Oxclose Colliery explosion, 1805

At the end of November 1805 an explosion at Oxclose Colliery, Washington, killed thirty-eight men and boys, the youngest eight years old, and left eighteen widows and seventy children.

What happened

Oxclose Colliery, at Washington, had been worked for nearly a century when it exploded on 29 November 1805, a month after thirty-five had died at Hebburn. Thirty-eight men and boys were killed. Families lost several members at once: three Knott brothers, Edward, Thomas and William, aged twelve, fifteen and eighteen; George, Henry and William Dowell; William Vazie, 34, and his ten-year-old son; John Lake and the ten-year-old Robert Lake; Thomas and Daniel Sadler, Daniel only eight. Eighteen women were widowed and seventy children left to the charity of the public.

All but one of the dead were buried in Holy Trinity churchyard, Washington; Henry Curry was buried at All Saints, Penshaw.

Memorials & commemoration

Thirty-seven of the dead were buried in Holy Trinity churchyard, Washington, and Henry Curry at All Saints, Penshaw.

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 explosion took place on 29 November 1805. (disputed) ^2,4,3
• The explosion is entered under 28 November 1805. (disputed) ¹

Recorded claims

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

• An explosion at Oxclose Colliery, Washington, killed thirty-eight men and boys. ^1,2,3
• The explosion took place on 29 November 1805. (disputed) ^2,4,3
• The explosion is entered under 28 November 1805. (disputed) ¹
• The explosion left eighteen widows and seventy children thrown upon the charity of the public. ¹
• The dead included three Knott brothers aged twelve, fifteen and eighteen, and the youngest killed, Daniel Sadler, was eight. ²
• Thirty-seven of the dead were buried in Holy Trinity churchyard, Washington, and Henry Curry at All Saints, Penshaw. 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: “At the end of November 1805 an explosion at Oxclose Colliery, Washington, killed thirty-eight men and boys, the youngest eight…”

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (primary) Local Records; or, Historical Register of Remarkable Events, vol. 2 (J. Sykes, 1866 edition) — Internet Archive
2. (primary) Oxclose Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
3. (secondary) Oxclose Colliery Explosion - Oxclose - 1805 — Northern Mine Research Society
4. (secondary) Oxclose Colliery, Washington — Grace's Guide

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