MineArchiveWest Shieldrow Colliery
| Also known as | West Shield Row Colliery, Fan Pit, Margaret Pit |
|---|---|
| Location | Stanley, County Durham — 54.8781, -1.7015 (approximate) |
| Commodity | Coal |
| Type | Coal |
| Worked | By 1878–10 December 1934 |
| Maximum depth | Unknown. |
| Operators | R. Dickinson & Co. (1880–1889), South Derwent Coal Co. Ltd (1890–1934) |
Overview
A Stanley colliery of the 1870s to 1934, owned by R. Dickinson and Co. and then the South Derwent Coal Company, which raised coking and gas coal from up to eleven seams and employed 441 in 1905.
History
West Shieldrow Colliery lay at Stanley in north-west Durham, about seven and a half miles south-south-west of Newcastle, with its Fan Pit just north of the main site and the Margaret, Dyke, Fox, Lamp and Engine pits on its plans. It was at work by 1878, when T. Lamb was manager, and R. Dickinson and Co. owned it in the 1880s; its Shield Row seam was abandoned in 1890. William Rutherford managed it from 1882 until about 1910, with William Simpson as under-manager and then, from 1915, manager.
By the 1890s it belonged to the owners of South Derwent Colliery, and in the 1900s to the South Derwent Coal Company. It raised coking and gas coal, employing 333 in 1894 and 441 in 1905, 360 of them underground, and worked a long list of seams: the Beaumont, Brass Thill, Brockwell, Busty, Five Quarter, Hutton, Main Coal, Tilley, Three Quarter and later the Victoria. Two sinkers were killed in separate shot-firing accidents in 1891 and 1893.
Employment fell to about 206 in 1921 and recovered to 337 in 1933 under the manager D. Loudon. The Tilley, Busty and Three Quarter seams were abandoned on 30 June 1931, and the colliery closed on 10 December 1934 when the Five Quarter, Brass Thill, Hutton, Main, Beaumont, Brockwell and Victoria were abandoned. Its workings are planned together with those of Tanfield Lea.
Geology
The Shield Row, Beaumont, Brass Thill, Brockwell, Top and Bottom Busty, Five Quarter, Hutton, Main Coal, Tilley, Three Quarter and Victoria seams of the Durham coalfield.
Workings
The Fan Pit and the Margaret, Dyke, Fox, Lamp and Engine pits, working up to eleven seams; the workings are planned together with Tanfield Lea's.
Closure
The Tilley, Busty and Three Quarter seams were abandoned on 30 June 1931 and the rest on 10 December 1934, when the colliery closed.
What remains
Unknown.
Redevelopment
Unknown.
Related mines
- Tanfield Lea Colliery — Neighbouring collieries whose workings are on one combined Shield Row West and Tanfield Lea plan.
Nearby mines
- Tanfield Lea Colliery — 0.5 miles (0.8 km) NW
- Louisa Colliery — 0.7 miles (1.2 km) S
- East Tanfield Colliery — 0.9 miles (1.5 km) N
- South Tanfield Colliery — 1.0 miles (1.6 km) SW
- Beamish Colliery — 1.2 miles (2.0 km) E
Straight-line distance, within 9 miles (15 km). Show on the map.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- Owned by R. Dickinson and Co. in the 1880s and by the South Derwent Coal Company in the 1900s. 1
- Employed 441 people in 1905, 360 of them underground. 1
- William Rutherford was manager from 1882 to 1910. 2
- The Shield Row seam was abandoned in 1890. 3
- Its Hutton workings are planned together with Tanfield Lea's. 4
- Closed on 10 December 1934, when the Five Quarter, Brass Thill, Hutton, Main, Beaumont, Brockwell and Victoria seams were abandoned. 1,3
Photographs & further reading
Owners, employment, managers, seams and recorded deaths year by year.
View sourceSources
- (primary) West Shieldrow Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
- (primary) West Shieldrow Colliery: Colliery Management (prior to 1970) — Durham Mining Museum
- (primary) Catalogue of Plans of Abandoned Mines: West Shieldrow Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
- (primary) Shield Row West and Tanfield Lea Mine Plans (Mining Remediation Authority plan D33, Hutton) — British Geological Survey / Mining Remediation Authority
Record created: 9 October 2026 · Last researched: 9 October 2026