Llantrisant Colliery

Llantrisant (03328410)

This pit was also known as Ynys-Maerdy Colliery and was sunk between 1922 and 1928 by Powell Duffryn. The No.1 Pit was sunk just below the Bute seam to a depth of 2,100 feet. The No.2 Pit was sunk just below the Two-Feet-Nine seam to a depth of 1,876 feet 8 inches. The No.3 Pit was sunk to the No.2 Rhondda seam to a depth of 613 feet 10 inches. The distance between the Nos.1 and 2 Pits was 30 yards, and the distance between the Nos.2 and 3 Pits was 20 yards.

The Two-Feet-Nine seam was worked at a thickness of 83 inches. The Upper-Four-Feet seam was worked at a thickness of 35 inches. The Lower-Four-Feet seam was worked and showed a thickness of coal, 19 inches, dirt 9 inches, coal 20 inches, dirt 11 inches, and coal 2 inches. The Six-Feet seam was eleven feet of dirty coal while the No.2 Rhondda was worked on a small scale at a thickness of around 54 inches. The first record of this pit that we can find is in 1925 when it is owned by Powell Duffryn and employed 245 men, this then dropped to 101 men working underground and 26 men at the surface by 1927 but rose again by 1935 to 30 men on the surface, and 200 men underground producing 50,000 tons of house coal from the north and south pits. The manager during this period was W. Thomas who was also manager of Llanharan.

Towards the end of 1927 work was suspended in the deeper seams due to very difficult geological conditions. Work was then concentrated on the No.3 Rhondda seam. This attitude continued into 1930 when it was stated that trading conditions did not support deep mine development and that only the No.3 Rhondda would be worked, and that for gas coals.

Following an explosion on the 2nd of June 1941 in which four men died all mining operations were stopped at this pit. The men who died were the manager and three surface workmen with the surface of the colliery receiving extensive damage. Those that died were; Ernest Evans the banksman, Noah Fletcher the winding engineman, John Gregor the manager and David Thomas the telephone switchboard attendant.

At Nationalisation in 1947 it was on a maintenance basis only, employing five men on the surface. The collieries that attempted to work the southern outcrop region in this area encountered severe geological conditions the coal seams sharply titled or became vertical along the anticline set up by the outcrop. Their thickness was unpredictable and the seams were badly broken.

Some statistics:

• 1923: Manpower: 216 sinking.
• 1924: Manpower: 245 sinking.
• 1925: Manpower: 245.
• 1926: Manpower: 140.
• 1927: Manpower: 127.
• 1928: Manpower: 143.
• 1929: Manpower: 150.
• 1930: Manpower: 126.
• 1932: Manpower: 203.
• 1933: Manpower: 258.
• 1935: Manpower: 230. Output: 50,000 tons.
• 1937: re-opening.
• 1938: Manpower: 49
• 1940: Manpower: 65.
• 1941: Manpower: 105.
• 1942: Manpower: 27.
• 1944: Manpower: 4.

Some of the surface buildings such as the engine hall, engine houses, stores, etc are listed and can be seen at ST 0326 8404.

Information supplied by Ray Lawrence and used here with his permission.