Hammerwich Colliery

Overview

Also known as Cannock Chase No. 1, one of the first collieries sunk on Cannock Chase, opened in 1849 by the Marquess of Anglesey at the base of what became the Chasewater reservoir.

History

Hammerwich Colliery, recorded interchangeably as Cannock Chase No. 1, was sunk in 1849 by the Marquess of Anglesey (Henry Paget) at the base of the Chasewater reservoir -- one of the earliest deep collieries opened as the Cannock Chase Coalfield was developed in the mid-19th century. It passed to J. R. McLean & Co. by 1855, who worked it until about 1870, and then to the Cannock Chase Colliery Co., recorded as owner from 1875 to 1880; no reliable source records precisely when the colliery itself finally closed, though coal mining across the wider Cannock Chase district had ended by 1959.

Geology

Coal of the South Staffordshire field, sunk at the base of the Chasewater reservoir; the seams worked are not recorded.

Workings

Nothing is recorded of the colliery's own individual workings.

Closure

Ownership is recorded only to 1880 (Cannock Chase Colliery Co.); no source gives the colliery's own precise closure date.

What remains

Little evidence of the mining industry survives in the area today, aside from the Chasewater reservoir itself -- originally built to supply the canal network that moved coal -- and the restored Chasewater Light Railway, now run for leisure.

Recorded claims

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

• Hammerwich Colliery was sunk in 1849 by the Marquess of Anglesey at the base of what became the Chasewater reservoir. ¹
• The colliery was owned by J. R. McLean & Co. from about 1855 to 1870 and by the Cannock Chase Colliery Co. from 1875 to 1880. ²
• Hammerwich was one of several collieries sunk on Cannock Chase in the mid-19th century as the coalfield was developed; West Cannock, Walsall Wood, East Cannock and Cannock & Leacroft followed with new sinkings in the 1870s. ³

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Chasetown — Wikipedia
2. (secondary) Cannock Chase No.1 or Hammerwich Colliery (Mindat) — Mindat
3. (secondary) Cannock Chase Coalfield — Wikipedia

Record created: 31 August 2026 · Last researched: 31 August 2026