Hepscott Colliery

Overview

A small colliery at Hepscott, near Morpeth, marked on the Ordnance Survey map of 1865 and worked by the Hepscott Coal Company from the Isabella Pit in the 1890s to 1920s; its plans were abandoned in 1924.

History

Hepscott Colliery lay at Hepscott, near Morpeth, on the Morpeth branch of the Blyth and Tyne Railway, though in the 1850s it had no siding of its own. The first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1865 marks it with a coal shaft and an air shaft side by side, and little else above ground but the pit house. The site's occupier in the 1870s was Edward Robson.

In the 1890s the Hepscott Coal Company worked the colliery, from the Isabella Pit, raising household coal and, in 1900, fireclay. Its workforce grew from 13 in 1894 to 145 in 1902 and 127 in 1905, working the Barmoor seam and two local seams; by 1921 it was much smaller, with 25 men in 1921 and 15 in 1924, working the Little and Splint seams for household and steam coal. Its managers were Thomas Temple, J. G. Stokoe, Peter Spooner and, in the 1920s, J. Storey. In 1908 a pumpman, Robert Nicol, was killed when he was caught by the spur gearing of the hauling engine.

The plans of the Hepscott, Isabella and John workings in the Barmoor, Splint and Little seams were abandoned on 1 May 1924, and the colliery is listed as closed in 1925. The old pit house and heap outlived the pit by many years.

Geology

The Isabella Pit was sunk through 72 feet of clay and 42 feet of sandstone (post) to a coal, then blue shale (metal) to the Hepscott seam, 2 feet 4 inches thick, at 157 feet 7 inches; boring below found only thin coals in shale and sandstone. The colliery worked the Barmoor, Little and Splint seams, and fireclay.

Workings

A coal shaft and an air shaft side by side at the older pit, and the Isabella Pit, whose plans are filed with the John workings.

Closure

The Hepscott, Isabella and John plans were abandoned on 1 May 1924; listed as closed in 1925.

What remains

The pit house was demolished and its rubble left on the site as a mound.

A mound of rubble from the pit house.

Related mines

• Barmoor Colliery — Both worked by the Hepscott Coal Company; their plans are filed together, and Barmoor's last plans cover the Isabella and John workings.

Recorded claims

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

• A colliery with air and coal shafts is marked at Hepscott on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1865. ^1,2
• Hepscott Colliery had two shafts side by side, one for coal and one for ventilation, and in the 1850s no siding of its own on the Blyth and Tyne Railway. ²
• The Hepscott Coal Company owned Hepscott Colliery in the 1890s. ³
• Hepscott Colliery employed 145 people in 1902 and 15 in 1924; it is listed as closed in 1925. ³
• Plans of the Hepscott, Isabella and John workings in the Barmoor, Splint and Little seams were abandoned on 1 May 1924. ⁴
• The Isabella Pit reached the Hepscott seam at 157 feet 7 inches and was bored on to 306 feet 1 inch. ⁵
• Hepscott's managers were Thomas Temple (1896), J. G. Stokoe (1900), Peter Spooner (1902-05) and J. Storey (1921-24). ⁶

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Hepscott Colliery (Hepscott), N11727 — Keys to the Past (Durham and Northumberland HER)
2. (secondary) Hepscott Colliery — North East Heritage Library (Coals Archive)
3. (primary) Hepscott Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
4. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plan 21904639: Hepscott/Isabella/John, Barmoor seam, abandoned 1 May 1924 — British Geological Survey
5. (primary) Hepscott Colliery: Isabella Pit shaft section — Durham Mining Museum
6. (primary) Hepscott Colliery: colliery management — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 22 October 2026 · Last researched: 22 October 2026