Coed Cae Tillery Colliery

Overview

A small level at Rose Heyworth, on the eastern side of the Abertillery valley, opened in the 1850s and worked under a succession of owners into the 1890s. Its name preserves that of the Tillery seam it worked — itself named for the Tilestone rock that roofed the coal across the district.

History

The Coed Cae Tillery levels, numbered 1 and 2, were among the oldest coal workings on the western side of Mynydd James, overlooking the later Rose Heyworth Colliery in the Ebbw Fach valley. They were opened in the 1850s by Matthew Habakkuk, on land leased from J. Bailey, and covered 240 acres; twelve coke ovens at the foot of the tramway (known locally as the "Ginney") could produce 60 tons of coke a week, supplying the nearby Abertillery Tin Works. William Habakkuk, Henry James and Robert Burfield James later acquired the levels as the partnership of Habakkuk and James, which was dissolved on 1 April 1863; William Habakkuk's separate partnership with Charles Henry James, trading under the same name, dissolved the following year. The levels were sold in 1864 to a Mr J. Jones — trading, a later court case revealed, as "J. Jones & Co." though he had no actual partners. Sources disagree on when Philip Samuel Phillips took control: the Northern Mine Research Society's survey of the Ebbw Valley's small collieries dates his ownership to 1857 and records the coal section he worked in the Tillery (Brithdir) seam as 10 inches of coal, 15 of clod, 8 of coal, 6 of rashings, 8 of clod and 24 of coal; a local history of the Rose Heyworth levels instead places Phillips's ownership from 1880, after J. Jones's tenure. T.P. Stewart managed the level in 1878. Phillips retained control until the level was abandoned in July 1888. Harry Boulton, a 23-year-old collier, died under a fall of roof here on 15 May 1886. An advertisement in the Colliery Guardian of 29 July 1892 sought tenders for opening a new level in the Tillery seam near Blaenau station, and in November 1891 the Coed Cae Tillery Colliery Company was formed to take over the levels at Rose Heyworth; by 1893 it was owned by G.F. Willett of Barry with D. Lewis as manager. The company was subject to a winding-up order in May 1895, after which no further record of it has been found; the 1901 Ordnance Survey map marked the levels as disused. The Tillery seam's own name, carried by this and several other district levels, derives from the Tilestone rock that formed its roof and outcropped through the whole Abertillery valley.

Geology

Worked the Tillery (Brithdir) seam, named for the Tilestone rock forming its roof, which outcrops on both sides of the Abertillery valley down to Six Bells, where the Llanhilleth Fault carries it deeper.

Workings

Two coal levels (Nos.1 and 2), 240 acres, with twelve coke ovens at the tramway foot; the Tillery (Brithdir) seam section was 10in coal, 15in clod, 8in coal, 6in rashings, 8in clod, 24in coal.

Closure

Abandoned in July 1888 after three decades under a changing cast of small proprietors; a reopening attempt from 1891 under the Coed Cae Tillery Colliery Company had ended in a winding-up order by May 1895.

What remains

Marked disused on the 1901 Ordnance Survey map. Current condition otherwise unknown.

Nearby mines

• Six Bells Colliery — 1.1 km N
• Aberbeeg Colliery — 1.5 km SW
• Llanhilleth Colliery — 2.4 km S
• Cwmtillery Colliery — 3.1 km N
• Rose Heyworth Colliery — 3.4 km NW

Straight-line distance, within 15 km. Show on the map.

Recorded claims

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

• Opened in the 1850s by Matthew Habakkuk on land leased from J. Bailey, with twelve coke ovens producing 60 tons of coke a week for the Abertillery Tin Works. ¹
• Passed to the partnership of Habakkuk and James (dissolved 1 April 1863) and was sold in 1864 to J. Jones, who traded as "J. Jones & Co." despite having no partners. ¹
• P.S. Phillips owned and worked the level until its July 1888 abandonment, managed by T.P. Stewart in 1878; one source dates his ownership from 1857, another from 1880. (disputed) ^1,2
• Harry Boulton, 23, died under a fall of roof on 15 May 1886. ²
• The Coed Cae Tillery Colliery Company was formed in November 1891 to reopen the levels, owned by G.F. Willett of Barry with D. Lewis as manager by 1893, before a winding-up order in May 1895. ^1,2
• The Tillery seam's name derives from the Tilestone rock that formed its roof, and it was worked across the whole Abertillery valley under that name. ³

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Coed Cae Tillery Coal Levels — Out Of The Blue Artifacts
2. (secondary) Small Collieries of the Ebbw Valley — Northern Mine Research Society
3. (secondary) Tillery Colliery — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 14 September 2026 · Last researched: 15 September 2026