Garesfield Colliery

Overview

A group of pits at Winlaton begun in 1800 for the Marquis of Bute and Miss Simpson of Bradley, served by the Garesfield Wagonway, which grew under the Consett Iron Company to 1,767 people in 1910 and closed on 29 January 1960.

History

Garesfield Colliery, in the township of Winlaton in Ryton parish about 7½ miles west-south-west of Newcastle, was commenced in 1800 and was the property of the Marquis of Bute and Miss Simpson of Bradley. A boring in the First Pit in 1801 proved the Brockwell seam, and the Garesfield Wagonway, opened in 1801 by the agents of Bute, Hertford and Simpson, carried its coal to Garesfield Staith; George Stephenson and George Hill redesigned it in 1819, when it reached as far west as the No. 4 Pit. The A Pit opened in 1837, and the Bute Pit, at Chopwell, was sunk from 1867 to the Brockwell seam and opened on 11 September 1869.

The wagonway was extended to High Spen in 1850 and to Chopwell in 1891, having been sold with the colliery to the Consett Iron Company in 1889, and a new stretch from Winlaton Mill to Derwenthaugh opened in 1902. The museum lists the First, No. 2, 3 and 4 pits, the A, Bute and Heavygate pits and the Clinty, Ruler 'M', Tilley and Towneley drifts. Output was coking and gas coal with fireclay. Employment was 522 in 1894, 1,485 in 1902, 1,767 in 1910, 1,695 in 1921, 1,134 in 1930 and 805 in 1935, then 1,123 in 1950 before falling to 140 in 1955-60. The Brockwell, Three Quarter, Towneley, Five Quarter, Stone Coal and Barlow Field seams were worked, and the Towneley was abandoned on 7 October 1929.

Two shifters, Thomas William Armstrong, 50, and Joseph Stephenson Surtees, 63, were killed together by a fall of stone on 16 September 1929. The museum lists 37 names in all. The colliery closed on 29 January 1960. Working at Chopwell on the wagonway ceased the same year, and it was thereafter used only between Winlaton Mill and Derwenthaugh for the coke works.

Geology

The Brockwell seam was proved by a boring in 1801. The Brockwell, Three Quarter, Towneley, Five Quarter, Stone Coal and Barlow Field seams were worked at different times, and the Towneley was abandoned on 7 October 1929.

Workings

The First, No. 2, 3 and 4 pits, the A Pit (1837), the Bute Pit (1867-69) and the Heavygate Pit, with the Clinty, Ruler 'M', Tilley and Towneley drifts. The Garesfield Wagonway carried the coal to Garesfield Staith.

Closure

The colliery closed on 29 January 1960, when about 140 people were employed.

What remains

Remains of the wagonway survive at several points along its route.

Stretches of the Garesfield Wagonway survive, one cutting east of High Spen being used as a public footpath.

Redevelopment

Unknown.

Related mines

• Chopwell Colliery — The Garesfield Wagonway was extended to Chopwell in 1891 and the Bute Pit at Chopwell belonged to Garesfield Colliery; both passed to the Consett Iron Company.

Recorded claims

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

• Garesfield Colliery was commenced in 1800, the property of the Marquis of Bute and Miss Simpson of Bradley. ¹
• A boring put down in the First Pit in 1801 proved the Brockwell seam. ¹
• The A Pit opened in 1837 and closed on 29 January 1960. ^1,2
• The Bute Pit was sunk from 1867 and opened on 11 September 1869. ¹
• The Garesfield Wagonway opened in 1801, was redesigned by George Stephenson and George Hill in 1819, reached High Spen in 1850 and Chopwell in 1891. ³
• The wagonway was sold to the Consett Iron Company in 1889, which is listed as owner of the colliery in the 1890s. ^1,3
• The No. 4 Pit was probably working by 1801 and was the western terminus of the wagonway until 1850. ⁴
• Employment was 522 in 1894, 1,485 in 1902, 1,767 in 1910, 1,134 in 1930 and 1,123 in 1950. ¹
• Two shifters were killed by a fall of stone on 16 September 1929. ¹
• The British Geological Survey catalogues abandonment plans for Garesfield and Garesfield Bute. ⁵

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (primary) Durham Mining Museum - Garesfield Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (primary) Garesfield Colliery, A Pit (HER 3372) — Tyne and Wear Historic Environment Record (Sitelines)
3. (primary) Garesfield Wagonway (HER 3465) — Tyne and Wear Historic Environment Record (Sitelines)
4. (primary) Garesfield Colliery, Number 4 Pit (HER 3374) — Tyne and Wear Historic Environment Record (Sitelines)
5. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority abandonment plans: GARESFIELD — British Geological Survey

Record created: 30 September 2026 · Last researched: 30 September 2026