Brynmally Colliery (Forsygo pit) explosion, 1878

On 30 May 1878 an explosion of gas in the No. 6, or Forsygo, pit of Thomas Clayton's Brynmally Colliery near Wrexham, also called Pendwll, killed six colliers.

Cause

An explosion of gas.

Contributing factors

Unknown.

What happened

The dead were Joseph Millington, 34, David Edwards, 29, Richard Powell, 56, Ishmael Davies, 28, John Powell, 18, and John Davies, 20. It came between the colliery's inrush of 1856 and its explosion of 1889.

Rescue & recovery

Unknown.

Investigation & inquiry

Reported by the inspector Henry Hall in the 1878 Mines Inspector's report.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

Unknown.

Changes to practice & legislation

Unknown.

Memorials & commemoration

Unknown.

Recorded claims

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

• On 30 May 1878 there was an explosion of gas at the No. 6 Forsygo pit of Brynmally colliery, owned by Thomas Clayton, which killed six colliers. ^1,2

Related terminology

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

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…of gas in the No. 6, or Forsygo, pit of Thomas Clayton's Brynmally Colliery near Wrexham, also called Pendwll, killed six colliers.”
• Firedamp (direct cause)
  An explosion of gas.
• Inrush (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…John Powell, 18, and John Davies, 20. It came between the colliery's inrush of 1856 and its explosion of 1889.”

Sources

1. (secondary) Brynmally Colliery, Moss, near Wrexham — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (secondary) Pendwll Colliery Explosion - Wrexham - 1878 — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 21 September 2026 · Last researched: 21 September 2026