Shevington Colliery explosion, 1861

On 1 November 1861 a labourer who had kept his lamp key from his days as a fireman unlocked a lamp to relight another man's, and fired gas at the Prince Albert Pit of John Taylor and Son's Shevington Colliery, near Wigan, killing thirteen. The inspector blamed defective ventilation and lax discipline.

Cause

Firedamp, released by a fall of roof into an ill-ventilated drift, fired at a lamp unlocked by a labourer who had kept a fireman's lamp key.

Contributing factors

A stopping placed where gas would gather; no current to sweep the goaf where roof falls were expected; a lamp key left with a man no longer a fireman.

What happened

The workings covered less than a statute acre, and the inspector, Peter Higson, thought the management experienced and above average. A plane driven against a fault on the south side had been abandoned, and other places driven to the fault had been left when the roof became unstable. Two days before, a fall of roof had freed gas that gathered in the goaf and came over the stowed dirt into the main intake, and a stopping had been built in the drift at the very place the explosion occurred, though pillar working there was expected to bring the roof down.

That morning Ralph Ellison found that part of the main road had fallen and fetched the manager, Makinson, and William Riding to clear it. About twenty minutes after Ellison left them the gas fired. Riding, a labourer who had formerly been a fireman and had kept a lamp key, admitted before he died that he had unlocked a lamp to relight one of the men's and set it on the stopping, where the gas took fire. Many were burnt and disfigured. Thomas Reed's wife, Ann, told at Wigan station that he had been hurt, collapsed and died within minutes; her inquest found she had died of fright.

Rescue & recovery

The manager, Makinson, and the fireman, Close, led a search party at once; Mr Daglish of Wigan treated the burnt.

Investigation & inquiry

The inspector Peter Higson examined the pit straight after and found no gas left but the ventilation defective, and wrote that if such omissions were tolerated, casualties of the kind might be a daily occurrence.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

The jury at the Plough and Harrow Inn found that the explosion occurred because William Riding had improperly caused his lamp top to be taken off, and severely censured the management for the conduct of the ventilation and the discipline of the colliery.

Recorded claims

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

• The explosion on 1 November 1861 killed thirteen. ^1,2
• A labourer who had formerly been a fireman and kept a lamp key unlocked a lamp to relight another, by his own dying confession, and fired the gas. ^1,2
• The inspector found the ventilation defective, a stopping having been placed in the drift where the explosion occurred. ^1,2
• The jury found the explosion occurred because William Riding had improperly caused his lamp top to be taken off, and censured the management. ^1,2
• The colliery belonged to John Taylor and Son and was also known as the Prince Albert Pit. ¹

Related terminology

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

• Drift (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the cause: “Firedamp, released by a fall of roof into an ill-ventilated drift, fired at a lamp unlocked by a labourer who had kept a fireman's…”
• Fireman (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…1861 a labourer who had kept his lamp key from his days as a fireman unlocked a lamp to relight another man's, and fired gas at the…”
• Goaf (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the contributing factors: “A stopping placed where gas would gather; no current to sweep the goaf where roof falls were expected; a lamp key left with a man no longer…”
• Return Airway (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…gathered in the goaf and came over the stowed dirt into the main intake, and a stopping had been built in the drift at the very place the…”
• Roof Fall (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the cause: “Firedamp, released by a fall of roof into an ill-ventilated drift, fired at a lamp unlocked by a labourer…”

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (secondary) Shevington Colliery Explosion - Wigan - 1861 — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (primary) Colliery Disaster: Shevington, 1 November 1861 — Durham Mining Museum

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