Ellesmere Colliery

Overview

One of the Bridgewater Trustees' Walkden pits, sunk in 1865 alongside the main Navigable Level — coal winding stopped in 1921, but the colliery's shafts stayed in use purely for pumping for another 47 years.

History

Ellesmere Colliery was sunk by the Bridgewater Trustees in 1865, on Manchester Road, Walkden, adjacent to the main Navigable Level. Three principal shafts flanked a winding engine house built around 1866, with a fourth upcast shaft some distance to the north-north-west: No. 1 reached the Five Quarters mine at 252 metres, No. 2 reached 250 metres, and No. 3 reached 377 metres. The winding engine, a 30-inch by 54-inch machine with a stepped drum to handle the shafts' differing depths, was built by the local ironfounders Nasmyth, Wilson & Co. The Bridgewater Trustees' collieries, reorganised as Bridgewater Collieries in 1921, merged with several other companies to form Manchester Collieries in 1929. Coal winding at Ellesmere itself ceased in 1921, but the shafts remained in use for pumping and ventilation; the engine plant was electrified in 1936, a change that in turn led to the closure of the nearby Roughfield Colliery. Pumping continued until 1968, when the National Coal Board finally demolished the surface buildings and filled the shafts.

Workings

Three principal shafts around a shared engine house — No. 1 to the Five Quarters mine at 252 metres, No. 2 at 250 metres, and No. 3 at 377 metres — plus a fourth, separate upcast shaft, wound by a stepped-drum Nasmyth, Wilson & Co. engine built to handle the differing depths.

Closure

Coal winding ceased in 1921, but the shafts remained in use purely for pumping and ventilation, electrified in 1936, until pumping finally ended in 1968 and the National Coal Board demolished the site.

Recorded claims

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

• The Bridgewater Trustees sank Ellesmere Colliery in 1865 on Manchester Road, Walkden, with three principal shafts (252m, 250m and 377m) around a shared engine house, plus a fourth separate upcast shaft. ¹
• The colliery passed from the Bridgewater Trustees (reorganised as Bridgewater Collieries in 1921) to Manchester Collieries in 1929 and the National Coal Board in 1947. ²
• Coal winding ceased in 1921, but the shafts remained in use for pumping and ventilation, electrified in 1936, until pumping finally ended in 1968 when the site was demolished. ¹

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Ellesmere Colliery — Wikipedia — Wikipedia
2. (secondary) Ellesmere Colliery, Greater Manchester — Mindat

Record created: 2 September 2026 · Last researched: 2 September 2026