Addison Colliery

Overview

The Stella Coal Company's colliery at Addison, east of Ryton, sunk from January 1864 in the ancient Grand Lease royalty; it had 180 beehive coke ovens, a village built for its workforce, nearly 1,000 men in 1921, and it closed on 22 February 1963.

History

Addison Colliery stood on the western edge of Ryton township, in the Grand Lease royalty, where coal was worked under a grant from the Bishop of Durham as early as 1390. The Stella Coal Company, which also worked the royalty through Stargate, Blaydon Main, Emma and Clara Vale collieries, began sinking on 26 January 1864, and the colliery opened in 1865.

In 1894 Addison was worked by two shafts, 45 fathoms deep, in the Townley (4 ft 2 in at 14 fathoms), the Stone Coal, the Lower Five Quarter and the Brockwell (3 ft 10 in at 45 fathoms). It was ventilated by a 16-foot Guibal fan, had 180 beehive coke ovens and raised 450 tons a day. Addison village, on the main turnpike about a mile east by south of Ryton, was then entirely inhabited by the company's employees. Employment rose from 354 in 1894 to 922 in 1910 and 962 in 1921, and stood between about 320 and 480 in the 1930s and 1940s.

The National Coal Board took the colliery over in 1947, working the Brockwell, Five Quarter, Marshall Green, Ruler, Stone, Three Quarter, Tilley and Towneley seams. On 29 July 1946 an explosion killed a stoneman and a sixteen-year-old driver. The colliery closed on 22 February 1963, and its Brockwell, Five Quarter, Stone Coal, Three Quarter and Towneley workings were abandoned. Remnants of the pit can still be found near Ryton and Crawcrook.

Geology

Durham coalfield: the Townley (or Harvey), Stone Coal (Top Busty), Lower Five Quarter (Bottom Busty), Three Quarter and Brockwell, with the Ruler, Tilley, Hodge and Marshall Green.

Workings

Two shafts sunk from 26 January 1864 to 45 fathoms; a 16 ft Guibal fan; 180 beehive coke ovens.

Closure

Closed on 22 February 1963 under the National Coal Board.

What remains

Remnants of the pit survive.

Redevelopment

Unknown.

Culture

• Tommy Armstrong, the Pitman's Poet (Music)
  Official records show Armstrong employed at Addison Colliery in 1866, first as a putter and then as a hewer.

Recorded claims

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

• Sinking began on 26 January 1864 and the colliery opened in 1865. ¹
• In 1894 it was worked by two shafts 45 fathoms deep, ventilated by a 16 ft Guibal fan, with 180 beehive coke ovens and an output of 450 tons a day. ¹
• Addison village was entirely inhabited by the Stella Coal Company's employees. ¹
• Closed on 22 February 1963. ¹
• Remnants of the Addison pit can still be found near Ryton and Crawcrook. ²

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (primary) Durham Mining Museum: Addison Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Wikipedia: Ryton, Tyne and Wear — Wikipedia

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