Newbottle Colliery Success Pit explosion, 1815

At about four in the afternoon of 2 June 1815 an explosion in the Success Pit of Newbottle Colliery, the Nesham family's colliery near Houghton-le-Spring, killed 57 of the 72 people in the pit.

Date	1815
Mine	Newbottle Colliery
Region	Tyne and Wear
Type	Explosion
Fatalities	57 (Fifty-seven (NMRS, Durham Mining Museum, Tyne and Wear HER); the museum names 42. The NMRS account also says that the fifteen brought out alive soon died of their burns, which would make 72.)
Injuries	Fifteen severely burned.
Context	During active mining

Cause

An explosion of gas, supposed to have been caused by breaking into old workings.

Contributing factors

Unknown.

What happened

The explosion was very violent. The flame did not come up the shaft, but a column of dust and then a dense pillar of smoke told those at the surface what had happened. Despite frantic efforts only fifteen were brought up alive. All the bodies were recovered by 4 June, and most were buried at Houghton-le-Spring that day. Names recur down the list: Jonathan Barker, 50, and Jonathan Barker junior, 11; Thomas Burnop, 39, and Thomas junior, 14; Thomas Pearson, 38, and Thomas junior, 11; John Stout, 43, and John Stout junior, who was six; three Fawcetts, four Gastards and three Winships. The Liverpool Mercury used the disaster to call for a permanent fund for the families of men killed in the pits, who were otherwise left with parish relief.

Rescue & recovery

All the bodies were recovered by 4 June.

Investigation & inquiry

Unknown.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

Unknown.

Changes to practice & legislation

Unknown.

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.

It was supposed to have been caused by breaking into old workings. (uncertain) ¹

Recorded claims

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

Of the seventy-two people in the pit, fifty-seven were killed and the remaining fifteen severely burned. ¹
Explosion on 2 June 1815, 57 lives lost. ^2,3
It was supposed to have been caused by breaking into old workings. (uncertain) ¹
The museum's list names the dead killed at 4 p.m., aged from six to fifty-five, most buried at Houghton-le-Spring on 4 June. ²

Related terminology

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

Colliery (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…of 2 June 1815 an explosion in the Success Pit of Newbottle Colliery, the Nesham family's colliery near Houghton-le-Spring, killed 57 of…”
Firedamp (direct cause)
An explosion of gas.

Sources

(secondary) Newbottle Colliery Success Pit Explosion - Newbottle - 1815 — Northern Mine Research Society
(secondary) Durham Mining Museum - Newbottle Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
(primary) Newbottle Colliery, Dorothea Pit (HER 3123) — Tyne and Wear HER (Sitelines)

Record created: 21 September 2026 · Last researched: 22 September 2026