Woodhorn Colliery Museum, Northumberland
A Celebration of the Coal Mining History of North-East England
Jan 7, 2009
History, however, moves on, and the last deep coal mine in the region, Ellington Colliery, closed down in 2005. Three miles south of Ellington is Ashington, once described as the largest mining village in the world. Near the eastern edge of Ashington, the proud local traditions of coal mining are commemorated on the site of the former Woodhorn Colliery.
The colliery itself opened in 1894 and operated continuously until 1981. The site is dominated by two huge pit-head assemblies and the original, stark, brick-built workshops and engine houses.. And tucked behind these is a very impressive visitor centre, The Cutter.
Workshop and Stable
The nearest building to the car park, is the Colliery Workshop. Built between 1894 and 1903, this housed around forty men: joiners, blacksmiths and fitters, employed to repair and maintain the mine’s machinery. This is now one of the many galleries in which major art exhibitions are held. Adjacent to the workshop is the stable building. What surprises many visitors is the fact that pit ponies were still employed here as recently as 1981, when the mine closed.
Engine and Winding Houses
At the eastern end of the site are the engine and winding houses, where one can see some of the original machinery, and the cages that carried around twenty miners at a time down the 271-metre shaft to the coal face. One is also reminded of the constant dangers of the industry. In 1916, thirteen miners were killed at Woodhorn by an explosion. A memorial to the dead was erected in Ashington in 1923, and moved, in 1991, to Woodhorn, where it now stands.
The worst mining disaster in the North-east, at Hartley Pit in 1862, in which 204 men and boys, some as young as 10 years old, were killed, is also commemorated here. This disaster led to the 1865 Mines Act, which compelled all mines to have at least two shafts, to facilitate rescue attempts if needed.
The Cutter
The Cutter is a new building of impressive architecture, its roof representing the teeth of a coal-cutting machine. A wall display, entitled "Coal Town", follows a history time-line from 1918 to the Miners’ Strike of 1985, and depicts the lives of miners and their families. There are safety lamps and wagons, and photographs of underground workings accompanied by recordings of typical noises and conversations between miners. There is a reconstruction of a coal face, while children can crawl through a 3-feet-high seam to capture a little of the atmosphere of working in a coal mine.
Sections of miners’ houses show how their families lived. Recreation is represented by models of pigeon crees and photographs of leek-growing allotments and miners’ gala days. Football was also an important pastime.
A series of banners leads one up a ramp to the first floor, which houses galleries displaying paintings and photographs by local artists and the work of the Women’s Institute. One gallery is dedicated to the art, created over the decades, by the Pitmen Painters. This exhibition provides a highly colourful and evocative record of the lives and hard times of the Northumbrian miners, painted by the men themselves.
In addition to the educational potential, there is much hands-on activity for children, and a ground-floor café that serves refreshments.
Woodhorn Colliery Museum is open Wednesday - Sunday each week throughout the year and on Tuesday during school holidays. Entry is free, though there is a charge for using the car park.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
