MineArchiveGlencairn Colliery
| Also known as | Cantyhall Colliery |
|---|---|
| Location | Cantyhall, near Longniddry, Gladsmuir parish, East Lothian — 55.9659, -2.9117 (exact) |
| Commodity | Coal |
| Type | Coal |
| Worked | 1936–January 1962 |
| Maximum depth | Unknown. |
| Operators | Glencairn Coal Co. (1936–1947), National Coal Board (1947–1962) |
Overview
A small East Lothian drift colliery near Longniddry, opened by the Glencairn Coal Company in 1936 and closed by the National Coal Board in 1962.
History
Glencairn Colliery lay near Longniddry, in Gladsmuir parish, East Lothian, at Cantyhall. The Glencairn Coal Company opened it in 1936, working house coal from two drifts driven from the surface.
It passed to the National Coal Board at nationalisation. A report of July 1948 records 110 tons a day, about 27,500 tons a year, with 57 employees, and a canteen, a first-aid room and an ambulance, with electricity from the South East Scotland Electricity Board. The colliery's workforce averaged 72, with a peak of 190 given for 1948. It worked the No. 1 Diamond and Five Feet seams.
On 16 July 1961 John Porteous, a miner from Tranent, was killed at Glencairn when he was struck between the shoulders by a falling stone. The colliery closed in January 1962 and was abandoned that year.
Geology
Lothian coal measures: the No. 1 Diamond and Five Feet seams, worked for house coal.
Workings
Two drifts driven from the surface.
Closure
Closed in January 1962; the No. 1 Diamond and Five Feet workings were abandoned the same year.
What remains
Unknown.
Nearby mines
- Penston Colliery — 1.6 miles (2.6 km) SE
- Bankton Colliery — 1.7 miles (2.8 km) SW
- Tranent Collieries — 1.9 miles (3.0 km) SW
- Meadowmill Mine — 2.0 miles (3.3 km) SW
- Bankpark Colliery — 2.3 miles (3.7 km) SW
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.
- The Glencairn Coal Company opened the colliery in 1936, working house coal from two surface drifts. 1,2
- In 1948 it raised 110 tons a day, about 27,500 tons a year, with 57 employees. 2
- It worked the No. 1 Diamond and Five Feet seams, abandoned in 1962. 3,4
- John Porteous, a miner from Tranent, was killed by a falling stone at Glencairn on 16 July 1961. 5
- Glencairn closed in January 1962. 1,2
Sources
- (secondary) NCB Collieries - Scotland (Northern Mine Research Society) — Northern Mine Research Society
- (primary) Cantyhall, Glencairn Colliery (NRHE 130864, NT47NW 55) — Historic Environment Scotland (Canmore)
- (primary) BGS mine plan: GLENCAIRN, Five Feet, abandoned 1962 — British Geological Survey / Mining Remediation Authority
- (primary) BGS mine plan: GLENCAIRN, No. 1 Diamond, abandoned 1962 — British Geological Survey / Mining Remediation Authority
- (secondary) NMRS deaths database: John Porteous, Glencairn, 16 July 1961 — Northern Mine Research Society
Record created: 24 October 2026 · Last researched: 24 October 2026