Trench Pit, Garforth

Overview

The last and wettest of the Gascoigne pits at Garforth, sunk in 1899 to 1900 beside the North Eastern Railway's Castleford branch to work the Middleton Main seam, which closed in 1930 as the last pit in Garforth; its last surface building stood until 2016.

History

Trench Pit was sunk in 1899 to 1900 off Ninelands Lane, on the far side of the lane from Garforth church, beside the Castleford branch of the North Eastern Railway. It was named for the husband of Isabella Gascoigne, who changed his surname from Trench to Gascoigne on marrying her. The seam worked was the Middleton Main, which lay beyond the reach of the Isabella and Sisters pits. The pit was far and away the wettest of the Garforth pits, and a large Beevor and Dorling compound condensing engine pumped about 1,000 gallons a minute through its housing. On the escarpment of Garforth Cliff, east of the pit, a ten-foot bed of basal Permian sand beneath the limestone was worked by pillar and stall and sent by narrow-gauge railway to Castleford.

The pit added to the rising output of the Garforth mines before the First World War, when production topped 440,000 tons a year, over 120,000 tons of it exported through Hull. The war changed the trade: output afterwards was much reduced, some 60 of the 400 miners who enlisted never returned and exports were prohibited after 1918. After a five-week strike in 1919 Colonel Gascoigne decided to sell, and the collieries, valued at £100,000, were bought in December 1920 by Garforth Collieries Ltd, a company controlled by Wharncliffe Silkstone of Tankersley, near Barnsley. In 1922 and 1923 the owners and management were prosecuted for contraventions of the Coal Mines Acts.

The Trench Pit closed in 1930 as a result of the 1926 general strike, financial difficulties and flooding, the last pit in Garforth to do so; 417 men lost their jobs, though another account gives 492 employed. One main shaft remained in Stocks Brothers' yard, permanently filled with water. The last colliery building in Garforth, in the Stocks Blocks yard, was demolished in November 2016.

Geology

Worked the Middleton Main seam, beyond the reach of the Isabella and Sisters pits; a ten-foot bed of basal Permian sand beneath the limestone on the Garforth Cliff escarpment was also worked.

Workings

Coal of the Middleton Main seam, very wet and pumped at about 1,000 gallons a minute by a Beevor and Dorling compound condensing engine; Permian sand worked by pillar and stall and taken to Castleford by narrow-gauge railway.

Closure

Closed in 1930 after the 1926 general strike, financial difficulties and flooding, as the last pit in Garforth; 417 men lost their jobs on one account.

What remains

The main shaft lay in Stocks Brothers' yard, permanently filled with water and not recorded as capped; the last colliery building was demolished in November 2016.

The shaft position in the Stocks Blocks yard; the last colliery building there was demolished in 2016.

Redevelopment

Redrow housing has been built on the former Stocks site.

Related mines

• Barnbow Pit — Garforth Collieries Ltd, which closed the Trench Pit in 1930, sank Barnbow Pit in 1924 and closed it in the same year.
• Isabella Pit, Garforth — The Isabella, Sisters and Trench pits were the three Gascoigne pits at Garforth, later held by Garforth Collieries Ltd.
• Sisters Pit, Garforth — The Trench, Sisters and Isabella pits were the three Gascoigne pits at Garforth, and the Trench outlived both.

Recorded claims

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

• Trench Pit was sunk in 1899 to 1900 off Ninelands Lane, Garforth, beside the Castleford branch of the North Eastern Railway. ^1,2,3,4
• Trench Pit was named for the husband of Isabella Gascoigne, who changed his surname from Trench to Gascoigne on their marriage. ^1,2,3
• The seam worked was the Middleton Main, which lay beyond the reach of the Isabella and Sisters pits. ⁴
• Trench Pit was the wettest of the Garforth pits and a large Beevor and Dorling compound condensing engine pumped about 1,000 gallons a minute. ⁴
• Output of the Garforth mines topped 440,000 tons a year before the First World War, more than 120,000 tons of it exported through Hull. ^1,4
• The Gascoigne collieries, valued at £100,000, were bought in December 1920 by Garforth Collieries Ltd, a company controlled by Wharncliffe Silkstone of Tankersley. ⁴
• Trench Pit closed in 1930, the last pit in Garforth, costing 417 men their jobs on one account and 492 employed on another. ^1,2
• Trench Pit is listed at Garforth, Leeds, in 1901, and the Buddlepit database gives working dates of 1901 to 1931. ^5,6
• The last colliery building in Garforth, in the Stocks Blocks yard, was demolished in November 2016, and Redrow housing has been built on the former Stocks site. ^1,2

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) History of Mining (The Story of Garforth) — The Story of Garforth
2. (secondary) Garforth Pits Old Photos (Ian Atkinson) — Ian Atkinson
3. (secondary) History of Garforth (Garforth Neighbourhood Plan archive) — Garforth Neighbourhood Plan working group
4. (secondary) Trench Pit, Garforth (Parlington Hall) — Parlington Hall (parlington.co.uk)
5. (secondary) Mines of coal and stratified deposits in Yorkshire from 1854: G (NMRS) — Northern Mine Research Society
6. (secondary) Garforth, Trench Pit (Buddlepit Mine Database) — Buddlepit Mine Database

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