Washington Colliery explosion, 1736

An explosion at Washington Colliery on 14 June 1736 killed five pitmen from Biddick, the colliery's earliest recorded disaster.

Cause

An explosion.

What happened

Five pitmen were killed at Washington Colliery on 14 June 1736: Thomas Bowman, Anthony Hedley, Thomas Newby, Jacob Robinson and William Robinson, all of Biddick. They were buried in Holy Trinity churchyard, Washington, the same day. It is the first of the colliery's recorded disasters.

What's uncertain

Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.

• The Washington History Society's list dates the five deaths 14 June 1776. (disputed) ³

Recorded claims

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

• Five miners were killed in an explosion at Washington Colliery on 14 June 1736. ^1,2
• The dead were pitmen of Biddick, buried in Holy Trinity churchyard, Washington, on 14 June. ¹
• The Washington History Society's list dates the five deaths 14 June 1776. (disputed) ³

Related terminology

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

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “An explosion at Washington Colliery on 14 June 1736 killed five pitmen from Biddick, the colliery's…”

Sources

1. (primary) Washington Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (primary) Washington Colliery, B Pit (HER 2621) — Tyne and Wear Historic Environment Record
3. (secondary) Collieries — Washington History Society

Record created: 5 October 2026 · Last researched: 7 October 2026