Winch Fawr Colliery

Location	Heolgerrig, Merthyr Tydfil — 51.7455, -3.4144 (approximate)
Commodity	Coal
Type	Coal
Worked	Mid 19th century–March 1924
Maximum depth	Unknown.
Operators	Crawshay Brothers (Cyfarthfa) Ltd (?–1924)

Overview

A small colliery of a shaft and a level at Heolgerrig, on the hillside west of Merthyr Tydfil, opened by Crawshay Brothers (Cyfarthfa) in the mid-nineteenth century and abandoned in March 1924; its old shaft was exposed by a landslip in 2007.

Grassy hillside with a lane, conifers and power poles, looking across the valley to Merthyr Tydfil and distant hills. — The Winch Fawr hillside above Heolgerrig in 2023, ground once worked intensively for coal. Paul Collins, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Geograph

History

Winch Fawr Colliery, at Heolgerrig on the hillside west of Merthyr Tydfil, was opened in the mid-nineteenth century by Crawshay Brothers (Cyfarthfa), the ironmasters of Cyfarthfa. It consisted of a shaft and a level, and it appears on the Cyfarthfa company's plans alongside its other workings on the hill. From 1908 to 1919 it came under Matthew Truran, the general manager of all the Crawshay mines.

It was always a small concern. It employed 21 men in 1907, 57 (43 underground and 14 on the surface) in 1908, 44 in 1911, only 11 in 1913, 20 in 1918 and 24 in 1919. The colliery was abandoned in March 1924. A licensed mine of the same name, owned by D. W. Williams of Merthyr, was listed in 1957, without any figures for men or seams. In 2007 a landslip exposed the old Winch Fawr shaft.

Geology

The Bute seam is among those shown at Winch Fawr on the Cyfarthfa plans.

Workings

A shaft and a level.

Closure

Abandoned in March 1924. A licensed mine of the same name was listed in 1957 under D. W. Williams of Merthyr.

What remains

The old shaft was exposed by a landslip in 2007; the hillside around is open ground and housing, marked by old coal workings.

The shaft exposed by the 2007 landslip.

Redevelopment

Unknown.

Nearby mines

Cwmdu Colliery, Merthyr Tydfil — 0.6 miles (0.9 km) SE
Cyfarthfa Ironworks — 1.0 miles (1.6 km) NE
Robbins Colliery — 1.2 miles (1.9 km) E
Dyllas Colliery — 1.3 miles (2.1 km) W, Rhondda Cynon Taf
Rhydycar Colliery — 1.4 miles (2.2 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.

Opened in the mid-nineteenth century by Crawshay Brothers (Cyfarthfa). ¹
It employed 57 men in 1908 and 24 in 1919. ¹
The colliery, a shaft and a level, was abandoned in March 1924. ¹
Winch Fawr appears on the Cyfarthfa company's plans with Coedcae, Cwmdu and the Colliers Row workings. ²
A landslip exposed the old shaft in 2007. ¹

Photographs & further reading

Welsh Coal Mines: Winch Fawr Colliery (reference)

Ownership, manpower figures, abandonment and the 2007 landslip, with photographs from Merthyr Tydfil Historical Society.

View source

Sources

(secondary) Welsh Coal Mines: Winch Fawr Colliery, Merthyr — Welsh Coal Mines
(primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plan: CYFARTHFA / WINCH FAWR / DD BEYNONS FLUE / CORNELY WAEN / COEDCAE / CWMDU — British Geological Survey

Record created: 10 October 2026 · Last researched: 10 October 2026