North Gawber Colliery explosion, 1935

At about 2.45 p.m. on 12 September 1935 an explosion in the Nos. 3 and 4 South Districts of North Gawber Colliery, in the gassy Lidgett seam near Barnsley, killed nineteen men. The Chief Inspector concluded that a shot fired in the ripping of a top airway gate had started it, and that it should never have been fired.

Cause

Firedamp ignited by a shot fired by the shotfirer Friend Clayton in the ripping of the No. 4 South Top Airway Gate (the Chief Inspector's opinion).

Contributing factors

A gassy seam in which firedamp collected quickly if ventilation was interrupted; shots were rarely fired in that ripping, but two had been fired there within a week by a shotfirer who had been on the day shift only a fortnight.

What happened

Fountain and Burnley's pit worked the Lidgett seam, about 2 ft 6 in thick, some 1,600 yards from the shafts, undercutting by machine, shotfiring on the night shift and filling onto electric conveyors by day. Around midday the shotfirer discussed with the rippers George Wroe and Jacob Fallis whether the ripping in No. 4 top airway gate needed a shot. At about 2.45 p.m. the explosion swept the faces; a borer 40 yards down the face felt a gush of hot air lift him three yards. Nineteen died, among them Wroe and Fallis, the borer John Williams and the machinemen Washington, Hurrell, Walker and Walley; George Whewall died in hospital the same day.

Rescue & recovery

Rescue brigades recovered the bodies from the faces and levels.

Investigation & inquiry

Sir Henry Walker, Chief Inspector of Mines, held the inquiry at Barnsley Town Hall from 22 October to 2 November 1935. The Chief Electrical Inspector ruled out electricity. Walker's opinion, 'not capable of proof but based on experience', was that Clayton's shot in the top airway gate caused the explosion and should not have been fired.

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.

• NMRS's list names Amos Dransfield among the dead, though its own account has him giving evidence; the Durham Mining Museum lists George Betton Whewall instead. (disputed) ^2,1

Recorded claims

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

• An explosion about 2.45 p.m. on 12 September 1935 in the Nos. 3 and 4 South Districts killed 19 men. ¹
• Nineteen named killed on 12 September 1935: explosion of firedamp, ignition caused by shot firing. ²
• NMRS's list names Amos Dransfield among the dead, though its own account has him giving evidence; the Durham Mining Museum lists George Betton Whewall instead. (disputed) ^2,1
• Walker held that the shot fired by Friend Clayton in the No. 4 South Top Airway Gate was the originating cause. ¹

Related terminology

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

• Firedamp (direct cause)
  A gassy seam.
• HM Chief Inspector of Mines (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s investigation: “Sir Henry Walker, Chief Inspector of Mines, held the inquiry at Barnsley Town Hall from 22 October to 2…”
• Level (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s rescue and recovery: “Rescue brigades recovered the bodies from the faces and levels.”
• Ripping (contextual relationship)
  Named 5 times in this record, first in the summary: “…nineteen men. The Chief Inspector concluded that a shot fired in the ripping of a top airway gate had started it, and that it should never have…”
• Shot-firing (direct cause)
  The ripping shot was blamed.

Sources

1. (secondary) North Gawber (Lidgett) Colliery Explosion - Barnsley - 1935 — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (secondary) North Gawber Colliery — Durham Mining Museum

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