Rothwell Haigh Colliery accident, 1797

On 19 April 1797 thirteen men and boys were killed at Rothwell Haigh Colliery, south-east of Leeds; among them were a father and four of his sons. The Durham Mining Museum records it as an explosion.

Cause

An explosion, by the Durham Mining Museum's record.

What happened

Coal was being worked at Rothwell Haigh, south-east of Leeds, by the 1790s. On 19 April 1797 thirteen men and boys died there, among them a father and four of his sons, an event remembered in an early Yorkshire almanac. The Durham Mining Museum's list of disasters records it as an explosion.

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 disaster is recorded as an explosion. (uncertain) ²

Recorded claims

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

• On 19 April 1797 thirteen men and boys were killed at Rothwell Haigh Colliery, near Leeds. ^1,2
• Among the dead were a father and his four sons. ¹
• The disaster is recorded as an explosion. (uncertain) ²

Related terminology

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

• Coal (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “Coal was being worked at Rothwell Haigh, south-east of Leeds, by the…”
• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “On 19 April 1797 thirteen men and boys were killed at Rothwell Haigh Colliery, south-east of Leeds; among them were a father and four of his sons.…”

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (secondary) Rothwell Haigh Colliery Accident - Leeds - 1797 (Northern Mine Research Society) — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (primary) Colliery Disasters 1790-99 — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 29 September 2026 · Last researched: 4 October 2026