Location: Felling, County Durham, England

Surnames/tags: Mining Disasters England Disasters
Worldwide Disasters | Mining Disasters | England Mining Disasters |Felling Colliery 1812 Mining Disaster
Contact: TBC
History and Circumstances
- Date: 25 May 1812
- Location: Felling Colliery, Felling, County Durham, England
- Victims: 92 lives lost
- Cause: Colliery Explosion
NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE, May 25. Yesterday, one of the most terrible acciden's on record, in the history of Collieries, took place at Felling, near Gateshead, Durham, in the mine belonging to --- Brandling, Esq. the Member for this place, which was the admiration of the dis-trict for the excellence of its ventillation and arrangements. Nearly the whole of the workmen were below, the second set having down before the first came up, when a double blast of hydrogen gas took place, and set the mine on fire, forcing up such a volume of smoke as darkened the air to a considerable distance, and scattered an immense quantity of small coal from the upper shaft. In the calamity, 93 men and boys perished, the remains of 86 of whom are still in the mine, which continues unapproachable. Meetings are to be called at Newcastle and the neighbourhood, to raise subscriptions for the widows and orphans of the sufferers.[1]
A rescue operation was underway when a second explosion struck. It was agreed that the men underground could not have survived and an underground rescue was impossible. Eventually the shafts were closed off to prevent oxygen entering, to stop the fires. Some weeks later the pit was opened and it was safe to enter the pit by 8th July. Bodies were gradually recovered and brought out in coffins, but identification was difficult following the fire and several weeks putrefaction. One body was never found. The victims were buried in St. Mary's Churchyard, Heworth.
The pit was brought back into production on 20th September, 117 days after the explosion.
In the aftermath of the disaster the local rector, John Hodgson FAS MRSL (1779-1845) wrote a report about the incident and appealed for help for the widows and orphans. Hodgson's pamphlet was instrumental in the establishment of a Society for the Prevention of Accidents in Cola Mines, of which Hodgson was a member. Hodgson also worked with Humphry Davy (1778-1829) in the development of the safety lamp.
Victims (91 names found)
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Sources
- ↑ Globe - Tuesday 02 June 1812 page 3 col 4, accessed at https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/ 21 March 2022 Image © THE BRITISH LIBRARY BOARD. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Image attached.
- Durham Mining Museum
- The Industrial Revolution, coal mining, and the Felling Colliery Disaster
- Wikipedia: Felling mine disasters
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