Walbottle Colliery

Overview

A colliery of several pits at Walbottle, west of Newcastle, at work before 1828 and perhaps from 1740, whose Wellington and Blucher pits were named after Waterloo; an explosion in the Wellington Pit killed 24 in 1816, and it employed up to 683 before most of its seams were abandoned in 1915.

History

Walbottle Colliery lay near Newburn, about five miles west of Newcastle. It was at work before 1828, and its earliest pit may have been the Duke Pit, possibly sunk as early as 1740. The others were the Blucher, Coronation, George, Percy, Union and Wellington pits; the Wellington and Blucher were sunk or renamed after Waterloo in 1815. On 28 April 1816 firedamp exploded in the Wellington Pit and flame ran two hundred yards through the workings; the other men escaped through the Blucher Pit, but thirteen men and eleven boys died. The Wellington, or Newburn Winning, shaft was sunk 517 feet to the Splint seam.

In the 1850s the owners were J. Lamb, Potters and Jobling's trustees, then R. O. Lamb; later Terale and Kirton and Kirton, Rowell and Dodd, then from the 1890s the Walbottle Coal and Firebrick Company, which also raised fireclay, and finally the Lemington Colliery Company. The colliery employed 570 in 1894 and 683 in 1910, working the Brockwell, Engine, Main, Stone Coal, Three Quarter and Tilley seams, and two men died in an overwind in May 1867. Most of the workings were abandoned in 1915; a much smaller concern employed up to 155 in the 1920s, and the Percy and George workings were abandoned in 1921, 1930 and 1937. The Blucher Pit was reopened by the Throckley Coal Company in 1900 and worked until 1956.

Geology

Durham and Northumberland coal measures, worked in the Brockwell, Engine (Beaumont), Main, Stone Coal (Top Busty), Three Quarter, Tilley, Hutton, Low Main, Hodge and Splint seams, with fireclay.

Workings

Several pits: Duke, Blucher, Coronation, George, Percy, Union and Wellington; the Wellington (Newburn Winning) shaft reached the Splint at 517 feet and the Coronation the Brockwell at about 655 feet.

Closure

The main seams were abandoned in 1915; the Percy and George workings were abandoned in March 1921, January 1930 and January 1937. The Blucher Pit, separately, worked until 1956.

What remains

Unknown.

Related mines

• Blucher Colliery — Physical link: the Blucher Pit was part of Walbottle Colliery, and men escaped through it in the 1816 Wellington Pit explosion.
• Coronation Pit, Walbottle — Physical link: the Coronation Pit was one of Walbottle Colliery's pits.

Disasters & major incidents

• Walbottle Colliery explosion, 1816
  28 April 1816 · Explosion · 24 fatalities
  On 28 April 1816 firedamp exploded in the Wellington Pit of Walbottle Colliery, west of Newcastle, and flame swept two hundred yards through the workings. The rest of the men got out through the neighbouring Blucher Pit, but thirteen men and eleven boys were found dead, badly burned.

Recorded claims

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

• Walbottle Colliery was at work before 1828; its earliest pit, the Duke Pit, may date from 1740. ^1,2
• Walbottle Colliery's pits were the Duke, Blucher, Coronation, George, Percy, Union and Wellington. ^1,2
• An explosion in the Wellington Pit on 28 April 1816 killed thirteen men and eleven boys; the others escaped through the Blucher Pit. ³
• The Wellington Pit shaft reached the Splint seam at 517 feet. ⁴
• Walbottle Colliery employed 683 people in 1910. ¹
• Walbottle's Brockwell, Engine, Hodge, Low Main, Tilley and Stone Coal workings were abandoned in 1915. ^1,5
• A BGS plan covers the Walbottle pits in the Main and Engine seams. ⁶

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (primary) Durham Mining Museum - Walbottle Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Walbottle Colliery, Tyne and Wear HER 4229 (Sitelines) — Tyne and Wear HER (Sitelines)
3. (secondary) Walbottle Colliery Wellington Pit Explosion, 1816 (NMRS accidents and disasters) — Northern Mine Research Society
4. (primary) Walbottle Colliery, Wellington Pit shaft section (Durham Mining Museum) — Durham Mining Museum
5. (primary) Walbottle Colliery, abandonment catalogue (Durham Mining Museum) — Durham Mining Museum
6. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plan 21866416: Walbottle (Ann, Bankside, Berwick, Betty, Blue ... pits), Main and Engine — British Geological Survey

Record created: 23 October 2026 · Last researched: 23 October 2026