Parr Colliery

Overview

Richard Evans & Co.'s colliery at Parr, St Helens, whose Havannah (Nos. 1 and 2) and Southport (Nos. 4 and 5) pits worked from about 1869 to 1935 and employed more than 2,400 people in 1923.

History

Parr Colliery, in the Parr district of St Helens, belonged to Richard Evans & Co., the Haydock colliery company. Its pits went by two names: Nos. 1 and 2 were the Havannah Colliery and Nos. 4 and 5 the Southport Colliery. The colliery is dated from 1869. One account has the Nos. 1 and 2 shafts sunk in 1871 and winding coal until 1926, and Nos. 3 and 4 sunk in 1893 and winding until 1931. In 1894 James Seddon managed No. 1, with 218 people underground and 37 on the surface, and E. P. Stewart managed No. 2 and Nos. 4 and 5.

The pits raised gas, household, manufacturing and steam coal. In 1905 No. 1 worked the Higher and Lower Florida, No. 2 the Higher and Main Delf and the Ravenhead, and Nos. 4 and 5 the Little Delf, Nine Feet and Rushy Park. Employment grew from 780 in 1894 to 1,681 in 1910, and in 1923 the three units employed 2,421, with 976 of them at Nos. 4 and 5. Haydock Foundry built six tank locomotives for the company's collieries, and the one completed in 1886 was named Parr.

On 12 September 1892 the manager, Thomas Sharrock, the fireman, Peter Cooke, and the collier Thomas Ball were suffocated by firedamp early in the shift. In 1933 the lists showed Nos. 1, 4 and 5 at work with 745 people. The colliery closed in 1935, and the plans of its Havannah and Southport workings were closed in January 1936.

Geology

Lancashire Coal Measures: the Higher and Lower Florida, Higher and Main Delf, Ravenhead, Little Delf, Nine Feet (Wigan Nine Feet), Rushy Park, Earthy and Yard seams.

Workings

Two pit groups: Havannah (Nos. 1 and 2, with No. 3 by 1910) and Southport (Nos. 4 and 5).

Closure

Closed in 1935; the abandonment plans of the Havannah and Southport workings are dated January 1936.

What remains

Unknown.

Redevelopment

Unknown.

Related mines

• Haydock Colliery — Both worked by Richard Evans & Co.

What's uncertain

Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.

• Opened in 1869. (disputed) ²
• The Nos. 1 and 2 shafts were sunk in 1871 and wound coal until 1926. (disputed) ³

Recorded claims

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

• Nos. 1 and 2 were known as the Havannah Colliery and Nos. 4 and 5 as the Southport Colliery, both Richard Evans & Co.'s. ¹
• Opened in 1869. (disputed) ²
• The Nos. 1 and 2 shafts were sunk in 1871 and wound coal until 1926. (disputed) ³
• Employed 2,421 in 1923, 976 of them at Nos. 4 and 5. ²
• On 12 September 1892 the manager, a fireman and a collier were suffocated by firedamp. ²
• A Haydock Foundry tank locomotive built in 1886 for the company's collieries was named Parr. ³
• Closed in 1935; the Havannah and Southport plans are dated January 1936. ^2,4

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Parr Colliery (accidents and incidents) — Northern Mine Research Society
2. (primary) Parr Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
3. (secondary) Haydock Collieries — Wikipedia — Wikipedia
4. (primary) Mine plan: Parr Havannah Nos. 1, 2, 3, Southport Nos. 4, 5, Lower Florida — British Geological Survey

Record created: 1 October 2026 · Last researched: 2 October 2026