Workington’s Mining History

Information Document

Patrick Robertson

24 June 2020

Fatalities 28th July 1837

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	Allison, Thomas, left a wife and a large family
	Brough, John, left a large family
	Brough, Jonathan, left three orphan children
	Cain, Hugh, unmarried
	Craney, Richard, left a wife and family
	Darling, Martin, aged boy
	Ditchburn, Thomas, unmarried
	Dobson, Philip, left three children
	Frill, Daniel, left a wife and family
	Gambles, James, left a wife and a large family
	Green, Robert, left a wife and four children, son of Thomas and father of Thomas
	Green, Thomas, son of Robert and grandson of Thomas
	Green, Thomas, left a wife and family, father of Robert and grandfather of Thomas
	Hayton, William, unmarried
	Huids, Thomas, left a wife and family
	Johnstone, Thomas, left a wife and family
	Magee, John, left a wife and two children
	McKitten, George, unmarried
	Mountjoy, Robert, aged boy
	Mulligan, John, left a wife and family
	Mulligan, Robert, young man
	Murrow, Jeremiah, unmarried
	Sharp, Joseph, unmarried
	Sides, John, left a wife and a large family
	Stubbs, William, left a large family
	Wilkinson, William, left a wife and eight children
	Young, John, left a large family

All names found Those names marked with, have a web page providing individual details of the accident, the page may also include a photograph of the deceased. Click on the symbol next to the name to see the web page.

On July 28, 1837, Workington Colliery, on the coast of Cumberland, was inundated by the sea, and the Isabella, Union, and Lady pits submerged. Up till ten months previous to the date of the accident, Mr. Matthias Dunn had the management of the colliery. After Mr. Dunn's departure, a considerable robbing or removal of the pillars under the sea was carried on; a proceeding, the danger of which was a matter of common talk about the town. Disaster was foretold by many. A number of the colliers left the work. A correspondence on the subject took place between those on the spot and Mr. Dunn, who, on account of the imminence of the danger, submitted the matter to a north of England coal-owner, and induced him to write to Mr. Curwen, the owner of Workington Colliery, drawing his attention to the risk that was being run. But no steps were taken, till eventually a crush ensued, and the sea burst in on the evening of the day above mentioned. Had the accident occurred during the day, the number of lives lost would have been greater. As it was, it is variously stated at from twenty-seven to forty human beings, and an almost equal number of horses (Dunn's Coal Trade, p. 102; Win. and Work., 2nd ed. 198; Child. Employ. Com., Append. i., pp., 300, 307, 878; 1849 Report, pp. 494, 609).

• Great Pit Disasters, 1700 to present day by Helen and Baron Duckham, Published by David & Charles, 1973
• Northumberland & Cumberland Mining Disasters by Maureen Anderson, Published by Wharncliffe Books, 2009, ISBN 1-845630-81-5

• Great Pit Disasters, 1700 to present day by Helen and Baron Duckham, Published by David & Charles, 1973
• Northumberland & Cumberland Mining Disasters by Maureen Anderson, Published by Wharncliffe Books, 2009, ISBN 1-845630-81-5

Sadly they were plenty of other deaths, again in the normal working day and If you click onto the pits near Workington you will be able to access the given number of fatalities with the name for each pit, The exact number may never be known because there was no accurate recording of deaths in coal mining until early in the 19th century.

The only permanent structure in Workington that records the importance of mining to the town is the Cenotaph situated in Vulcan’s park. The Cenotaph was unveiled in June 1928; the east face depicts a miner and the west face, steel rails both industries that were vital to the prosperity and growth of the town. I note that the memorial to the Curwen’s placed in Curwen place, mentions the mines but not the miners.

Jane Pit being the best surviving example of the ornate castellated style of colliery architecture that was a feature of the early Cumbrian coal industry. It surely stands testament to the building skills of the 19th century stonemasons, however it does not tell the story of working underground in these Victorian hell holes Prior to 1842 whole families were forced to work together to earn enough money for the family to live on, toiling underground in conditions that were truly horrific On 4 August 1842, a law was passed that stopped women and children under ten years from working underground in mines in Britain.