Bishwell Colliery

Overview

A coking-coal colliery near Gowerton, worked from the 1860s by a run of owners down to Wright, Butler & Co. and abandoned by 1887, then briefly reworked around 1927-31.

History

Bishwell Colliery was near Gowerton, about three-quarters of a mile east of Cefn Golau Colliery. A mineral survey of about 1866 reckoned it had 50 feet of workable coal in seams of two feet or more, all 'excellent' coking coals.

Pandy & Co. were working it in 1864. It was sold to the Royal Mining Co. in 1867 and later owned by the Royal Forest of Dean Coal Company, and was listed as not working in 1870. From 1872 G. Bower worked it as the Bishwell Coal and Coke Co. Ltd until 1877, with W. Morris and later Henry Jackson as manager; the Bishwell Coal and Coke Co. owned it from 1878 until 1884. In 1881 an 18-foot Waddle ventilating fan was installed. The colliery worked the Hughes Vein, about 36 inches thick. It was later acquired by Wright, Butler & Co., but had been abandoned by 1887, the year of its Hughes seam abandonment plan.

The name returned in 1927, listed as 'prospecting'. A Bishwell, or Bushwell, abandoned the Racy seam in November 1929, when it employed 12 men underground and 3 on the surface under T. J. Bowen, and Bwdwr seam workings at Bishwell were abandoned in 1931.

Geology

Coking coals: about 50 feet of workable coal in seams of two feet or more, including the Hughes Vein (about 36 in), Racy and Bwdwr seams.

Workings

Ventilated from 1881 by an 18-foot Waddle fan; the later working employed 15 men in 1929.

Closure

Abandoned by 1887 (Hughes seam plan, 1887); the later Racy workings were abandoned in November 1929 and the Bwdwr in 1931.

What remains

Unknown.

Redevelopment

Unknown.

Recorded claims

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

• A mineral survey of about 1866 estimated 50 feet of workable coking coal in seams of two feet or more. ¹
• Pandy & Co. worked it in 1864; it was sold to the Royal Mining Co. in 1867. ¹
• G. Bower worked it as the Bishwell Coal and Coke Co. Ltd from 1872 to 1877, and that company owned it from 1878 to 1884. ¹
• An 18-foot Waddle ventilating fan was installed in 1881. ¹
• The Hughes seam workings were abandoned in 1887. ^1,2
• The Racy seam was abandoned in November 1929, when 15 men were employed. ^1,3
• Bwdwr seam workings at Bishwell were abandoned in 1931. ⁴

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Berthlwyd Colliery — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plan: BISHWELL, Hughes seam, abandoned 1887 — British Geological Survey
3. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plan: BISHWELL (BUSHWELL), Racy seam, abandoned 1929 — British Geological Survey
4. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plan: BISHWELL, Bwdwr seam, abandoned 1931 — British Geological Survey

Record created: 10 October 2026 · Last researched: 10 October 2026