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A Comprehensive History Of Mining In The Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire And Leicestershire Coalfields - Page 18

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Terry Holbrook - Do You Have Any More Details Of The Location Of Norman Colliery?
Harry Lowe - Old Pocket Watch - Thomas Greensmith Presented By The Workmen Of Annesley Colliery 1871
Stuart Wigman - R Wigman Was Killed In The Ruffled Shaft Accident
Colin Hart - HM Inspector reports, Loftus Mine Fatality, Cleveland
Richard Stevenson - Annesley/ Shafts
Rich Headey - Rusty Dudley
Alan Hart - When Did Shonky Pit Catch Fire?

From:
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Terry Holbrook
26 Jun 2015
Do You Have Any More Details Of The Location Of Norman Colliery?

Thanks in advance but do you have any more details of the location of Norman Colliery, Samuel Shaw was my GGGrandfather.


From:
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Harry Lowe
23 Jun 2015
Old Pocket Watch - Thomas Greensmith Presented By The Workmen Of Annesley Colliery 1871

Hello Fionn, I have a silver pocket watch (1864) and inscribed on the inner cover is - - THOMAS GREENSMITH Presented By The Workmen of Annesley Colliery 4th March 1871 - - Would you know anything about it and who Thomas Greensmith could have been?

Thank you in anticipation.

Harry Lowe

From:
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Stuart Wigman
19 Jun 2015
R Wigman Was Killed In The Ruffled Shaft Accident

Ruffled shaft accident any information on R Wigman who was killed photo or where buried.


From:
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Colin Hart
18 Jun 2015
HM Inspector reports, Loftus Mine Fatality, Cleveland

Hello
I am a volunteer at the Cleveland Ironstone Mining Museum and am trying to trace a report for a death in Loftus Mine, James Sydney Trowsdale (Assistant Deputy) aged 44 died at 11.00am on Monday 10th December 1945 from multiple injuries after a roof fall in Loftus ironstone mine, could you help point me in the right direction how to find an official report on the accident.

Skinningrove occupies a unique place in the history of ironstone mining. It was here on August 7th 1848, that the very first mine in Cleveland was opened, producing ironstone for shipment by sea to Bolckow and Vaughan's Witton Park ironworks in County Durham (Click Here For More Photos)

Cleveland Ironstone Mining Museum


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Richard Stevenson
3 June 2015
Annesley/ Shafts

Hello Bob,
In the early 80's I was Unit Mech Eng at Annesley (I have worked at many of the Nottinghamshire collieries). Annesley held a special appeal for me as it was the pit where I learnt my trade, and also where I can trace my family history back to when it was sunk in 1863.

At some stage it was ventilated by furnaces (cupola's), then by steam driven fans (early 1900's ) and later by electrically driven fans. The shafts were deepened late 1920's/ early thirties to the deep soft level from ?? level, but, unfortunately, the shafts were left with a slight "dogleg" in them. This resulted in the occasional scraping of the brick linings of the shafts. Over time, the method adopted to overcome this problem was:-

  1. to restrain the guide ropes in pit bottom with brass shoes so that the cages "trajectory" was such that it passed through the dogleg area 'centrally'
  2. to nibble away at the brick lining to give more clearance. This was still the case when I was doing my shaftwork training in the early 70's, When I was later to return as UME I quickly tired of this continual problem which was by now also aggravated by the ingress of water through leakey cast iron tubbing joints, and decided to strip out the brickwork to expose the offending leakey joints and progressively work my way through the dogleg area.

My job moved me on before I could complete the task. I am now long since retired.

The reason I write this to you is this, what was the purpose of the brick lining? Is it just another example of oh, we have always done it that way, add infinitum. I am increasingly convinced it would have been used to give protection to the tubbing from the sulphur fumes from the furnaces used for ventilating the mine.
However, the mine was no longer being ventilated by furnaces, so I now ask myself, "was the brickwork necessary at all"??? Should I have removed all the brickwork lining throughout the shaft and thus, incidentally increased the clearances and ventilation at the mine.

Another thing that still puzzles me, if this theory is correct, is why the downcast shaft was similarly brick lined, and no fumes passed through it. The removal of the brickwork would have added 2 feet to the diameter of each shaft. Would you, or anyone on your site, have views on this? Purely academic as the pit shut 10 years or so ago and the shafts are filled and capped.

Richard Stevenson


Richard
The pit was sunk in 1863 -1865 with both shafts at 13 feet (4m) dia and cast iron tubbing was installed through 131 yards (120m) of the water-bearing Bunter sandstone. A furnace was built at the base of the Upcast shaft at Top Hard horizon. The shafts were deepened in 1914 from 500m to 625m and 485m to 615m to Deep Soft. During the 1921 strike the furnace was extinguished.

Unfortunately due to the cooling down in the shaft the tubbing began to leak and the pit bottom was flooded to 6 feet (1.8m) deep completely wrecking the square work roadways so much so that after pumping out the water and plugging the leaks in the shaft all the roadways affected had to be re-ripped and arches set. It was then decided to put a layer of bricks in the shafts to stop any further leaking but of course narrowed same. A steam driven fan at the surface of the Upcast shaft was installed whilst the pit was stood for some weeks.

The bottom deepening was at 17 feet (5.2m) dia. In later years it was decide to widen the shaft in the 13 feet (4m) length above to create better ventilation, a slow and difficult process as the shaft down time was restricted. However near the Top Hard pit bottom gas was found to be escaping into the shaft from an unknown source. This was excavated in 1989 to reveal some old workings that were not plotted on the Working Plan. With permission from the HMI it was sealed after attempts to explore were thwarted.

As you rightly point out there appeared to be a kink in the shaft from the top part dia to the deeper one. But were the guide ropes etc pulled across to accommodate the changes re the bricking and in doing so caused the problem of scraping at speed through the shaft? Only a suggestion but could explain some of the problem.

A connection was made through to Bentinck and the coal was conveyed then by various conveyors and exited via the Bentinck 1in4 surface drift into the Washery/Coal prep plant and the bunker for rail-borne transport. Coal turning then ceased at Annesley.

Trusting this information will explain some of your queries.

Bob Bradley


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Rich Headey
29 May 2015
Rusty Dudley

What an amazing set of pages. Thanks.

Came here because of your Rusty Dudley story
and wondered if you had any other Dudley info?

You/your contacts mike like to throw some light on a chat on a folk forum


http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=157256

Thanks
Rich Headey
Macclesfield


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Alan Hart
25 May 2015
When Did Shonky Pit Catch Fire?

When did shonky pit catch fire.

Alan


There are a number of 'Shonkey Pits' around; a 'Shonkey Pit' only has one cage and counterweight, there were Shonkey pits in Leicestershire, Teversall and Bulwell, plus many more.

One fire was at the base of the shaft at Babbington (Cinderhill) in an engine house in the pit bottom on Thursday 9 Apr 1957. Heat from the boiler flue, of one of the engines, set fire to the bed of coal some 45 ft (app 14m) in extent and 6 ft (1.83m) deep. All efforts to put out the fire failed and at 2pm on that day 2 engines from the fire brigade, under the supervision of Mr Fox, descended the shaft and on Tuesday evening 14 Apr 1957 at 7pm the fire was out. No material damage was done but considerable outlay was required to render the place secure again.

Bob Bradley