Washington Colliery I Pit explosion, 1828

At about 3 p.m. on 20 November 1828 an explosion in the I or Eye Pit of Washington Colliery killed all but one of the fifteen in the pit, eleven of them boys. The onsetter, Michael Hall, survived badly burnt. The pit had been examined that morning and judged perfectly ventilated.

Date	20 November 1828
Type	Explosion
Fatalities	14 (14 killed at once of the 15 below; the onsetter survived. A boy, Alexander Bolton, died on 4 December, and the museum's roll names 15.)
Context	During active mining

Cause

A sudden outburst of gas from the roof which stopped the ventilation.

What happened

The report was heard far off. A gentleman at Little Usworth said it was like a heavy artillery gun and made the earth shake; a cloud of smoke rose from the pit, hung for a minute or two, then drifted north, covering the fields with soot. The blast threw down the machinery at the pit mouth and hurled corves and other heavy objects up from the shaft bottom.

The dead came from Washington Row, Waggon Row and Usworth. The youngest, Thomas Yates, was seven; the oldest, Stephen Salmon, sixty-three. Alexander Bolton, aged ten, died of his injuries on 4 December. The cause was thought to be an outburst of gas, a 'bag of foulness' from the roof, which stopped the ventilation.

Investigation & inquiry

The colliery had been examined that morning and was considered to be in a state of perfect ventilation.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

A verdict of accidental death was returned.

What's uncertain

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

Fifteen lives were lost. (disputed) ^3,2

Recorded claims

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

Fifteen were in the pit, eleven boys and four men, and all were killed except the onsetter Michael Hall. ^1,2
Fifteen lives were lost. (disputed) ^3,2
The blast blew down the machinery at the pit mouth and threw corves from the shaft bottom. ^1,2
The cause was thought to be an outburst of gas from the roof which stopped the ventilation. ¹
A verdict of accidental death was returned. ¹

Related terminology

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

Colliery (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…on 20 November 1828 an explosion in the I or Eye Pit of Washington Colliery killed all but one of the fifteen in the pit, eleven of them boys.…”
Onsetter (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s summary: “…all but one of the fifteen in the pit, eleven of them boys. The onsetter, Michael Hall, survived badly burnt. The pit had been examined that…”
Outburst (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the cause: “A sudden outburst of gas from the roof which stopped the ventilation.”
Shaft (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s narrative: “…the pit mouth and hurled corves and other heavy objects up from the shaft bottom. The dead came from Washington Row, Waggon Row and Usworth.…”

Photographs & further reading

This page doesn't try to reproduce everything — these are the best original sources found for this disaster.

Washington I Pit explosion, 1828 (NMRS) (reference)

An eyewitness account, the cause and the verdict.

View source

Washington disaster, 1828 (Durham Mining Museum) (reference)

Richardson's account and the names and ages of the dead.

View source

Sources

(secondary) Washington Colliery I Pit Explosion - Washington - 1828 — Northern Mine Research Society
(primary) Colliery Disaster: Washington, I Pit, 20 November 1828 — Durham Mining Museum
(primary) Washington Colliery — Durham Mining Museum

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