 below. The three survivors were working in a stone drift elsewhere in the mine.

Cause

Firedamp gathered in boards left without air when a trap door was left open, ignited at the candles in use.

Contributing factors

A trap door unattended; candles in use.

What happened

The Bigge Pit had been closed for a long time and only lately reopened, so its workings were small: headways of 220 and 280 yards east and west from a shaft 140 fathoms deep, through the High Main to the Bensham seam. The men worked with candles. The explosion shook the ground like an earthquake, sounded like cannon, and sent up smoke that darkened the daylight. Two or three of the victims were brought up alive but died. Among the dead were the brothers Thomas and William Dodshon.

The deputy viewer Thomas Campbell told the inquest the men had complained of cold that morning, a sign of good air. He traced the explosion to the middle of three doors, found open: the trapper, a boy named Cooper, was found where the blast could not have thrown him, near two other trappers he had probably gone to play with. With the door open, gas gathered in the boards beyond.

Investigation & inquiry

Witnesses at the inquest, led by the deputy viewer Thomas Campbell, agreed the explosion began at the neglected middle door.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

The jury returned a verdict of accidental death from the explosion of hydrogen gas.

Recorded claims

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

• The explosion on 19 April 1841 killed thirty-two; only three of the thirty-five below were saved. ^1,2,3
• The Bigge Pit had been closed for a considerable time and work in it had only recently resumed. ²
• The explosion originated at a trap door left open by the trapper Cooper. ¹
• The jury returned accidental death from the explosion of hydrogen gas. ¹

Related terminology

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

• Deputy (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the narrative: “…Among the dead were the brothers Thomas and William Dodshon. The deputy viewer Thomas Campbell told the inquest the men had complained of…”
• Fathom (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…small: headways of 220 and 280 yards east and west from a shaft 140 fathoms deep, through the High Main to the Bensham seam. The men worked with…”
• Stone Drift (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “…killed 32 of the 35 below. The three survivors were working in a stone drift elsewhere in the mine.”
• Trapper (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the narrative: “…traced the explosion to the middle of three doors, found open: the trapper, a boy named Cooper, was found where the blast could not have thrown…”
• Viewer (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the narrative: “…the dead were the brothers Thomas and William Dodshon. The deputy viewer Thomas Campbell told the inquest the men had complained of cold that…”

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (secondary) Bigges Pit Explosion - Willington - 1849 — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (primary) Colliery Disaster: Willington, Bigge's Pit, 19 April 1841 — Durham Mining Museum
3. (primary) Bigge Pit — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 3 October 2026 · Last researched: 3 October 2026