Houghton Colliery explosion, 1850

Clouds of coal dust thrown up the shaft at six in the morning of Monday 11 November 1850 were the first sign that Houghton Pit had exploded. Twenty-seven men and boys were killed, most of them by afterdamp. Wives and parents crowded the pit heap in their thousands while the search went on, and the bodies and survivors were not drawn up until three in the afternoon. The inquest at the White Lion Hotel ended in a verdict of negligence over the exposure of a naked light, though the jury could not say by whom.

Cause

Firedamp, which the coroner said had come from the goaf, ignited underground. The museum's record gives the ignition as caused by a safety lamp; the inquest jury found it was the exposure of a naked light.

What happened

The first indication that anything was wrong at Houghton Pit came at six in the morning on Monday 11 November 1850, when clouds of coal dust were thrown up the shaft. The news brought the wives and parents of the men below to the pit heap, where an immense crowd gathered within a very short time. The dead and the survivors were not brought to bank until about three in the afternoon: four or five men were severely burnt, the rest had been killed by afterdamp, and only one boy's body was mutilated.

Rescue & recovery

The resident viewer, John Rutherford, who went down the pit three times a fortnight, joined three miners to search for survivors. They found an Irishman, John Kelty, alive, but he died eighteen hours after being brought out. Others joined the search, travelling 200 yards west of a second air crossing and then dividing to work the northern branch, rejoining seven or eight hundred yards further in.

Investigation & inquiry

The inquest opened at the White Lion Hotel, Houghton-le-Spring, on Thursday 21 November, with the government inspector of coal mines, Mr Tremenheere, required to attend by the Secretary of State, and ended on Friday 22 November. The coroner observed that the gas had come from the goaf and remarked on the negligence of Hunter and Watchman. After an hour the jury returned a verdict that the men had died by negligence, either of John Watchman himself or of Thomas Hunter, the overman, in the exposure of a naked light, but that there was no evidence to show which.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

The Earl of Durham, owner of the neighbouring Newbottle Colliery, undertook to bear the charge of all necessary relief to the families who had lost relatives.

Memorials & commemoration

Unknown.

What's uncertain

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

• The Durham Mining Museum records the cause as an explosion of firedamp and coal dust ignited by a safety lamp, while the inquest jury found that the men had died through negligence in the exposure of a naked light, by either John Watchman or Thomas Hunter, the overman. (disputed) ²

Recorded claims

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

• An explosion at Houghton Pit on Monday 11 November 1850 killed 27 men and boys; four or five were severely burnt and the rest died of afterdamp. ^1,2
• The Durham Mining Museum records the cause as an explosion of firedamp and coal dust ignited by a safety lamp, while the inquest jury found that the men had died through negligence in the exposure of a naked light, by either John Watchman or Thomas Hunter, the overman. (disputed) ²
• The Earl of Durham, owner of Newbottle Colliery, undertook to bear the charge of all necessary relief to the families of the dead, as the Durham Advertiser reported on 22 November 1850. ²
• The inquest was held at the White Lion Hotel in Houghton-le-Spring from 21 November, with the government inspector of coal mines, Mr Tremenheere, required to attend by the Secretary of State; the coroner noted that the gas had come from the goaf. ²

Sources

1. (secondary) Houghton Colliery (Durham Mining Museum) — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Colliery Disaster 1850: Houghton (Durham Mining Museum) — Durham Mining Museum

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