Whinney Hill Colliery explosion, Cleator Moor, 1848

An explosion of firedamp at the Haematite Mining Company's Whinney Hill Pit, Cleator Moor, on 28 October 1848 killed thirty men and boys, nearly everyone underground.

Cause

Firedamp fired by a naked light, probably on the main road about thirty yards from the shaft. Safety lamps were found afterwards with their tops off, and witnesses said men took the tops off to light their pipes, against orders.

Contributing factors

Witnesses described the ventilation as variable; the furnace that had improved it was only three or four months old, and evidence was given that the air was foul to within thirty-five yards of the shaft.

What happened

The explosion came between six and seven on the morning of Saturday 28 October 1848. Of those below, one hagger, Edward Bradley, working at the far end of the pit, was lifted off his feet, made his way 300 yards to the shaft through thickening afterdamp, past the dead, and climbed the rope into the empty basket; the furnace man in the shaft also lived. A boy named Ward was brought up alive but died of his burns within hours.

Seventeen of the dead were married men, who left fifty-two children between them; thirteen were unmarried, three of them boys of twelve and thirteen. Richard Lawson died with his two sons, and Thomas Aiken with his son John. Several bodies were never recovered.

Rescue & recovery

The head overman, Robert Foster, and another overman, Gambles, went halfway down the shaft before the gas stopped them, and put out the ventilating furnace. Once the shaft was repaired and air restored by throwing water down it, they went down with lights and found eleven bodies together at the shaft bottom. Nineteen dead had been found by that first search, and four more by the Monday.

Investigation & inquiry

Because the pit lay within the Lordship of Egremont, the manorial coroner, Mr Bragg, claimed the inquests, while the county coroner, William Lumb, sat on bodies that relatives had carried to houses in his district, at Hensingham and Whitehaven. Both inquired into the ventilation. For Lumb, John Armstrong, overseer of the Earl of Lonsdale's Wellington Pit, inspected the workings, judged the pit well found and workable, and thought it had been fired by a naked light on the main road. All the verdicts amounted to accidental death. Lumb noted that a man who fired a pit by smoking could in law be indicted for murder or manslaughter, and urged owners to bring summary prosecutions for smoking as a warning.

Memorials & commemoration

A memorial plaque was unveiled on Whinney Hill Lane, Cleator Moor, for the 175th anniversary in 2023, organised by Dave Farrell with the town council and local businesses, with Cleator Moor Brass Band playing.

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 Durham Mining Museum's roll gives thirty-one lives lost. (disputed) ⁴

Recorded claims

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

• An explosion at Whinney Hill Pit, Cleator Moor, on 28 October 1848 killed thirty men and boys. ^1,2,3
• The Durham Mining Museum's roll gives thirty-one lives lost. (disputed) ⁴
• The firedamp was fired by a naked light; lamps were found with their tops removed, taken off by men to light their pipes. ^1,2
• Inquests were held by both the manorial coroner, Mr Bragg, and the county coroner, William Lumb, and the verdicts amounted to accidental death. ²
• A memorial plaque was unveiled on Whinney Hill Lane for the 175th anniversary in 2023. ³

Related terminology

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

• Afterdamp (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…off his feet, made his way 300 yards to the shaft through thickening afterdamp, past the dead, and climbed the rope into the empty basket; the…”
• Haematite (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “An explosion of firedamp at the Haematite Mining Company's Whinney Hill Pit, Cleator Moor, on 28 October 1848…”
• Naked Light (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the cause: “Firedamp fired by a naked light, probably on the main road about thirty yards from the shaft. Safety…”
• Overman (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the rescue and recovery: “The head overman, Robert Foster, and another overman, Gambles, went halfway down the…”
• Safety Lamp (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s cause: “…light, probably on the main road about thirty yards from the shaft. Safety lamps were found afterwards with their tops off, and witnesses said men…”

Photographs & further reading

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

Sources

1. (secondary) Whinney Hill Colliery Explosion - Cleator Moor - 1848 — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (primary) Dreadful Explosion - Thirty Persons Killed (The Times, 2 November 1848) — Durham Mining Museum
3. (secondary) Plaque unveiled to mark 175th anniversary of Whinney Hill Pit disaster — Whitehaven News
4. (primary) Colliery Disaster 1848: Cleator Moor, Whinny Hill — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 6 October 2026 · Last researched: 7 October 2026