MineArchiveWallsend Colliery A Pit explosion, 1821
On 23 October 1821 the A Pit of Wallsend ('Russell's') Colliery exploded while 56 men and boys were working the Bensham seam close round the shaft. The blast destroyed the brattice that divided the single shaft into upcast and downcast, cutting off the air; 52 died, most suffocated, and only four survived.
| Date | 1821 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Wallsend Colliery |
| Region | Tyne and Wear |
| Type | Explosion |
| Fatalities | 52 (Fifty-two of 56 underground, from a child of five to a man of 77; all the deputies were among them.) |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
An explosion of firedamp in the Bensham seam; lights 'not put out at the time' were blamed, and John Buddle later ascribed it to a furnaceman who left a door open to attend a 'secret feast'.
Contributing factors
The A Pit had one shaft divided by timber brattice; when the explosion destroyed 30 fathoms of it, ventilation stopped and most of the men suffocated.
What happened
The A Pit had been sunk to the Bensham seam only the year before, and the workings reached no more than 100 yards from the shaft. Gas was known to be present, and two young overmen had been put in charge for their experience. The explosion shook the ground like an earthquake and set furniture dancing in houses nearby. Fifty-two were killed, among them the deputies, and the victims were found scorched and strangely distorted. The dead included Samuel Lowrey, aged five and a half, Robert Bainbridge, seven, George Kyle, eleven, and Henry Bowlam, seventy-seven, as well as fathers and sons such as Michael Moon, 44, and his son, 12.
Rescue & recovery
Four men survived.
Investigation & inquiry
John Buddle, the viewer, examined the workings and gave evidence of the explosion to the 1835 Select Committee on Accidents in Mines, telling it that 40 or 50 might have lived had the colliery had two shafts.
Legal & regulatory aftermath
Unknown.
Changes to practice & legislation
Unknown.
Memorials & commemoration
Forty-six of the dead, many of them related, were buried together in one grave at Wallsend; the rest at Ballast Hills and old Wallsend Church.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- Fifty-two men and boys were killed including all the deputies; there were but four survivors of 56 in the Bensham seam. 1
- The Durham Mining Museum lists the 23 October 1821 explosion among the colliery's disasters, with 52 lives lost. 2
- Buddle thought 40 to 50 might have survived with two shafts; he later ascribed the explosion to a furnaceman who left a door open. 1
Related terminology
Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.
- Afterdamp (hazard involved)
Most victims suffocated. - Brattice (contributing factor)
The shaft brattice was destroyed, stopping the air. - Deputy (contextual relationship)
All the deputies were killed. - Fathom (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s contributing factors: “…shaft divided by timber brattice; when the explosion destroyed 30 fathoms of it, ventilation stopped and most of the men suffocated.” - Viewer (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s investigation: “John Buddle, the viewer, examined the workings and gave evidence of the explosion to the…”
Sources
- (secondary) Wallsend A Pit Explosion - Wallsend - 1821 — Northern Mine Research Society
- (secondary) Wallsend Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
Record created: 21 September 2026 · Last researched: 21 September 2026