Comrie Colliery

Overview

A large, purpose-built modern colliery north-west of Oakley, Fife, sunk by the Fife Coal Company from 1935 and reaching commercial production in 1940. Comrie introduced Scotland's first skip-winding system for raising coal and was praised on a 1946 visit by Herbert Morrison, Lord President of the Council, who called it 'the cat's pyjamas'. It closed in October 1986, a major blow to the neighbouring village of Oakley.

History

Sinking began in July 1935, sited in open country about a mile west of the Comrie-to-Saline road, with the Fife Coal Company driving two shafts: a 20-foot-diameter skip-winding shaft (No. 1) eventually reaching 1,376 feet, and a 22-foot-diameter downcast shaft (No. 2) reaching 1,308 feet, both completed by September 1938. Comrie was designed as a thoroughly modern colliery for its time, using forced-fan ventilation — unusual for the period — and Scotland's first skip-winding installation for raising coal, with the winding skips themselves shipped in from Germany only a week before the outbreak of the Second World War. The main workable seam, the Diamond (Main) seam — around 4 feet thick and of good quality — was reached in August 1939, and commercial production began in 1940; the Jersey and Lochgelly Splint seams were also worked. A new railway connection linked the colliery to the Kinnedar Branch of the North British Railway. On a visit in 1946, Herbert Morrison, then Lord President of the Council, was reportedly so impressed by the colliery's modern design and working conditions that he called it 'the cat's pyjamas'. Ownership passed to the National Coal Board on nationalisation in 1947/48. Output built steadily: around 430,000 tons a year with some 800 underground workers by 1950, reaching a 500,000-ton annual milestone by 1970 and again by 1980, against a design target of 4,000 tons a day. In the aftermath of the 1984-85 miners' strike, the National Coal Board judged the colliery no longer economic, and closure was announced in September 1986; the colliery closed the following month, a major blow to the neighbouring village of Oakley, which had grown up around it and took years to recover from the loss of its principal employer.

Workings

Worked the Diamond (Main) seam, reached in August 1939 at around 4 feet thick, together with the Jersey and Lochgelly Splint seams, from two shafts: a 20-foot skip-winding shaft reaching 1,376 feet and a 22-foot downcast ventilation shaft reaching 1,308 feet.

Closure

Closed in October 1986 after the National Coal Board judged the colliery uneconomic in the aftermath of the 1984-85 miners' strike; closure was announced the previous month.

What remains

The colliery has been cleared; BGS/Mining Remediation Authority records include spoil heap plans for the site in addition to underground mine plans.

Abandoned workings can be dangerous — unstable ground, uncapped shafts, flooding and bad air are common even where a site looks safe from the surface. This entry describes history and general location only; it is not an access guide.

Recorded claims

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

• Sinking began July 1935; the 20-ft-diameter No. 1 skip-winding shaft reached 1,376 ft and the 22-ft-diameter No. 2 downcast shaft reached 1,308 ft, both complete by September 1938. The colliery used forced-fan ventilation, unusual for the period, and Scotland's first skip-winding system, with skips imported from Germany a week before the outbreak of the Second World War. ¹
• The Diamond (Main) seam, about 4 ft thick, was reached in August 1939, with commercial production beginning in 1940; the Jersey and Lochgelly Splint seams were also worked. ¹
• Owned by the Fife Coal Company from sinking in 1935 until nationalisation transferred it to the National Coal Board in 1947/48. ¹
• Output reached around 430,000 tons a year with some 800 underground workers by 1950, and the colliery passed the 500,000-ton annual mark by both 1970 and 1980, against a design target of 4,000 tons a day. ¹
• On a 1946 visit, Herbert Morrison, Lord President of the Council, is reported to have called the colliery 'the cat's pyjamas' in praise of its modern design and conditions. ¹
• Comrie Colliery closed in October 1986 after the National Coal Board judged it uneconomic following the 1984-85 miners' strike, a major blow to the neighbouring village of Oakley. ^1,2
• The BGS/Mining Remediation Authority mine plans catalogue holds both underground mine plans and separate spoil heap plans for Comrie, custodied by the Coal Authority. ³

Sources

1. (secondary) Comrie Colliery, Saline — Fife Pits (specialist local mining history site)
2. (secondary) Oakley, Fife — Wikipedia
3. (primary) Mine plan: COMRIE, Fife (feature 21852916) — Mining Remediation Authority / BGS mine plans catalogue

Record created: 26 August 2026 · Last researched: 26 August 2026