MineArchiveBignall Hill Colliery explosion, 1874
On Christmas Eve 1874 firedamp exploded in the Bullhurst seam of the Bignall Hill Colliery at Audley, north Staffordshire, the property of the representatives of Josiah Wedgwood. Of twenty-two people known to be in the pit, seventeen were killed. The inquest blamed naked lights in a seam where gas had been found that morning and urged locked lamps throughout the district's Bullhurst and Banbury seams.
| Date | 24 December 1874 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Jamage Colliery |
| Region | Staffordshire |
| Type | Explosion |
| Fatalities | 17 (17, by the inspector's and the newspaper lists, which differ in a few names: James Handley, Henry Machin, Enoch Procter, Samuel and John Plevin, Thomas Turner, Alexander Obery (Aubury), William and George Cotton, Frank and Levi Browning, William Bentley, Joseph Ashley, John Lunt, Henry Halfpenny, Joseph Mayer and William Dudley.) |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
Firedamp, found that morning in the east heading about 17 to 18 yards from the workings because the brattice was short, was fired at a naked light, by the Assistant Inspector's judgement the loader's light in Machin's level at the bottom of the bolt hole. Naked lights were the custom in the pit once gas had been cleared, and the underlooker had not ordered safety lamps though authorised to; Machin had declined to take a lamp, saying he 'knew all about it'.
What happened
The banksman, James Holden, saw smoke and dust come from the downcast and heard the blast. A collier working the west side, Joseph Read, saw the fire come up the dip and lost consciousness, and was rescued by other workmen. Stoppings in the Bullhurst were blown upwards from the main level, and the dead lay in the Nos. 2 and 3 east and west headings.
Rescue & recovery
Workmen brought out the survivors; by the next day five bodies had been recovered and efforts continued to reach the rest. Two of the injured recovered.
Investigation & inquiry
The inquest was held at the Boughey Arms, Audley, before Mr Booth, the coroner. Mr S. B. Gilroy, Assistant Inspector of Mines for North Staffordshire, went down that evening; the manager was Enoch Gayter and the underlooker George Fryer. The 1874 report was by Mr Thomas Wynne.
Legal & regulatory aftermath
The jury recorded that not enough care had been taken in working the mine and that naked lights ought not to have been used.
Changes to practice & legislation
The jury recommended locked safety lamps in the Bullhurst and Banbury seams of the district. When the adjoining Jamage pits opened, their men worked with safety lamps.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- On 24 December 1874 an explosion in the Bullhurst seam of the Bignall Hill Colliery, Audley, killed seventeen. 1,2
- Twenty-two persons were known to be in the pit. 2
- The Assistant Inspector judged that the explosion began at the loader's naked light in Machin's level at the bottom of the bolt hole. 1
- The inquest jury found that not enough care had been taken, that naked lights should not have been used, and recommended locked lamps in the Bullhurst and Banbury seams of the district. 1
- The explosion was at the older Bignall Hill pit, next to the new Jamage pits and connected to them by an underground railway. 3
Related terminology
Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.
- Banksman (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s narrative: “The banksman, James Holden, saw smoke and dust come from the downcast and heard…” - Brattice (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s cause: “…the east heading about 17 to 18 yards from the workings because the brattice was short, was fired at a naked light, by the Assistant Inspector's…” - Filler (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s cause: “…fired at a naked light, by the Assistant Inspector's judgement the loader's light in Machin's level at the bottom of the bolt hole. Naked…” - Naked Light (contextual relationship)
Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…known to be in the pit, seventeen were killed. The inquest blamed naked lights in a seam where gas had been found that morning and urged locked…” - Safety Lamp (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the changes to practice: “The jury recommended locked safety lamps in the Bullhurst and Banbury seams of the district. When the…”
Sources
- (secondary) NMRS: Bignall Hill Colliery Explosion, Audley, 1874 — Northern Mine Research Society
- (primary) Cardiff Times, 26 December 1874: 'Dreadful Colliery Explosion. Seventeen persons killed' — Welsh Newspapers Online (National Library of Wales)
- (secondary) NMRS: Jammage Colliery Explosion, Bignall Hill, 1876 — Northern Mine Research Society
Record created: 11 October 2026 · Last researched: 13 October 2026