Water Haigh Colliery shaft disaster, 1910

During the sinking of Water Haigh Colliery at Woodlesford, near Leeds, the sides of No. 1 shaft collapsed on the morning of 7 May 1910, burying and killing six men before the pit had raised any coal.

Cause

The collapse of the sides of No. 1 shaft during sinking. About 41 yards of the shaft bottom had been left unsupported by brickwork, held only by timber planks and cast-iron rings, which gave way under the pressure of water seeping in.

Contributing factors

The brick lining had been carried down only about 70 yards of the roughly 110-yard shaft; the lower 41 yards was supported only by planking and iron rings.

What happened

At about eight o'clock on the morning of Saturday 7 May 1910, No. 1 shaft had reached a depth of about 110 yards and seven men were bricklaying on a wooden scaffold a few yards above the bottom. One of them, William Macnamara, was being raised in a large bucket, or hoppit, when an iron ring collapsed and tons of earth and planking fell onto the men below; he raised the alarm as he was hauled clear. Five of the men were buried and killed at once. The sixth, Patrick McCarthy, was trapped by his leg between the scaffold and the shaft side; a rescue attempt lasting well into the afternoon saw volunteers descend in the hoppit as debris rained down, and two local doctors went down with their instruments meaning to amputate his leg, but he died of shock after about eight hours as they reached him. It took more than a week to recover all the bodies. The dead were William George Lancaster (26, of Hunslet), Willie Hellewell (24, of Oulton), Fred Cooper (23, of Pontefract), Patrick McCarthy (about 27, of Hunslet), John McCafferty (30, of Woodlesford) and Patrick Gill (32, of Leeds). The troubled sinking took three more lives before it was done: a second shaft collapse in November 1910 killed the sinker Patrick Joseph Berine and, of the injured, James Phelan, and in February 1911 a scaffold gave way and Herbert Pickersgill fell to his death. The first coal was not wound until 20 April 1911.

Rescue & recovery

Volunteers repeatedly descended the shaft in the hoppit as loose debris fell, in a vain effort to free Patrick McCarthy; two doctors were lowered with surgical instruments intending to amputate his trapped leg, but he died of shock before they could act. His Majesty's Inspector of Mines, William Henry Pickering, was among the rescuers.

Investigation & inquiry

The inquest was held at the Oulton Institute, the coroner saying he would report the bravery of the rescuers to the Home Secretary, Winston Churchill. In evidence HM Inspector of Mines for Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, William Henry Pickering, said it had been a mistake to leave as much as 41 yards of the shaft unsupported by brickwork against the seeping water. The jury found that the six men had been accidentally killed by the collapse of the sides of the shaft in which they were sinking.

Legal & regulatory aftermath

In August 1910 the rescuers travelled to London to receive the Edward Medal from King George V; Pickering and the enginewright George Handley Silkstone were awarded first-class medals and four others second-class. Pickering himself was killed two years later at the Cadeby Main pit disaster.

Changes to practice & legislation

Unknown.

Memorials & commemoration

Concrete obelisks mark the sites of the two shafts at Water Haigh today.

Recorded claims

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

• The sides of No. 1 shaft collapsed during sinking, about 41 yards of the shaft bottom having been left unsupported by brickwork. ¹
• Six men were killed; five were buried instantly and Patrick McCarthy died of shock after about eight hours trapped by his leg. ^2,1
• The inquest jury found the six men accidentally killed by the collapse; HM Inspector William Henry Pickering said too much of the shaft had been left unsupported. ¹
• In August 1910 the rescuers were awarded the Edward Medal by King George V. ¹

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (secondary) Water Haigh Colliery: the 1910 Disaster — Woodlesford Station Local History
2. (secondary) Water Haigh Colliery (1908-1970) — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 23 September 2026 · Last researched: 23 September 2026