MineArchiveGlyn Pits roof fall, 1864
A collier and a haulier boy were killed at Glyn Pits, Pontypool on 11 August 1864 when a loaded tram, upset into a stall at the intersection with a heading, knocked out the timbers and brought down the roof — two months after the colliery's fatal firedamp explosion of the same year.
| Date | 11 August 1864 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Glyn Pits, Pontypool |
| Region | Torfaen |
| Type | Collapse / Roof Fall |
| Fatalities | 2 (Henry Churchill, collier, aged 34, and Daniel Moses, haulier, aged 26; Welsh Coal Mines and Durham Mining Museum agree on both names and ages.) |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
A loaded tram was upset into a stall at the point where it met a heading; in doing so it knocked out the timbers supporting the roof, which then fell.
What happened
Henry Churchill, a 34-year-old collier, and Daniel Moses, a 26-year-old haulier, were killed on 11 August 1864 at the intersection of a stall with a heading. A loaded tram was upset into the stall; the impact knocked out the timbers holding up the roof, which fell on the two men. The accident came a little over two months after the colliery's fatal firedamp explosion of 1 June the same year (see glyn-pits-explosion-1864).
Memorials & commemoration
No memorial is known.
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: “…out the timbers and brought down the roof — two months after the colliery's fatal firedamp explosion of the same year.” - Firedamp (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…and brought down the roof — two months after the colliery's fatal firedamp explosion of the same year.” - Haulier (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “A collier and a haulier boy were killed at Glyn Pits, Pontypool on 11 August 1864 when a…” - Stall (contextual relationship)
Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…Pits, Pontypool on 11 August 1864 when a loaded tram, upset into a stall at the intersection with a heading, knocked out the timbers and…” - Tub (contextual relationship)
Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “…were killed at Glyn Pits, Pontypool on 11 August 1864 when a loaded tram, upset into a stall at the intersection with a heading, knocked out…”
Sources
- (primary) Durham Mining Museum - Glyn Pits (UK) — Durham Mining Museum
- (secondary) Glyn pits, Pontypool — Welsh Coal Mines
Record created: 13 September 2026 · Last researched: 14 September 2026