Garswood Hall No. 9 Colliery explosion, 1932

Twenty-seven people were killed at Garswood Hall No. 9 Colliery, near Wigan, on 12 November 1932 in an explosion of firedamp which the Durham Mining Museum records as ignited by an electric spark. The inquiry that followed was thorough: its report works through the colliery's ventilation, shotfiring, stonedusting and lighting, the story of the explosion and the rescue, a damaged safety lamp and the electric signalling circuits, before reaching its conclusions and listing the victims and their injuries.

Cause

An explosion of firedamp, the ignition recorded by the Durham Mining Museum as caused by an electric spark; the inquiry examined both a damaged safety lamp and the electric signalling bells and circuits.

What happened

Garswood Hall No. 9, one of the pits of the Garswood Hall group near Wigan, exploded on 12 November 1932, killing twenty-seven people. Thirty years earlier, on 2 April 1902, fourteen had died at the same colliery during sinking operations.

Rescue & recovery

The inquiry report devotes a section to the rescue operations; it was not read in full for this record.

Investigation & inquiry

The inquiry report published after the explosion covers the colliery's supervision, ventilation, shotfiring, stonedusting, lighting, searching and haulage, the story of the explosion, the rescue operations, the investigation itself, a damaged safety lamp, the electric signalling bells and circuits, a medical report and the causes of the explosion, with the names of the victims and their injuries at the end and a photograph of the damaged lamp.

Memorials & commemoration

Unknown.

Recorded claims

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

• The explosion at Garswood Hall No. 9 Colliery on 12 November 1932 killed 27 people; the Durham Mining Museum records the cause as firedamp ignited by an electric spark. ¹
• The published inquiry report runs from the colliery's supervision, ventilation, shotfiring, stonedusting, lighting, searching and haulage arrangements through the story of the explosion and the rescue operations to the investigation, a damaged safety lamp, the electric signalling bells and circuits, a medical report and the causes of the explosion, and ends with the names of the victims and their injuries. ²

Sources

1. (secondary) Garswood Hall Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (primary) Garswood Hall No. 9 Colliery. Explosion, 12th November 1932 (inquiry report) — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 17 September 2026 · Last researched: 20 September 2026