Pemberton Colliery explosion, 1877

On 11 October 1877 firedamp exploded in the Wigan Nine Foot mine of the King pit at Jonathan Blundell & Sons' Pemberton Colliery, killing 36 men and boys, among them the manager and two other officials who went to help. The jury blamed a blown-out shot in Rutter's place.

Cause

Firedamp ignited by a blown-out shot in Rutter's place.

Contributing factors

Gas present but undetected by the shotlighter and collier, who would otherwise have stood further from the shot.

What happened

Pemberton Colliery had two shafts about 630 to 640 yards deep: the Queen pit, the downcast, and the King pit, the upcast. The explosion took place in the Wigan Nine Foot, reached at about 340 yards, where there were eleven working places. Its seat was in Rutter's level, as the position of the body of the shotlighter Luke Parkinson and his tools showed.

The blast threw two boys of 14, Matthew Preston and George Beedell, out of the workings and down the shaft. Allerton, burned and shaken, was blown into the shaft and found hanging by his wrist from the woodwork. The lights went out, and Heaton, near the signals, knocked to the surface. The manager, Watkin, the underground manager Cooke and William Laverick went down to help and were killed, and the vicar of Pemberton later spoke of their bravery. Seven colliers were in a stall that was found to be on fire.

Rescue & recovery

The manager, underground manager and another official were killed in the rescue attempt. A district of the mine was found to be on fire, and stoppings had to be built before the last bodies could be reached.

Investigation & inquiry

At the inquest the jury found that the men were killed by an explosion of firedamp in the Wigan Nine Foot, caused by a blown-out shot in Rutter's place.

What's uncertain

Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.

• A Liverpool paper put the dead at 37. (disputed) ³

Recorded claims

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

• The explosion on 11 October 1877 in the Wigan Nine Foot killed 36, including the manager. ^1,2
• A Liverpool paper put the dead at 37. (disputed) ³
• The jury found it was caused by a blown-out shot in Rutter's place. ¹
• Two boys of 14 were blown out of the workings and down the 340-yard shaft. ^1,3

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: “…Foot mine of the King pit at Jonathan Blundell & Sons' Pemberton Colliery, killing 36 men and boys, among them the manager and two other…”
• Firedamp (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “On 11 October 1877 firedamp exploded in the Wigan Nine Foot mine of the King pit at Jonathan…”
• Level (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…where there were eleven working places. Its seat was in Rutter's level, as the position of the body of the shotlighter Luke Parkinson and…”
• Shaft (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the narrative: “Pemberton Colliery had two shafts about 630 to 640 yards deep: the Queen pit, the downcast, and the…”
• Stall (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…of Pemberton later spoke of their bravery. Seven colliers were in a stall that was found to be on fire.”

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (secondary) Pemberton Colliery Explosion - Wigan - 1877 — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (primary) Pemberton Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
3. (secondary) Colliery explosion in the King pit, Pemberton 1877 — Old Mersey Times
4. (observational) Primrose Farm (photograph) — Geograph

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