Ludworth Colliery cage accident, 1852

Three men and a boy of eleven were killed at Ludworth Colliery on 23 March 1852 when the spring joining the rope to the cage chains broke as they rode up the North Pit shaft, and the cage fell to the bottom; the inquest jury blamed the firm that supplied the spring.

Cause

The spring attached to the cage chains broke, and the cage fell down the shaft.

Contributing factors

The master blacksmith found the spring's iron of very bad quality and too hard, and thought it should have been made of hammered rather than rolled iron.

What happened

On 23 March 1852 four men were riding up the North Pit shaft at Ludworth Colliery in the cage when it parted from the rope and fell to the bottom, killing them instantly: George Gibson, 35, Thomas Hedley, 20, William Hedley, 24, and William Watson, a boy of eleven.

The onsetter, Thomas Greenwell, heard a rumble in the shaft like a tub of coals tumbling, and found the scaffold over the sump broken half through where the cage had come down on it. The cage, about a ton in weight, lay in the sump 60 feet below the scaffold and could only be lifted out once a jack had been brought down from bank. The graither Peter Hopper found most of the spring still on the end of the rope hanging in the shaft; its eye, and the part through which the bolt passed, were still on the cage chain at the bottom of the sump, under about 12 feet of water.

Rescue & recovery

The cage had to be raised from the flooded sump with a jack brought down from the surface before the bodies could be recovered.

Investigation & inquiry

An inquest was held the next day at the Standish Arms, Ludworth. The master blacksmith, William Liddle, had examined the spring and found its iron of very bad quality; he put the break down to the hardness of the iron in its sides, and thought it should have been hammered iron, not rolled. The jury returned accidental death.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

The jury added that Messrs Spencer of Newcastle, who supplied the spring, and its makers were extremely culpable for making it of such inferior quality and strength, endangering men riding in every pit where such springs were used.

What's uncertain

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

• One list of mining victims dates the accident 23 April 1852. (disputed) ^3,4,5

Recorded claims

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

• Four were killed when the cage fell down the North Pit shaft at Ludworth on 23 March 1852. ^1,2
• George Gibson, Thomas Hedley, William Hedley and William Watson, aged eleven, were killed in the cage that fell down the North Pit shaft. ^3,1,2,4,5
• One list of mining victims dates the accident 23 April 1852. (disputed) ^3,4,5
• The spring joining the rope to the cage chains broke; the blacksmith found its iron of very bad quality. ²
• The jury returned accidental death and called the supplier of the spring, Messrs Spencer of Newcastle, and its makers extremely culpable. ²

Related terminology

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

• Cage (contextual relationship)
  Named 9 times in this record, first in the summary: “…Colliery on 23 March 1852 when the spring joining the rope to the cage chains broke as they rode up the North Pit shaft, and the cage fell…”
• Onsetter (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…20, William Hedley, 24, and William Watson, a boy of eleven. The onsetter, Thomas Greenwell, heard a rumble in the shaft like a tub of coals…”
• Pithead (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…and could only be lifted out once a jack had been brought down from bank. The graither Peter Hopper found most of the spring still on the end…”
• Sump (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the narrative: “…shaft like a tub of coals tumbling, and found the scaffold over the sump broken half through where the cage had come down on it. The cage,…”
• Tub (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…onsetter, Thomas Greenwell, heard a rumble in the shaft like a tub of coals tumbling, and found the scaffold over the sump broken half…”

Sources

1. (primary) Durham Mining Museum: Ludworth Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (primary) Durham Mining Museum: Colliery Accident 1852 (Ludworth) — Durham Mining Museum
3. (secondary) 1850s G: Ian Winstanley's alphabetical list of mining victims — Healey Hero (Ian Winstanley's list of mining victims)
4. (secondary) 1850s H: Ian Winstanley's alphabetical list of mining victims — Healey Hero
5. (secondary) 1850s W: Ian Winstanley's alphabetical list of mining victims — Healey Hero

Record created: 6 October 2026 · Last researched: 6 October 2026