Coal Mining
Coal miner in a World War 11 Railway in Wartime re-enactment at Goathland Station on the North York Moors Railway in North Yorkshire, England, UK.
Please note it was a rainy day, and falling raindrops can be seen when the photo is enlarged.
Holme Coke Ovens by the Lancaster Canal at Holme in South Cumbria.
Built in the early 1800s, the remains of five ovens stand beside the Lancaster Canal. at Holme. Coal was partly burned to produce coke which was then used for iron-smelting and burning in limekilns.
The winding gear and engine house at Haig Pit, Kells, Whitehaven, Cumbria.
Haig Pit, which opened in the early 20th century, ceased mining in 1986 with the loss of 3,500 jobs. It was the last deep coal mine in Cumbria. Explosions in 1922, 1927, 1931 and 1928 claimed a total of 83 lives.
An attempt to run a mining museum at the colliery failed, and the museum was sadly closed when this photograph was taken.
The winding gear and engine house at Haig Pit, Kells, Whitehaven, Cumbria.
Haig Pit, which opened in the early 20th century, ceased mining in 1986 with the loss of 3,500 jobs. It was the last deep coal mine in Cumbria. Explosions in 1922, 1927, 1931 and 1928 claimed a total of 83 lives.
An attempt to run a mining museum at the colliery failed, and the museum was sadly closed when this photograph was taken.
The site of King Pit, Kells, Whitehaven, Cumbria.
This shaft was sunk in 1790 and by 1793 had reached a depth of 160 fathoms, making it the deepest pit in the world at the time. Haig Pit can be seen in the distance.
Astley Green Colliery Museum, Astley Green, Tyldesley, Greater Manchester.
The steel lattice headgear for Number 1 Shaft is the only colliery headgear remaining in Lancashire. The structure, built in 1912 by Head Wrightson
& Co. is over 30 metres high.
Astley Green Colliery Museum, Tyldesley, Manchester.
The steel lattice headgear for Number 1 Shaft is the only colliery headgear remaining in Lancashire. The structure, built in 1912 by Head Wrightson
& Co. is over 30 metres high.
The twin tandem compound engine in the Engine House at Astley Green Colliery Museum, Tyldesley, Greater Manchester.
This, the largest steam winding engine ever used in the Lancashire Coalfield delivers 3,300 hp. It was built by Messers' Yates & Thom in 1912.
Huge fly wheel driven by a twin tandem compound engine in the Engine House at Astley Green Colliery Museum, Tyldesley, Greater Manchester.
Rusty Lancashire coal-fired steam boilers manufactured by John Hodgkinson Ltd of Salford, Lancashire.
The boilers lay waiting restoration at Astley Green Colliery Museum, Tyldesley, Manchester.
These boilers would have generated the steam needed to operate the steam engine which drove the pit head winding gear. Twin flu Lancashire boilers were also widely used in the cotton mills.
A small scale, 18th-19th century rural colliery near Wennington in Lancashire.
Shaft mounds at the small scale, 18th-19th century rural colliery near Wennington in Lancashire.
Wellington Pit, Whitehaven, Cumbria.
The Candlestick ventilation shaft can be seen in the distance.
The site of Wellington Pit at Whitehaven on the coast of West Cumbria.
Wellington was a very fiery pit and the scene of many accidents including a major disaster which claimed 132 lives of both men and boys in May 1910.
The 'Candlestick' chimney overlooking Whitehaven Harbour in Cumbria.
The Candlestick was a ventillation shaft for Wellington Pit.
The Candlestick (ventilation shaft for Wellington Pit) and mosaic, Whitehaven.
The 8.5m mosaic by Scartworks was opened in 2010. The wording by Francis Fleming of Frizington reads:
'Billowing sails, coal on the rails
Smell the salt air, John Paul Jones standing there.
There’s coal on the beach, Whitehaven’s fingers reach
Underground. The world around.'
Wellington Pit Lodge overlooking the marina and the town of Whitehaven in Cumbria.
The white crennalated building is one of the few surface buildings left of Wellington Pit. The pits's twin shafts were sunk between 1840 and 1845. The building is now used be the coastguard.
Wellington Pit memorial, Whitehaven in Cumbria.
A memorial to the workers who lost their lives in Wellington Pit from 1840-1932. Wellington was a very fiery pit and the scene of many accidents including a major disaster which claimed 132 lives of both men and boys in May 1910.
'The End of An Era', Whitehaven Harbour, Whitehaven, Cumbria.
An evocative coal mining sculpture by Colin Telfer of Maryport (2005).
Colin Telfer was an ex miner and his sculptures are made from a mixture of resin and iron ore dust from the Florence Mine at Egremont.
A memorial on a wall of Williamson Pit to the men, women and children who lost their lives in the Whitehaven District Collieries.
Saltcom Pit (1729-1848) in Saltcom Bay, Whitehaven.
This was the first undersea mine in England and in 1731 at a depth of 139m, the deepest sea mine in the world.
Saltcom Pit (1729-1848) in Saltcom Bay, Whitehaven.
This was the first undersea mine in England and in 1731 at a depth of 139m, the deepest sea mine in the world.
Saltcom Pit (1729-1848) in Saltcom Bay, Whitehaven.
This was the first undersea mine in England and in 1731 at a depth of 139m, the deepest sea mine in the world.
'Jane Pit was an undersea coal mine opened in 1844 by Henry Curwen. The engine house was built in 1843 and housed a pumping engine. Both the engine house and chimney have battlements. It is the finest surviving example of an ornate castellated style of colliery found in Cumberland. This style was used when large landowners built mine buildings.' (Historic England)