Canderrigg Nos 6 and 7 Colliery

Overview

Two inclined mines of James Nimmo and Co.'s Canderrigg Colliery near Larkhall, sunk from 1939; nationalised in 1947, they raised 81,000 tons a year with 311 men in 1948 and closed in November 1964.

History

Canderrigg Nos 6 and 7 were the later mines of James Nimmo and Co.'s Canderrigg Colliery, worked near Larkhall alongside the older Nos 4 and 5 shafts at Broomfield, whose No. 4 pit generated their DC electricity. The sinking of Nos 6 and 7 began in 1939; the National Coal Board's list dates the mines from 1938. No. 6 was 168 metres long on a dip of 1 in 6, and No. 7 104 metres at 1 in 2.24.

The mines raised steam, house and gas coal. In 1948, under the National Coal Board, they produced 300 tons a day, 81,000 tons a year, with 311 employees, and had no baths, canteen or medical room. The seams were wet and narrow and the roads very low, and men pushing hutches learned to keep their hands flat on the tub or lose their fingers against the roof. The Lower Kiltongue workings of Nos 6 and 7 and Overwood were abandoned in 1954, ten years before the mines closed in November 1964.

Geology

Lanarkshire coalfield: the Lower Kiltongue and other thin, wet seams worked for steam, house and gas coal.

Workings

Two inclined mines: No. 6 driven 168 m at 1 in 6 and No. 7 104 m at 1 in 2.24, with DC electricity from the No. 4 pit of Canderrigg Colliery.

Closure

Closed by the National Coal Board in November 1964.

What remains

Unknown.

Redevelopment

Unknown.

Related mines

• Canderrigg Colliery — Both James Nimmo and Co.'s Canderrigg mines; Nos 6 and 7 took their electricity from Canderrigg's No. 4 pit.

Recorded claims

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

• Canderigg mines Nos 6 and 7 were owned by James Nimmo and Co.; their sinking began in 1939 and they closed in 1964. ¹
• Canderigg Nos 6 and 7, at Larkhall, are listed among the National Coal Board's collieries from 1938 to November 1964. ²
• In 1948 Nos 6 and 7 produced 300 tons of coal a day, 81,000 tons a year, with 311 employees, and had no baths, canteen or medical services. ¹
• No. 6 was 168 metres long dipping at 1 in 6 and No. 7 104 metres dipping at 1 in 2.24; their DC electricity was generated at the No. 4 pit. ¹
• The Lower Kiltongue workings of Canderrigg Nos 6 and 7 and Overwood were abandoned in 1954. ³

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Mining — Stonehouse Heritage
2. (secondary) NCB Collieries - Scotland (Northern Mine Research Society) — Northern Mine Research Society
3. (primary) BGS mine plan: Canderrigg Nos 6 & 7 and Overwood, Lower Kiltongue, abandoned 1954 — BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plans

Record created: 4 October 2026 · Last researched: 6 October 2026