Ystalyfera Colliery

Overview

An anthracite colliery at the foot of the Allt-y-grug tunnel in Ystalyfera, first worked by the Ystalyfera Iron Company and reopened as a slant in 1914. It grew under Welsh Anthracite Collieries to nearly 300 men in the 1940s, but in 1957 the National Coal Board declared there was 'no rational excuse' for keeping it open and closed it for severe geological conditions.

History

The Ystalyfera Iron Company was working a mine called Ystalyfera by 1869, and in 1881 counted Ystalyfera among its four collieries with Gilwen, Gwaun Clawdd and the Feeder Drift; its Red Vein was abandoned in April 1912. Deaths recorded at the Iron Company's workings here include men killed by falls, shaft accidents and runaway trams from the 1850s to the 1880s. Local history places the colliery at the bottom of the tunnel through Allt-y-grug mountain, north-east of the Ystalyfera tinplate works, where old maps show two coal levels. A new slant was opened in 1914 by the Ystalyfera Collieries Company, which abandoned the Red Vein in October 1928; Welsh Anthracite Collieries developed it further from 1935. In 1945 D. Evans managed 219 men underground and 69 at the surface in the Peacock seam, and at nationalisation in 1947 it had 271 men in the Peacock and Middle Vein, with its own washery. Output peaked at 75,000 tons with 361 men in 1949 but fell to under 28,000 tons by 1956. In July 1957 the chairman of the NCB's South Western Division said there was 'no rational excuse for maintaining this pit in production' because the remaining coal could be worked more cheaply from neighbouring collieries, and it was closed that year for severe geological conditions, its men moved to fill shortages elsewhere.

Geology

Worked the Red Vein (abandoned 1912 and 1928), Four Feet, Nine Feet (Big), Peacock (Brass) and Middle Vein anthracite seams.

Geological setting: Sedimentary Beds and Seams (historical documentary reference)

Workings

A slant opened in 1914 (NMRS grid 763083), near two old coal levels at the foot of the tunnel through Allt-y-grug mountain; the colliery had its own washery.

Closure

Closed by the NCB in 1957 because of severe geological conditions, the remaining coal being cheaper to work from neighbouring collieries; the men were transferred to fill shortages at other local pits.

What remains

Unknown.

Unknown.

Redevelopment

Unknown.

Related mines

• Gilwen Colliery — Both worked by the Ystalyfera Iron Company, which counted them among its four collieries in 1881.

Nearby mines

• Pwllbach Colliery — 0.3 km NE
• Cambria Mercantile Colliery — 1.1 km S
• Tirbach Colliery — 1.5 km NE
• Gilwen Colliery — 1.8 km N
• Gleision Colliery — 1.9 km S

Straight-line distance, within 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.

• An Ystalyfera was being worked in 1869 by the Ystalyfera Iron Company, which abandoned the Red Vein in April 1912; a slant was opened in 1914 by the Ystalyfera Collieries Company Limited, which abandoned the Red Vein in October 1928. ¹
• The Ystalyfera Iron Company worked four collieries in 1881: Gwaun Clawdd Level, Gilwen Drift, the Feeder Drift and the Red Vein in the Cyfyng Colliery. ²
• Ystalyfera colliery is shown at the bottom end of the tunnel through Allt-y-grug mountain, north-east of the Ystalyfera Tinplate Works, where old maps show two coal levels at about SN 764 085. ²
• Manpower 18 (1909), 117 (1927), 221 (1937), 288 (1945), 271 (1947), 361 (1949, 75,000 tons), 245 (1954, 28,732 tons). ¹
• In July 1957 the chairman of the NCB South Western area said there was no rational excuse for keeping the pit in production; it was closed that year for severe geological conditions. ¹
• Mining Remediation Authority abandonment plans titled 'Ystalyfera' are dated 1912 (Red seam), 1928 (Four Feet), 1943 (Nine Feet), 1951 (Peacock) and 1957 (Middle), the first and last matching NMRS's dates. ^3,4

Photographs & further reading

Sources

1. (secondary) Ystalyfera Colliery — Northern Mine Research Society (Ray Lawrence)
2. (secondary) Coal mining in Gwauncaegurwen and Cwmgors and local area (Glyn-Moch Colliery; Ystrad, Glanaman) — Gareth Hicks, GENUKI
3. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plans: YSTALYFERA (Middle, 1957) — British Geological Survey / Mining Remediation Authority
4. (primary) BGS / Mining Remediation Authority mine plans: YSTALYFERA (Red, 1912) — British Geological Survey / Mining Remediation Authority

Record created: 16 September 2026 · Last researched: 16 September 2026