1842 - Bob Bradley

Following the passing of the 1842 Act some colliery companies or owners as shown refused underground employment to all women, and notices as shown were posted.

Unfortunately this threw many out of work when they could ill afford it. Even the drudgery of underground work was better than no work at all. Of course in some parts of the country some unscrupulous owners still employed women (and boys under 10) until found out by the Mines Inspectors.

Thomas North opened up his great new mine Cinderhill (later called Babbington (Nottinghamshire) after 1875), sunk 1841-1843.

The consultant resident engineer was John Thomas Woodhouse. Two 7 feet (2.13m) diameter shafts were sunk to the 5’ 2” (1.57m) thick Top Hard seam at 218 yards (199m) with a sump of 28 yards (25m), and named ‘Windy’ for fresh air and ‘Smoky’ for foul air, on account of the first furnace in the area being installed underground for ventilation, (that lasted until 1899). A single steam-winding engine served both shafts and wooden tandem headgear was used.

The shafts also had iron tubbing and wheeled trams on rails instead of the wicker baskets used elsewhere in the locality and also had guide rods for the cages.

Each shaft contained a cage with 3 decks each holding a single tub with a payload of 9½ cwts (483 kilograms). The ground was heavily faulted and therefore put a strain on the finances of the venture. The seams dipped towards the NE at a gradient of 1in12. He introduced the ‘Little Butty’ system here with the new method of mining. These Butties were generally in charge of only one stall and three or four men whereas the ‘Big Butty’ or Stavers would be in charge of a seam or even the complete mine. The Staver was the senior of the two and would supervise the surface operations and make sure that the coal was properly prepared for sale. It is probable that it cost over £30,000 to sink and equip the pit with engines, pumps, boilers, ventilation furnace, cages, trams etc and with the cost of development and rail link probably approaching a total cost of £40,000. 200 men were employed.

Thomas North and his two partners, Thomas Wakefield and Jas Morley had 4 pits at Babbington (150 men and boys max) (not to be confused with the later Cinderhill Babbington), 4 pits at Greasley and Newthorpe Common (200) and 2 pits at Awsworth (250)

High Holborn at 130 yards (119m) and Turkey Field pits at 140 yards (128m) were working Deep Soft and Deep Hard in the vicinity. It was thought that the general output at the time was 1 ton per person per day. The Agent for the company was Stephen Barton who had general oversight of the mines. These old mines were generally run down and poorly ventilated, and no doubt there would have been times when the colliers were unable to work through either firedamp or blackdamp gases. The coal was wound up the usually dry lined brick shafts in hazel corves. There were numerous instances over the years where brickwork from these shafts would fall out. Working hours were 6am to 8pm or even 9pm. The boys were badly treated by the Butties and were paid lower wages than those employed at Lord Middleton’s pits. There was probably no chance of moving to one of the better paid pits due to either them or their father being bonded or tied living accommodation.

Barber Walker and Co purchased Fenton’s or Brinsley New pit in that year. At another of their pits Strelley Park, they employed 70 men. Michael Walker (b 1804) Engineer to Barber Walker Co made a survey and plan of the company’s pits. Stanton colliery by comparison had only 30 men.

The Brinsley No1 shaft record shows Coombe coal or Top Soft 2 feet 1 inch thick (0.63m) at 188 feet 3 inches deep (57.5m); Top Hard 4 feet 4 inches (1.31m) at 219 feet 7 inches (67m); unnamed coal 2 feet (0.61m) thick at 333 feet 9 inches (102m); 2nd Waterloo 2 feet 2 inches (0.64m) at 377 feet 8 inches (115m); unnamed coal 2 feet 3 inches (0.68m) at 475 feet 6 inches (145m); unnamed coal 2 feet 11 inches (0.88m) at 510 feet 11 inches (155m); Deep Soft 3 feet 10 inches (1.16m)at 737 feet 7 inches (225) and Deep Hard 3 feet 3 inches (0.99m) at 786 feet 4 inches (240m) deep.

The wooden tandem headgear was 125 feet 7 inches (38.3m) long and 46 feet 5 inches (14m) high and built from pitch pine. There were 8 main legs, the front pair being 16½ inches (0.42m) x 15½ inches (0.39m) and the back pair 14 inches (0.35m) square. The centre leg was 12 inches (0.30m) x 11½ inches (0.29m) and the sprag legs 12 inches (0.30m) x 9 inches (0.23m).

(A wooden sledge 3 feet 2½ inches (1.0m) long x 1 foot 6 inches (0.46m) wide with iron runners was found in the pit bottom area in 1970. This showed that the haulage system for transporting coal at one time was very primitive.)

President of Board of Trade, William Ewart Gladstone (Con) 1843-1845.

There had been considerable unrest in the South Derbyshire / Leicestershire Coalfield during 1842 and 1843 with mass meetings and strikes taking place.

Number of days worked at Whitwick was usually 6 and the men had to purchase their own tools, powder, timber and candles.

A Mechanics Institute was established at Sutton-in-Ashfield for social and educational purposes and would be established in other areas also.

Bagthorpe (Fenton and Leather) George Varley (41) a single man, hard of hearing and of low intellect along with George France was turning a waggon round in order to load it with coal in the pit bottom, at 8pm in the evening when there was a fall of approx 3 tons bind roof and the deceased was killed on the spot, 23 Aug 1843. The pit bottom was considered to be the safest place in the pit. He had been out of work for the strike period of 3 or 4 months and had only started back to work 2 days before he was killed.
Coppice, Wilfred Noon, Archibald Bestwick, John Holmes and James Draper killed in a firedamp explosion on
28 Jun 1843.
Ilkeston, William Gregory aged 16 was killed on Saturday 24th June 1843 when there was a fall of roof.
Ilkeston, John Richards died on 23rd Nov 1843 from injuries received when he was crushed by a fall of coal.
Kilborne, William Stone was killed on Saturday 9th Sep 1843 by a chain falling down the 150 Yards shaft. The chain was fastened by a hook to the drum attached to the machinery and the hook gave way causing the chain to fall.
Stanton by Dale, John Hart, sinker was killed on 15th Sep 1843 when a piece of wood used as a pipe support fell down the 100 yards deep shaft and struck him.
Watnall (North, Wakefield and Morley), John Bird (27) instead of going to the pit mouth in the usual way, jumped down the bank and slipped and fell down the shaft 6 Sep 1843.
Moorgreen (Barber Walker and Co), Thomas Slater an ass driver who on Monday morning 26 Dec 1843 at 9am the roof at the face was heard cracking. Whilst three men were listening a body of foul air (firedamp) came into contact with a lighted candle and there was an explosion. All of them were severely burnt and unfortunately Slater died from his injuries later; 20 Jan 1843.