MineArchiveHarraton Nova Scotia Pit Chokedamp Deaths, 1817
| Date | 2 July 1817 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Harraton Colliery |
| Region | Tyne and Wear |
| Primary type | Gas / Asphyxiation |
| Associated types | Rescue |
| Fatalities | 8 (Eight. Six were dead when recovered the following day and two were still alive with little hope of recovery; all eight were buried on 5 July.) |
| Context | During active mining |
Two days after the Row Pit explosion killed thirty-eight at Harraton, eight men went down the colliery's Nova Scotia pit to repair shaft damage the blast had done. Chokedamp from the Row Pit had entered the workings. A second party sent to find them was driven back by it, and the eight had to be left to their fate.
Cause
Chokedamp entering the Nova Scotia workings from the Row Pit after the explosion of 30 June.
What happened
On the Wednesday afternoon, two days after the Row Pit exploded, some of the workmen went into the Nova Scotia pit of the same colliery to repair part of the shaft that the blast had damaged. They did not return in time. Another party went down to look for them, but could not proceed: a great quantity of chokedamp had entered the workings, supposed to have come from the Row Pit after the explosion. They had to come back up without them. The eight men who had first gone down were, in the words of the contemporary account, obliged therefore to be left to their fate. Their bodies were got out the following day. Six were quite dead. Two were still alive, with little hope of recovery. All eight were recorded as buried on 5 July.
Rescue & recovery
The rescue attempt failed outright: the second party was driven back by chokedamp and could not reach the men. Recovery was possible only the next day.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- Eight lives were lost. Six bodies were recovered dead on the following day and two men were still alive, with little hope of recovery; all eight were recorded as buried on 5 July. (medium) 1,2
- Chokedamp, understood to have entered the Nova Scotia workings from the Row Pit after the explosion of two days earlier. (medium) 3,2
- Another party of men went down to look for them but were obliged to return without effecting their object, unable to proceed on account of the great quantity of chokedamp. (medium) 3
Related terminology
Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.
- Chokedamp (contextual relationship)
Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…Nova Scotia pit to repair shaft damage the blast had done. Chokedamp from the Row Pit had entered the workings. A second party sent to…” - Colliery (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…explosion killed thirty-eight at Harraton, eight men went down the colliery's Nova Scotia pit to repair shaft damage the blast had done.…” - Shaft (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…eight men went down the colliery's Nova Scotia pit to repair shaft damage the blast had done. Chokedamp from the Row Pit had entered…”
Sources
- (secondary) Harraton — Wikipedia
- (secondary) Durham Mining Museum: Colliery Disaster, 2 July 1817 (Harraton, Nova Scotia Pit) — Durham Mining Museum
- (secondary) M. A. Richardson, Local Historian's Table Book (1844), on the Harraton Row Pit explosion of 1817 — Durham Mining Museum, quoting Richardson
Record created: 3 September 2026 · Last researched: 3 September 2026