South Kirkby Colliery explosion, 1935

Date	28 August 1935
Mine	South Kirkby Colliery
Region	South Yorkshire
Type	Explosion
Fatalities	10 (10 dead is confirmed by both NMRS and the Durham Mining Museum, with all ten named consistently across both. The two sources differ on the exact date: NMRS gives 28 August 1935, matching a contemporary Coal Mines Historic Records Committee document; the Durham Mining Museum's own colliery summary gives 23 August 1935. This record follows the 28 August date, supported by two independent sources against DMM's one, while disclosing the discrepancy rather than concealing it.)
Injuries	2 men were injured in the first explosion; a further 5 were injured, some by burns, in the second explosion during the rescue effort.
Context	During active mining
Status	Basic record

A firedamp explosion in the Barnsley Seam at South Kirkby Colliery killed 10 men in August 1935; a second explosion during the rescue effort itself burned five more, including a rescue-brigade officer who later died of his injuries.

Cause

Workers were building stoppings to seal off an area of the Barnsley Seam where an earlier firedamp explosion had occurred when a second explosion happened within the sealed-off area itself.

What happened

Rescue operations began immediately after the first explosion. During the recovery of the last casualty, a further explosion at 5:50pm burned the rescue party itself, including Frank Dale, the Assistant Superintendent of the Rescue Brigade, who was among those killed. The ten dead were Frank Dale (44, Assistant Superintendent, Rescue Brigade), A. Walstow (54, dataller), F.T. Baugh (33, coal hewer), Jefferson (59, deputy), J. Goodwin (26, dataller), J. Newton (25, dataller), Bannister (54, collier), J.T. Hames (26, dataller), W. Woodall (26, corporal) and Stevenson (24, collier).

Rescue & recovery

A second explosion struck during the rescue effort itself, at 5:50pm, as the last casualty of the first blast was being brought out, burning the rescue party including Frank Dale, who died of his injuries.

Investigation & inquiry

Detailed inquiry findings beyond the established sequence of events were not established from the sources checked for this pass.

Recorded claims

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

Ten men died: Frank Dale, A. Walstow, F.T. Baugh, Jefferson, J. Goodwin, J. Newton, Bannister, J.T. Hames, W. Woodall and Stevenson. ^1,2
A second explosion at 5:50pm, during the rescue effort itself, burned the rescue party, including Frank Dale, the Assistant Superintendent of the Rescue Brigade, who was among the ten who died. ²

Related terminology

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

Colliery (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s summary: “A firedamp explosion in the Barnsley Seam at South Kirkby Colliery killed 10 men in August 1935; a second explosion during the rescue…”
Dataller (contextual relationship)
Named 4 times in this record, first in the narrative: “…Dale (44, Assistant Superintendent, Rescue Brigade), A. Walstow (54, dataller), F.T. Baugh (33, coal hewer), Jefferson (59, deputy), J. Goodwin…”
Deputy (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s narrative: “…Walstow (54, dataller), F.T. Baugh (33, coal hewer), Jefferson (59, deputy), J. Goodwin (26, dataller), J. Newton (25, dataller), Bannister…”
Firedamp (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “A firedamp explosion in the Barnsley Seam at South Kirkby Colliery killed 10…”
Hewer (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s narrative: “…Rescue Brigade), A. Walstow (54, dataller), F.T. Baugh (33, coal hewer), Jefferson (59, deputy), J. Goodwin (26, dataller), J. Newton (25,…”

Sources

(secondary) Durham Mining Museum - South Kirkby Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
(secondary) South Kirkby Colliery Explosion - Barnsley - 1935 — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 27 August 2026 · Last researched: 27 August 2026