Usworth Colliery Explosion, 1885

At 8.58 on the evening of Monday 2 March 1885, methane that had built up in a stone drift at Usworth Colliery was ignited by shotfiring. The coal dust, gas and air explosion that followed killed forty men outright; two more died of afterdamp while trying to reach them. Hundreds of Usworth miners were suddenly out of work.

Cause

A build-up of methane ignited by shotfiring in a stone drift, firing the coal dust.

What happened

The explosion came at 8.58 p.m. on the Monday evening, in the west pit, in the Maudlin Seam. It wrecked the shaft, though the upcast was undamaged and gave access to the mine. Forty men and boys were killed at once, and two more died of afterdamp while trying to get to them. What the disaster meant in a colliery village can be read in a single terrace. Robert Richardson of 51 Railway Terrace, thirty-nine years old, was killed, leaving his wife Margaret with seven children; only by chance was their eldest son Thomas not underground with him, having taken the day off work. Four doors along at number 13, Jane Howarth lost both her husband Jonas, forty-eight, and her son William, twenty. By the 1891 census Margaret Richardson was working as a dressmaker, two more of her sons had gone into the pit as a putter and a trapper boy, and her daughter Annie had gone into service. The Anglican dead were buried at Holy Trinity, High Usworth, on 26 March; the Roman Catholic miners at Our Lady's in Washington Village.

Rescue & recovery

The upcast shaft survived the blast and gave access to the workings. Two of those who went in to reach the men died of afterdamp.

Investigation & inquiry

An inquiry into the cause of death was held in the Infant School at Usworth before Mr Coroner Graham. The Home Office was represented by the Hon. Mr Lyttleton, the owners — Messrs Bowes and Partners — by Mr John Edge, and the National Miners' Union and the Durham Miners' Association were also represented.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

The bereaved fell back on the Miners' Permanent Relief Fund. A widow received £5 down and five shillings a week, payable only for as long as she remained a widow, with two shillings for each child until the boys turned twelve and the girls fourteen; the families of the single men who died received £23 once and nothing more.

Memorials & commemoration

Memorials to the men killed stand in Holy Trinity churchyard, High Usworth, and at Our Blessed Lady, Washington Village.

Recorded claims

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

• Forty miners died immediately and two more succumbed to afterdamp while attempting a rescue, making forty-two in all. (high) ^1,2
• A build-up of methane was ignited by shotfiring in a stone drift, and the resulting coal dust, gas and air explosion was catastrophic. (high) ^1,2
• The Anglican dead were interred in Holy Trinity churchyard at High Usworth, the funeral taking place on 26 March 1885; the Roman Catholic miners were laid to rest at Our Lady's Church in Washington Village. (high) ²
• A widow received a lump sum of £5 from the Miners' Permanent Relief Fund plus five shillings a week, payable only while she remained a widow, and two shillings for each child — until a boy reached twelve or a girl fourteen. The families of single men who died each received a one-off payment of £23. (high) ²
• Jane Howarth of 13 Railway Terrace lost both her husband Jonas, 48, and her son William, 20, in the explosion. (high) ²

Related terminology

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

• Afterdamp (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “…explosion that followed killed forty men outright; two more died of afterdamp while trying to reach them. Hundreds of Usworth miners were suddenly…”
• Downcast Shaft and Upcast Shaft (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s rescue and recovery: “The upcast shaft survived the blast and gave access to the workings. Two of those who…”
• Putter (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…as a dressmaker, two more of her sons had gone into the pit as a putter and a trapper boy, and her daughter Annie had gone into…”
• Terrace (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…the disaster meant in a colliery village can be read in a single terrace. Robert Richardson of 51 Railway Terrace, thirty-nine years old, was…”
• Trapper (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…two more of her sons had gone into the pit as a putter and a trapper boy, and her daughter Annie had gone into service. The Anglican…”

Sources

1. (secondary) Durham Mining Museum: Usworth Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) The Usworth Colliery Disaster, 2nd March 1885 — Raggy Spelk: Washington, County Durham

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