Lowca Colliery John Pit explosion, 1838

An explosion of firedamp at John Pit, said to have been ignited by the light of the overman making his inspection, killed forty men and boys waiting at the pit bottom and in the shaft; the fireman and deputy afterwards went down alone before the men.

Cause

Firedamp that had accumulated in the workings was ignited, the disaster being supposed to have been caused by the candle or lamp of the overman William Hetherington, carried for examination.

What happened

John Pit stood on the left of the Whitehaven to Harrington road and belonged to Henry Curwen of Workington Hall, employing about a hundred men and boys under overmen Harrison Kay and William Hetherington. The colliers had left at dusk and some returned at 5 a.m. on 24 October 1838. Two hundred yards from the shaft bottom along a rolley way was a 'steer' where the men waited while the overman made his inspection. Thirty-four (by another count thirty-eight) were waiting when the firedamp exploded, the blast driving them into the corners and jamming them together. Hodgson's Pit was the upcast shaft. The shaft was 90 fathoms deep, and two men and two boys who were descending in a basket, six fathoms down, were blown into the air: a man named Nutter was rescued alive, but William and Robert Nicol were found dead at the bottom. Thirty-four bodies lay in the steer, blackened and mutilated; a boy was found by his horse in the stables. Kay lay in the south drift and Hetherington in the north. The dead were mostly from Distington, Harrington and Workington, and included brothers, cousins and a father with his young son.

Investigation & inquiry

An inquest was held in the house of Mr Carr before William Bragg, coroner.

Changes to practice & legislation

Afterwards, the account records, the fireman and deputy went down the pit by themselves before the men came to work.

Recorded claims

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

• An explosion of firedamp at John Pit, Lowca, on 24 October 1838 killed forty men and boys. ^1,2
• The explosion was attributed to firedamp ignited by the light carried by the overman William Hetherington. ¹
• The inquest was held at the house of Mr Carr before the coroner William Bragg. ¹
• The shaft was 90 fathoms deep and Hodgson's Pit was the upcast. ¹

Related terminology

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

• Deputy (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…and boys waiting at the pit bottom and in the shaft; the fireman and deputy afterwards went down alone before the men.”
• Downcast Shaft and Upcast Shaft (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…into the corners and jamming them together. Hodgson's Pit was the upcast shaft. The shaft was 90 fathoms deep, and two men and two boys who were…”
• Fathom (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the narrative: “…them together. Hodgson's Pit was the upcast shaft. The shaft was 90 fathoms deep, and two men and two boys who were descending in a basket, six…”
• Fireman (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…forty men and boys waiting at the pit bottom and in the shaft; the fireman and deputy afterwards went down alone before the men.”
• Overman (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “…firedamp at John Pit, said to have been ignited by the light of the overman making his inspection, killed forty men and boys waiting at the pit…”

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (secondary) Lowca Colliery John Pit Explosion - Whitehaven - 1838 - Northern Mine Research Society — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (primary) Durham Mining Museum - Harrington Colliery — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 29 September 2026 · Last researched: 29 September 2026