MineArchiveNewbottle Colliery Elizabeth Pit gas disaster, 1821
On 19 October 1821 six men died in the Elizabeth Pit of Newbottle (Nesham's) Colliery when a brattice built up against old workings broke and gas came through. Their candles went on burning in it and gave no warning.
| Date | 1821 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Newbottle Colliery |
| Region | Tyne and Wear |
| Type | Gas / Asphyxiation |
| Fatalities | 6 (Six. The Durham Mining Museum and the Tyne and Wear HER record an explosion; the NMRS account, from Galloway and Sykes, and the burial register record suffocation.) |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
Gas from old workings, let in when a brattice erected close up against them was broken.
Contributing factors
The gas was of a kind in which candles continued to burn, so the men had no warning of it.
What happened
The burial register records the dead as 'accidentally suffocated in the coal mine called Elizabeth Pit'. They were buried on 20 and 21 October: James Burnip, 36, and Matthew Anderson, 50, of Newbottle; Robert Smith, 47, of Philadelphia; Robert Curry, a wasteman of 45; and George Beaney, 32, of Houghton. The sixth was George Steel, an overman of 31, buried at Lamesley. Steel and Curry left large families.
Rescue & recovery
Unknown.
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.
- The Durham Mining Museum and the HER record it as an explosion, 6 killed, on 19 October 1821. (disputed) 2,3
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- Six men were suffocated by gases in which their candles continued to burn; a brattice close up to an old working was broken. 1
- The Durham Mining Museum and the HER record it as an explosion, 6 killed, on 19 October 1821. (disputed) 2,3
- George Steel, overman, 31, was buried at St Andrew's, Lamesley. 2
Related terminology
Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.
- Brattice (direct cause)
The broken brattice let the gas in. - Colliery (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…1821 six men died in the Elizabeth Pit of Newbottle (Nesham's) Colliery when a brattice built up against old workings broke and gas came…” - Overman (contextual relationship)
An overman was among the dead.
Sources
- (secondary) Neshams Colliery Suffocation - Newbottle - 1821 — 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