Chisnall Hall Colliery overwind, 1893

Two men in the sinking pit at Chisnall Hall Colliery, Coppull, fell 170 yards on 29 July 1893 when the engineman overwound the hoppet and it parted from the safety hook.

Cause

The engineman misjudged where the hoppet had started and overwound it; the hoppet then uncoupled from the safety hook.

Contributing factors

The engineman believed the men were being raised from the shaft bottom, not from 70 yards below the top.

What happened

On 29 July 1893 a pit was being sunk at Chisnall Hall Colliery, Coppull. The pumpman Henry Heaton, 28, and the fireman Henry Richard Walls, 29, were drawn up in the hoppet from a point 70 yards below the surface, but the engineman thought they were coming from the shaft bottom and overwound them. The safety hook detached as it should, but the hoppet's own hook uncoupled from it, and the hoppet and both men fell 170 yards to the bottom.

Recorded claims

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

• On 29 July 1893 the pumpman Henry Heaton, 28, and the fireman Henry Richard Walls, 29, were killed in the sinking pit at Chisnall Hall Colliery, Coppull. ^1,2,3
• The engineman thought the hoppet was being raised from the shaft bottom when it had started 70 yards from the top, and overwound it. ^1,2,3
• The safety hook detached as designed, but the hoppet's hook uncoupled from it and the hoppet and the two men fell 170 yards to the bottom of the shaft. ^1,2,3
• The colliery belonged to the Pearson and Knowles Coal and Iron Company Ltd. ^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: “Two men in the sinking pit at Chisnall Hall Colliery, Coppull, fell 170 yards on 29 July 1893 when the engineman…”
• Fireman (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…Hall Colliery, Coppull. The pumpman Henry Heaton, 28, and the fireman Henry Richard Walls, 29, were drawn up in the hoppet from a point 70…”
• Shaft (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the contributing factors: “The engineman believed the men were being raised from the shaft bottom, not from 70 yards below the top.”
• Shaft Sinking (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “Two men in the sinking pit at Chisnall Hall Colliery, Coppull, fell 170 yards on 29 July…”

Sources

1. (secondary) 1890s H3: Ian Winstanley's alphabetical list of mining victims — Healey Hero
2. (secondary) Mining deaths 1890-1899, surnames W part 1 (Ian Winstanley) — Healey Hero (Ian Winstanley's mining deaths lists)
3. (primary) Chisnall Hall Colliery — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 8 October 2026 · Last researched: 8 October 2026