Great Bridge Colliery explosion, 1849

In June 1849, when about seventy men and boys went down Mr Morris's Friary Field pit at Great Bridge after it had stood idle since the Saturday, an explosion killed fourteen. The doggy, Thomas Pritchard, was said to have caused it by unscrewing his lamp; he was among the dead.

Cause

Firedamp, said to have been ignited when the doggy unscrewed his safety lamp while a place was being brushed out.

Contributing factors

Gas accumulated while the pit stood idle over the weekend.

What happened

The pit was 274 yards deep, with seven roads of seventy or eighty yards. The men descended with a butty who carried a safety lamp, and the explosion came while colliers were brushing out a place. It alarmed the whole neighbourhood. Sixty-two men and boys were brought out alive.

Among the dead were Pritchard, aged forty, of Dudley Port, John Harris, who left eight or nine children, and boys as young as eleven. The accounts disagree on the toll: the Birmingham Journal reported thirteen, the inspectors' report of 1853 fifteen, and the Mining Almanac for 1850 twenty-five killed and forty-three injured.

Rescue & recovery

Sixty-two men and boys were brought out alive.

What's uncertain

Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.

• Accounts of the dead range from thirteen (Birmingham Journal) and fifteen (Report for 1853) to twenty-five (Mining Almanac for 1850). (disputed) ^2,1
• The doggy, Pritchard, was said to have caused the explosion by unscrewing his lamp while colliers were brushing out a place. (uncertain) ²
• The explosion happened on Tuesday 26 June 1849. (disputed) ²
• The explosion happened on 28 June 1849. (disputed) ¹

Recorded claims

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

• Fourteen lives were lost. ¹
• Accounts of the dead range from thirteen (Birmingham Journal) and fifteen (Report for 1853) to twenty-five (Mining Almanac for 1850). (disputed) ^2,1
• The doggy, Pritchard, was said to have caused the explosion by unscrewing his lamp while colliers were brushing out a place. (uncertain) ²
• The explosion happened on Tuesday 26 June 1849. (disputed) ²
• The explosion happened on 28 June 1849. (disputed) ¹
• Sixty-two men and boys were taken out of the pit alive. ²

Related terminology

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

• Buttyman (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…seven roads of seventy or eighty yards. The men descended with a butty who carried a safety lamp, and the explosion came while colliers…”
• Firedamp (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s cause: “Firedamp, said to have been ignited when the doggy unscrewed his safety lamp…”
• Ripping (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…carried a safety lamp, and the explosion came while colliers were brushing out a place. It alarmed the whole neighbourhood. Sixty-two men and…”
• Safety Lamp (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the cause: “Firedamp, said to have been ignited when the doggy unscrewed his safety lamp while a place was being brushed out.”

Photographs & further reading

This page doesn't try to reproduce everything — these are the best original sources found for this disaster.

Sources

1. (primary) Colliery Disaster: Great Bridge, 28 June 1849 — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Great Bridge Colliery Explosion - Dudley - 1849 — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 3 October 2026 · Last researched: 3 October 2026