MineArchiveCotes Park Colliery
| Location | Cotes Park, Somercotes, near Alfreton, Amber Valley, Derbyshire — 53.0897, -1.3658 (approximate) |
|---|---|
| Commodity | Coal |
| Type | Coal |
| Worked | 1850–May 1963 |
| Maximum depth | 160 yards (Deep Hard shaft) |
| Operators | James Oakes and Company (?–1947, owner) — Leased the mineral rights; bought the Cotes Park estate freehold in the 1930s; J. Oakes and Co. (Riddings Collieries) Ltd (DMM c265) National Coal Board (1947–1963, owner) — Vested 1947; converted to electric power; closed May 1963 |
A James Oakes and Co. colliery at Somercotes, near Alfreton, sunk in 1850 and worked for 113 years, through nationalisation and electrification, until it closed in May 1963.
Location
Approximate location. The large pin is this mine; the small round markers are the nearest mines on record. Click one for its page. View on full map
History
Cotes Park was sunk in 1850, with shafts of 143 yards to the Deep Soft seam and 160 yards to the Deep Hard. A band of unworked ground was left beneath the Carnfield railway tunnel so that subsidence would not reach the main line. The mineral rights were leased by James Oakes and Co., who in 1868 also took a thirty-year lease of the Bottom Hard and Main Soft seams under the Outseats estate at Alfreton.
By about 1880 the colliery had an engine house and several shafts, linked to the Midland Railway by a tramway. In the 1890s the No. 1 and No. 2 pits worked the Deep Soft and Deep Hard seams with about three hundred people, and by 1900 a No. 3 pit worked the Silkstone and Tupton. Employment rose to 497 in 1915 and 519 in 1923, then fell to 332 in 1933 and 203 in 1947.
Oakes and Co. bought the freehold of the Cotes Park estate in the 1930s and worked the colliery until it passed to the National Coal Board in 1947. The Board removed the steam engines and boiler house and converted the pit wholly to electric power. Output peaked in 1956 and fell each year after, and Cotes Park closed in May 1963, after 113 years, on economic and geological grounds. Its last manager was T. H. Jameson.
Geology
The Deep Soft and Deep Hard seams, reached at 143 and 160 yards; the Silkstone, Tupton and Yard seams in the No. 2 and No. 3 pits from about 1900, and the Threequarter seam, whose workings were abandoned in 1962. A fault crossed the ground near the Carnfield railway tunnel.
Workings
Shafts to the Deep Soft at 143 yards and the Deep Hard at 160 yards, later three numbered pits; ground was left unworked beneath the Carnfield railway tunnel. Steam winding gave way to electric power after 1947.
Closure
Output peaked in 1956 and declined each year after; the colliery closed in May 1963 on economic and geological grounds.
Related mines
- Pye Hill Colliery — Both worked by James Oakes and Company of Riddings before nationalisation.
Nearby mines
- Swanwick Colliery — 0.8 miles (1.3 km) W
- Alfreton Colliery — 1.0 miles (1.7 km) NW
- Pinxton Colliery — 1.5 miles (2.5 km) E
- Blackwell Colliery — 1.9 miles (3.1 km) N
- Pye Hill Colliery — 2.1 miles (3.4 km) SE, Nottinghamshire
Straight-line distance, within 9 miles (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.
- Cotes Park was sunk in 1850, with shafts of 143 yards to the Deep Soft and 160 yards to the Deep Hard. 1
- The colliery was worked by James Oakes and Co. until nationalisation in 1947. 2,1
- By about 1880 the colliery had an engine house and several shafts, linked to the Midland Railway by a tramway. 3
- Cotes Park employed 519 in 1923 and 203 in 1947. 2
- The colliery closed in May 1963, after 113 years, on economic and geological grounds. 1
- Workings in the Threequarter seam were abandoned on 2 May 1962. 4
Photographs & further reading
The local history society's account of the pit, from its sinking in 1850 to its closure in 1963.
View sourceSources
- (secondary) Cotes Park Pit, Somercotes (Somercotes History Society) — Somercotes History Society
- (primary) Cotes Park Colliery (Durham Mining Museum) — Durham Mining Museum
- (primary) MDR13234 - Cotespark Colliery (site of), Somercotes (Derbyshire Historic Environment Record) — Derbyshire County Council
- (primary) BGS mine plan: COTES PARK, Threequarter seam, abandoned 2 May 1962 — British Geological Survey
Record created: 4 November 2026 · Last researched: 4 November 2026