Edmondsley Colliery shaft accident, 1891

A master sinker and a sinker were killed at Edmondsley Colliery on 13 June 1891 when the banksman ran a kibble tram into a chock and it went down the shaft.

Cause

A tram carrying a kibble struck a chock at the shaft top and fell down the shaft.

What happened

At a quarter past eight on the morning of 13 June 1891, three hours into the shift, the banksman at Edmondsley Colliery, north-west of Durham, was bringing a kibble back from the waste heap on a tram. He ran it against a chock; the kibble upset and the tram went down the shaft, killing the master sinker Robert Miller Pearson and the sinker John Henry Sutton.

Recorded claims

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

• At 8.15 a.m. on 13 June 1891 the master sinker Robert Miller Pearson, 49, and the sinker John Henry Sutton, 29, were killed at Edmondsley Colliery when a tram fell down the shaft on them. ^1,2,3
• The banksman, bringing a kibble back on a tram from the waste heap, ran it against a chock, which upset the kibble and threw the tram down the shaft. ^1,2,3
• The colliery belonged to the Edmondsley Coal Co. Ltd. ^2,3

Related terminology

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

• Banksman (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…a sinker were killed at Edmondsley Colliery on 13 June 1891 when the banksman ran a kibble tram into a chock and it went down the shaft.”
• Kibble (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…at Edmondsley Colliery on 13 June 1891 when the banksman ran a kibble tram into a chock and it went down the shaft.”
• Shaft (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…the banksman ran a kibble tram into a chock and it went down the shaft.”
• Shaft Sinking (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “A master sinker and a sinker were killed at Edmondsley Colliery on 13 June 1891 when…”
• Tub (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…Edmondsley Colliery on 13 June 1891 when the banksman ran a kibble tram into a chock and it went down the shaft.”

Sources

1. (primary) Edmondsley Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Mining deaths 1890-1899, surnames S part 6 (Ian Winstanley) — Healey Hero (Ian Winstanley's mining deaths lists)
3. (secondary) Mining deaths 1890-1899, surnames P part 2 (Ian Winstanley) — Healey Hero (Ian Winstanley's mining deaths lists)

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