MineArchiveSt Lawrence Colliery explosion, 1834
On the night of 24 November 1834 an explosion of gas at St Lawrence Colliery, Newcastle, killed two masons and a shifter who were building brick stoppings by candlelight.
| Date | 24 November 1834 |
|---|---|
| Mine | St Lawrence Colliery |
| Region | Tyne and Wear |
| Type | Explosion |
| Fatalities | 3 (Thomas Hedley, master mason; Robert Watson, mason; John Gray, shifter.) |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
Gas was fired by the naked candle the men were working by. They had nearly finished, and Hedley, who was left-handed, is supposed to have taken the candle to examine the work and reached too far with it; his left arm and hand were the most badly scorched.
What happened
About six o'clock on the evening of 24 November 1834 Thomas Hedley, a master mason of Heaton, his cousin Robert Watson, a mason at Bigge's Main, and John Gray of Byker Bar, a shifter at the colliery, went down St Lawrence Colliery to put up two brick stoppings closing off part of the workings. About ten o'clock gas exploded, and all three were found dead and badly mangled. They were buried at St Bartholomew's, Longbenton, on 26 November.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- On 24 November 1834 an explosion of gas at St Lawrence Colliery, near Newcastle, killed three men: Thomas Hedley, a master mason, his cousin Robert Watson, a mason, and John Gray, a shifter. 1,2
- They had gone down about six in the evening to build two brick stoppings closing off part of the workings; the explosion came about ten. 2
- The gas was ignited by a naked candle: Hedley, who was left-handed, is supposed to have reached too far with it while examining the finished work, and his left arm and hand were badly scorched. 1,2
- Hedley left eight children and a wife far advanced in pregnancy, Watson a wife and three children, and Gray a wife and five children. 2
Related terminology
Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.
- Colliery (contextual relationship)
Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “On the night of 24 November 1834 an explosion of gas at St Lawrence Colliery, Newcastle, killed two masons and a shifter who were building brick…”
Photographs & further reading
This page doesn't try to reproduce everything — these are the best original sources found for this disaster.
T. Fordyce's 1867 register of remarkable events in Northumberland and Durham, with the contemporary account.
View sourceSources
- (primary) Local Records; or, Historical Register of Remarkable Events, vol. 3 (T. Fordyce, 1867) — Internet Archive
- (primary) Colliery Accident 1834: St. Lawrence, 24 November 1834 — Durham Mining Museum
Record created: 5 October 2026 · Last researched: 5 October 2026