Muiredge Colliery

Overview

A Buckhaven colliery first sunk by the Wemyss estate in the 1850s, abandoned at a fault and reopened in 1864 by Bowman, Cairns and partners, who pumped out the workings and drove through; the Wemyss Coal Company held it from 1905 and it closed in 1932, reopened in 1935 and finally closed in 1938.

History

Muiredge Colliery, immediately north of Buckhaven, was first sunk by the Wemyss family in the 1850s; the Chemiss seam was reached at nearly 80 fathoms but the coal was of bad quality, with volcanic rock flowing through it, and sinking stopped at a fault. In 1864 Lawrence Bowman of Cowdenbeath and David and James Cairns took the lease, pumped off the water that had gathered and drove through the fault, and a company was formed; Archibald Bowman became general manager shortly after 1870. Bowman and Company, styled Bowman, Cairns and Co. in 1880, built mineral lines from Muiredge to Isabella, Bye and Percival pits, to Rosie Pit and to Methil Harbour, where a railway of 1¼ miles opened from 1869.

Three shafts were working by 1879, No. 1 with a downcast of 480 feet and an upcast of 438 in 1874. The workforce was 158 underground and 37 on the surface in 1874, and in 1896 228 and 38, raising gas, household, manufacturing and steam coals and fireclay. The Wemyss Coal Company Ltd had it by 1905: 483 underground in 1908, 515 and 177 in 1920 and 572 and 103 in 1928. Archibald Bowman left in 1906 after 25 years' service and Harry Reid managed from 1908.

The headgear was replaced by a reinforced concrete one in 1935, when the colliery reopened in December and the shaft was deepened by 14 fathoms to the Four Feet coal, a short-lived venture. After the 1932 closure the pit-head buildings were a training school for young miners, and the colliery finally closed in June 1938, when 184 underground and 28 on the surface were recorded. Its ventilation was partly shared with Lochhead, Michael, Rosie and Wellesley collieries. Fatal accidents reported include John Archibald, crushed when a crane toppled over in February 1879, and Colin Simon, a pit bottomer, in January 1925.

Geology

Coal of the Wemyss field. The Chemiss seam (7 to 9 feet) was reached at nearly 80 fathoms, bad where volcanic rock cut it; the Eight Foot and Six Foot coals (splint and cherry) and a parrot coal were worked, and in 1928 the Four Feet, Dysart Main, Six Feet and Eight Feet.

Workings

Nos. 1, 2, 3 and the West pit; No. 1 had a downcast 15 by 6 feet and 480 feet deep and an upcast 438 feet in 1874, with furnace ventilation, and a fan was installed at No. 2 by 1880. The shaft was deepened by 14 fathoms to the Four Feet seam in 1935.

Closure

The colliery closed in 1932, reopened in December 1935 under a new concrete headgear with a deepened shaft, and closed finally in June 1938 as the Wemyss Coal Company abandoned it.

What remains

Unknown.

Redevelopment

Unknown.

Related mines

• Michael Colliery — Muiredge's ventilation was partly shared with Michael, Wellesley, Rosie and Lochhead collieries.
• Rosie Colliery — Bowman and Co built a mineral line from Muiredge to Rosie Pit, both collieries were owned by Bowman and then the Wemyss Coal Company, and their ventilation was partly shared.
• Wellesley Colliery — Muiredge's ventilation was partly shared with Wellesley, Michael, Rosie and Lochhead collieries.

Recorded claims

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

• The first Muiredge shaft was sunk by the Wemyss family in the early 1850s but sinking stopped at a fault in the Chemiss seam. ¹
• In 1864 Lawrence Bowman with David and James Cairns leased Muiredge Colliery, pumped off its water and drove through the fault. ¹
• Bowman and Co built mineral lines from Muiredge to the Isabella, Bye and Percival pits, to Rosie Pit and to Methil Harbour, where a line opened from May 1869. ²
• Three shafts were in operation at Muiredge by 1879, and in 1874 No. 1 had a 480-foot downcast and a 438-foot upcast. ¹
• Employment was 158 underground and 37 on the surface in 1874, 228 and 38 in 1896, 345 and 42 in 1902, 483 and 68 in 1908, 572 and 103 in 1928 and 184 and 28 in 1938. ¹
• The Wemyss Coal Company Ltd owned Muiredge from 1905, and Archibald Bowman left as manager in November 1906 after 25 years with the company. ¹
• Muiredge closed in 1932, its buildings served as a training school, it reopened in December 1935 with a concrete headgear and a shaft deepened by 14 fathoms, and it closed in June 1938. ¹
• A brickworks at Muiredge is not recorded by 1913 although the colliery was still in place. ³
• Fatal accidents reported at Muiredge include John Archibald in February 1879, Mathewson and Braid in December 1880, Colin Simon in January 1925 and a fourteen-year-old at the sawmill in October 1918. ^4,5,1

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Fife Pits: Muiredge Colliery, Buckhaven — Fife Pits
2. (secondary) RAILSCOT: Muiredge Goods — RAILSCOT
3. (secondary) Muiredge Brickworks, Buckhaven, Fife (Scottish Brick History) — Scottish Brick History
4. (secondary) Fife Accidents 1871 to 1900 (Scottish Mining Website) — Scottish Mining Website
5. (secondary) Fife Accidents 1915-1925 (Scottish Mining Website) — Scottish Mining Website

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