Lumley Colliery explosion, 1797

On 11 April 1797 an explosion at Lumley Colliery, near Chester-le-Street, killed 31. It was the first of three explosions there in little more than two years, the second killing 39 in October 1799.

What happened

Little is recorded of the explosion beyond its date and toll, which come from Galloway's Annals of Coal Mining and the Chester-le-Street parish burial register. None of the names of the dead is known.

The memorial to the men and boys of Great Lumley lists it among the explosions in the Lumley mines, with 60 lost in 1727, 39 in 1799, 13 in 1819 and 14 in 1824.

Memorials & commemoration

The memorial to the men and boys of Great Lumley, who worked the mines of Great and Little Lumley for almost 700 years, lists the 31 lost on 11 April 1797.

Recorded claims

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

• An explosion at Lumley Colliery on 11 April 1797 killed 31. ^1,2
• The Great Lumley miners' memorial lists the 31 lost on 11 April 1797 among the explosions in the Lumley mines. ³
• The deaths are recorded in the Chester-le-Street parish burial register. ¹

Related terminology

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

• Coal (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…beyond its date and toll, which come from Galloway's Annals of Coal Mining and the Chester-le-Street parish burial register. None of the…”
• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “On 11 April 1797 an explosion at Lumley Colliery, near Chester-le-Street, killed 31. It was the first of three…”

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (secondary) Lumley Colliery Explosion - Lumley - 1797 — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (primary) Colliery Disaster: Lumley, 11 April 1797 — Durham Mining Museum
3. (primary) Lumley Colliery Memorial (1797 Lumley Colliery Disaster) — Durham Mining Museum

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