MineArchiveDenby Hall Colliery roof fall, 1951
On 9 May 1951 a fall of roof at Denby Hall Colliery, near Denby in North Derbyshire, killed five men.
| Date | 9 May 1951 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Denby Hall Colliery |
| Region | Derbyshire |
| Type | Collapse / Roof Fall |
| Fatalities | 5 (Five men were killed: Joseph Armstrong (37), Eric Bailey (35), Roy Bowmer (23), William Chamberlain (48) and Alfred Spencer (51).) |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
A fall of roof underground.
What happened
On 9 May 1951 a fall of roof at the National Coal Board's Denby Hall Colliery killed five men - Joseph Armstrong (37), Eric Bailey (35), Roy Bowmer (23), William Chamberlain (48) and Alfred Spencer (51). The colliery, on the Drury-Lowe estate at Denby, was then working the Piper seam; it was merged with the neighbouring Denby Drury-Lowe pit in 1967 and closed the following year.
Rescue & recovery
Unknown.
Investigation & inquiry
Unknown.
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 9 May 1951 a fall of roof at Denby Hall Colliery killed five men. 1,2
- The five men killed were Joseph Armstrong, Eric Bailey, Roy Bowmer, William Chamberlain and Alfred Spencer. 2
Photographs & further reading
This page doesn't try to reproduce everything — these are the best original sources found for this disaster.
The Durham Mining Museum's record of the roof fall, with the names and ages of the five men killed.
View sourceSources
- (primary) Denby Hall Colliery (DMM d218) — Durham Mining Museum
- (primary) Denby Hall Colliery disaster, 9 May 1951 (DMM) — Durham Mining Museum
Record created: 23 September 2026 · Last researched: 23 September 2026