NORWOOD. Chesterfield Derbyshire, 22nd. November, 1871.

The colliery was near Killmarsh in the north of Derbyshire and was the property of the Sheepbridge Coal and Iron Company, Limited. There were signs of weighting in a stall and the men retired to the gate until the roof settled. One of the deceased proposed that they “should sit down and get some tobacco”, until the roof settled. This they did and when all was quiet they, returned to work, the gas which had come from the floor and roof exploded at their naked lights. Hutchby shouted “squat lads”, meaning for them to fall to the floor but this was no good as the floor was covered with flames. He rushed out, falling over the others and he managed to get to the pit bottom.

Those who died were all colliers. They were:

  • Enoch Lilley, aged 34 years,
  • Samuel Lilley, aged 25 years,
  • John Sivern aged 32 years,
  • John Dury, aged 21 years,
  • Ezekial Hart aged 36 years,
  • Thomas Hutchby aged 51 years,
  • Thomas Chambers aged 22 years,
  • Nathaniel Barker aged 19 years,
  • George Barthope aged 19 years.

The inquest took place at the Angel Inn, Norwood before Mr. Bushby, the District Coroner. Aaron Hart brother to Ezekial told the court that he was working with his brother on the day of the accident and his brother told him before he died that he was working on the benk with three men when the weight came on and they went to the gate. They were under the charge of Hutchby, the fireman. Hutchby suddenly shouted to them to lie down and the explosion occurred

Mr. Thomas Evans, Mr. Evans, made an inspection of the workings following the explosion with the agent of the colliery and they found that the damage was confined to the deep workings, almost exclusively in one stall in which there was evidence of great weighting. A large part of the roof was down and the floor was cracked.

The general ventilation of the colliery was thought by the Inspector to be sufficient for ordinary circumstances. He commented:

The accident being another lesson tending to show that after a serious weighting of the roof in a stall, the men should not return to their work until the place has been examined by a trustworthy official with a safety lamp.

After the Coroner had summed up the jury returned the following verdict:

We find that the deaths of the nine men was caused by an explosion at the Norwood Colliery on the 22nd last but how the explosion originated there is no evidence to show. We strongly recommend that the owners have the mine examined by one or more competent mining engineers.

 

Information supplied by Ian Winstanley and the Coal Mining History Resource Centre.

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