Jesmond Colliery

Overview

An early nineteenth-century colliery in Jesmond, north of Newcastle, with a Middle Pit and a D Pit sunk in Jesmond Vale in 1829; its owner advertised only best coals in 1827, and the D Pit's plant was sold off in 1860.

History

Jesmond Colliery lay in Jesmond, about a mile and a half north of the centre of Newcastle. It had two pits, the Middle Pit and the D Pit, and it appears in the local newspapers from the 1810s to the 1830s. In the 1820s its owner was a Mr Sanderson, who announced in the Tyne Mercury in 1827 that he could no longer supply any but the best coals from the New Pit, at nine shillings a load delivered within the town walls. Plans of the Jesmond First, Middle, New and Second pits in the High Main seam are dated 1824.

The D Pit, in Jesmond Vale, was sunk in May 1829 through 72 feet of clay and then shale and sandstone, wet near the bottom, to 114 feet, and bored on to more than 220 feet; it belonged to the same owners as the Middle Pit, which went down to the High Main at 228 feet. In 1860 a Mr Clark offered the D Pit's plant for sale at the Royal Arcade: bridge rails, a gin gang, pulleys, an iron crane, trams and rolleys, pit props, anvils, vices and timber. The Middle Pit's pit house still stood in the 1850s, long after the pit had gone out of use, and was pulled down for housing by the 1890s.

Geology

The Middle Pit reached the High Main seam at 228 feet; boring below it found the Metal Coal seam at 261 feet and the Yard seam at about 326 feet, in grey shale (metal stone) and sandstone (post). The D Pit passed through 72 feet of strong clay, then shale and sandstone carrying a good deal of water, before boring on through thin coals to 222 feet.

Workings

The Middle Pit, working the High Main, and the D Pit in Jesmond Vale, sunk in 1829; plans of the First, Middle, New and Second pits are dated 1824.

Closure

Unknown.

What remains

The Middle Pit's pit house was demolished for housing by the 1890s.

Recorded claims

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

• Jesmond Colliery had two pits, the D Pit and the Middle Pit. ^1,2
• In the 1820s Jesmond Colliery was owned by a Mr Sanderson, who announced in the Tyne Mercury in 1827 that he could supply only the best coals from the New Pit, at nine shillings a load delivered within the walls. ³
• The D Pit of Jesmond Colliery, in Jesmond Vale, was sunk in May 1829 and bored on to 222 feet 4½ inches. ^4,5
• The Middle Pit of Jesmond Colliery was sunk to the High Main seam at 228 feet and bored on to 629 feet 6 inches. ⁶
• Plans of the Jesmond First, Middle, New and Second pits in the High Main seam are dated 1824. ⁷
• In 1860 the D Pit's plant, including a gin gang, pulleys, an iron crane and trams, was offered for sale at the Royal Arcade. ³

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (primary) Jesmond Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Jesmond Colliery (HER 6951) — Tyne and Wear HER (Sitelines)
3. (secondary) Jesmond Colliery — North East Heritage Library (Coals Archive)
4. (primary) Jesmond Colliery: D Pit shaft section (May 1829) — Durham Mining Museum
5. (secondary) Jesmond Colliery, D Pit (HER 6952) — Tyne and Wear HER (Sitelines)
6. (primary) Jesmond Colliery: Middle Pit shaft section — Durham Mining Museum
7. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plan 21866182: Jesmond First/Middle/New/Second, High Main, abandoned 1824 — British Geological Survey

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