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Memorial - Felling Colliery Disaster
Heworth, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England




25 May 1812

Mining Insignia Memorial - Felling Colliery Disaster Tourist information panel

About half-past eleven o'clock on the morning, one of the most tremendous explosions on record in the history of the collieries, took place at Felling, near Gateshead, in the mine belonging to Mr. Brandling, which was always considered one of the most safe in the district. Nearly the whole of the workmen were below, the second set having gone down before the first had come up, when a double blast of hydrogen gas took place. A slight trembling, as from an earthquake, was felt for about half a mile around the workings ; and the noise of the explosion, though dull, was heard to three or four miles distance, and much resembled an unsteady fire of infantry. Immense quantities of dust and small coal accompanied these blasts, and rose high into the air, in the form of an inverted cone. The heaviest part of the ejected matter, such as corves, pieces of wood and small coal, fell near the pits; but the dust borne away by a strong west wind, fell in a continued shower from the pit to the distance of a mile and a half. In the village of Heworth, it caused a darkness like that of early twilight, and covered the roads so thickly, that the footsteps of passengers were strongly imprinted in it. The heads of both the shaft frames were blown off, their sides set on fire, and their pullies shattered to pieces ; but the pullies of the John Pit gin, being on a crane not within the influence of the blast, were fortunately preserved. The coal dust ejected from the William Pit into the drift or horizontal parts of the tube was about three inches thick, and soon burnt to a light cinder. Pieces of burning coal driven off the solid stratum of the mine were also blown up this shaft. As soon as the explosion was heard, the wives and children of the workmen ran to the working pit ; wildness and terror were pictured in every countenance. The crowds from all sides soon collected to the number of several hundreds ; some crying out for a husband, others for a parent or son, and all deeply affected with an admixture of horror, anxiety, and grief. In this calamity ninety-one men and boys perished. The few men who were saved, happened to be working in a different part of the mine, to which the fury of the explosion did not reach. After the mine had been made air tight for about six weeks, to extinguish the fire, it was again opened, and on the 8th of July the workings were entered, and the first dead body found. From various obstructions, the last of the bodies (some of whom were under six or seven feet of stone) was not found until the 19th of September. All these persons (except four, who were buried in single graves) were interred in Heworth chapel-yard, in a trench, side by side, two coffins deep, with a partition of brick and lime between every four coffins. In commemoration of this catastrophe, a neat plain obelisk is erected, nine feet high, fixed in a solid stone base. It has four brass plates let into the stone on the four sides, on which are inscribed the name and age of each of the ninety-one sufferers alphabetically arranged.


Source:
Local Historian's Table Book of Remarkable Occurrences
connected with the Counties of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne,
Northumberland and Durham
by M. A. Richardson. It was published in five volumes in 1844.


In memory of the 91 persons killed
Names of Victims Phillip Allan, aged 17
Jacob Allan, aged 14
Andrew Allan, aged 11
Jos. Anderson, aged 23
Tho. Bainbridge, aged 53
Matt. Bainbridge, aged 19
Tho. Bainbridge, aged 17
Geo. Bainbridge, aged 10
Thomas Bears, aged 48
George Bell, aged 14
Edward Bell, aged 12
John Boutland, aged 46
Will. Boutland, aged 19
Matt. Brown, aged 28
John Burnitt, aged 21
James Comby, aged 28
James Craigs, aged 13
Thomas Craggs, aged 36
Thomas Craggs, aged 9
Chris. Cully, aged 20
George Cully, aged 14
William Dixon, aged 35
William Dixon, aged 10
Names of Victims John A. Dobson, aged 13
Robert Dobson, aged 13
Dobson
Paul Fletcher, aged 22
Will. Galley, aged 22
Greg. Galley, aged 10
Mich. Gardiner, aged 45
Will. Gardiner, aged 10
Robert Gordon, aged 40
Joseph Gordon, aged 10
Thomas Gordon, aged 8
Isaac Greener, aged 65
Isaac Greener, aged 24
John Greener, aged 21
Ralph Hall, aged 18
Robert Hall, aged 15
Ra. Harrison, aged 39
Rob. Harrison, aged 14
John Harrison, aged 12
Rob. Haswell, aged 42
John Haswell, aged 22
Edw. Haswell, aged 20
Ben. Haswell, aged 18
in Felling Colliery 25 May 1812
Names of Victims Will. Hunter, aged 35
John Hunter, aged 21
Mich Hunter, aged 18
Rob. Hutchinson, aged 11
Will. Jacques, aged 23
John Jacques, aged 14
James Kay, aged 18
George Kay, aged 16
John Knox, aged 11
Geo. Lawton, aged 14
Rob. C. Leck, aged 16
Chris. Mason, aged 34
Geo. Mitcheson, aged 18
John Pearson, aged 64
John Pearson, aged 38
Geo. Pearson, aged 26
Edw. Pearson, aged 14
Rob. Pearson, aged 10
Matt. Pringle, aged 18
Jos. Pringle, aged 16
George Reay, aged 9
Edw. Richardson, aged 39
Will. Richardson, aged 19
Names of Victims Tho. Richardson, aged 17
Thomas Ridley, aged 13
George Ridley, aged 11
Thomas Robson, aged 18
George Robson, aged 15
Will. Sanderson, aged 43
Matt. Sanderson, aged 33
John Surtees, aged 12
John Thompson, aged 36
Benj. Thompson, aged 17
Jere. Turnbull, aged 43
John Turnbull, aged 27
Nick. Urwin, aged 58
John Wilkinson, aged 35
John Wilson, aged 52
John Wilson, aged 30
Jos. Wilson, aged 23
Char. Wilson, aged 20
Joseph Wood, aged 39
John Wood, aged 27
Joseph Young, aged 30
Thomas Young, aged 34




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This page is dedicated to the 10 million victims of World War I and 60 million victims of World War II.
We should always remember the immense grief and loss each war brought to the world.
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