Wikipedia

Ellington Colliery

Ellington Colliery (also known as The Big E),[1] was a coal mine situated to the south of the village of Ellington in Northumberland, England. The colliery was the last deep coal mine in the north east of England (also known as the Great Northern Coalfield). At one time, the deepest part of the mine was 800 metres (2,600 ft) and it extended 15 miles (24 km) under the North Sea.[2] During the 1980s, the pit (along with Lynemouth Colliery) was known as the biggest undersea mine in the world and produced 69% of the mined coal in Northumberland.

Ellington Colliery
The Big E
Headstocks and industrial buildings with a field in the foreground
Ellington Colliery
Location
Ellington Colliery The Big E is located in Northumberland
Ellington Colliery The Big E
Ellington Colliery
The Big E
LocationEllington
CountyNorthumberland
CountryEngland
Coordinates55°13′01″N 1°33′18″W / 55.217°N 1.555°W / 55.217; -1.555
Production
ProductsCoal
Production2,326,000 tonnes (2,564,000 tons)
Financial year1989/1990
Greatest depth2,600 feet (800 m)
History
Opened1909 (1909)
Closed2005 (2005)
Owner
CompanySee section

Ellington had several faces for mining and was known for winning coal from under the North Sea, before flooding caused the early closure of the mine.

History

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The pit was first sunk into the Great Northern Coalfield in 1909,[3] but wasn't completed until 1913. Coal was mined from the Ashington, High Main, Main, Yard, Low Main and Brass Thill seams.[4] By 1974, over 66% of the mine's output was going to the adjacent aluminium smelter, with the remainder being sold to the CEGB.[5] Ellington and Lynemouth Collieries were linked underground, and were known as Ellington Combine. When Lynemouth Colliery was deliberately flooded to try and extinguish a fire, a new drift entrance was built called Bewick Drift, with all coal from Ellington being brought to the surface there and then latterly moved on a conveyor to the aluminium smelter.[6] Bewick Drift opened in 1968, and the railway connection to Ellington from the west became redundant. It closed in the late 1970s.[7]

During the 1970s, coal waste from Ellington and Lynemouth Colleries was tipped into the sea. The action of the waves upon the coal waste separated out the coal which would float. This waste, coupled with coal from the seams under the sea being washed up on local beaches, created a local harvesting industry known as Seacoaling.[8]

In 1983, the pit set a record by outputting 1,000,000 tonnes (1,100,000 tons) in just 29 weeks.[9] At the same time, it was estimated that Ellington employed 50 pit ponies, one of the last large industrial producers to do so.[10] Throughout the 1980s, Ellington remained the most profitable colliery in the Northumberland coalfield, and during 1985/86, it was only colliery in that area to turn a profit.[11] It was also the worlds' largest undersea project, and regularly accounted for over 69% of all deep-mined coal in the county of Northumberland.[12][13]

In February 1984, a few weeks before the start of the 1984–1985 miners' strike, the National Coal Board chairman, Ian MacGregor visited the colliery but was "besieged" by 400 miners protesting about the planned closure of Bates Colliery at Blyth. This led to MacGregors planned underground tour being cancelled and as he was being given a secure police escort off the site, the protesters surged forward and a low fence collapsed with MacGregor being "jostled" to the ground. The NUM later said it would not apologise for the incident.[14][15]

British Coal closed the mine on 18 February 1994, with the loss of 1,100 jobs.[16][17] The last pit ponies used in a commercial venture in England were also retired at the same time.[18] The mine was acquired by RJB Mining for £800 million, and they reopened it for production in March 1995.[19][20]

In November 1999, the site was threatened with closure by RJB Mining due to "deteriorating geological conditions". The company said that the coal being produced was too low quality,[2] and slated closure of the site for February 2000.[21]

The mine was used as a backdrop for the fictional colliery in the film Billy Elliot in 2000. Ellington was used, because it was one of a very small number of operational mines remaining in the north east of England.[22]

The mine was once again threatened with closure in 2002 after running up losses of £26 million in 2001. But an injection of £1 million in cash was used to search for new seams, which at the time, was said to have guaranteed the life of the mine until 2007.[23]

Final closure of the mine came on 26 January 2005.[24] An inundation of water underground made operations unsafe, although the pumps were kept working in an effort to see what could be salvaged from underground, however, over £8 million worth of equipment was left in the floodwaters.[25] The 300+ miners who worked at the mine were later given £6,000 each after an employment tribunal ruled that UK Coal hadn't given the statutory 90-day consultation notice of closure. UK Coal stated that the immediate closure due to flooding prevented them giving prior notification.[26]

By February 2006, two of the shafts had been capped and the 90-foot (27 m) winding tower had been demolished.[27] Since closure, the site has been redeveloped for housing.[28]

A report released in 2020, estimated that over 30 million tonnes (33,000,000 tons) of colliery waste had been tipped at the coast near to Lynemouth from Ellington Combine and other local pits. Aside from the environmental damage, the tipped spoil acted as a replenishment for the nearby beaches, and with Ellington closing in 2005, this tipping had ceased. The beaches are now suffering from faster erosion rates than were previously recorded, as there is now no beach replenishment.[29][30]

Production

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Between 1974 and its closure in 2005, an average of 66% of the mine's output went to the nearby Lynemouth Power Station.

 
Ellington Colliery Paddy Train at the NRM Shildon
Production statistics of Ellington Colliery
Year Production Notes
1947 412,000 tonnes (454,000 tons) [31]
1981/1982 1,783,000 tonnes (1,965,000 tons) [32]
1985/1986 2,118,000 tonnes (2,335,000 tons) [32]
1988/1989 2,326,000 tonnes (2,564,000 tons) [32]
1989/1990 2,110,000 tonnes (2,330,000 tons) [32]
1990/1991 2,300,000 tonnes (2,500,000 tons) [33]
1993/1994 2,200,000 tonnes (2,400,000 tons) [34]
1994/1995 1,200,000 tonnes (1,300,000 tons) Projected amount in 1993 due to electricity generation cutbacks[34]
2001 600,000 tonnes (660,000 tons) [31]
2002 700,000 tonnes (770,000 tons) [31]
2003 600,000 tonnes (660,000 tons) [31]

Ownership

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Between 1947 and 1992, the mine was in public ownership with the switch in 1986 being a name change. Likewise, the period of 1992 to 2005, the mine was in private ownership with the switch in 2001 being a name change after Richard Budge retired.[31] Whilst the mine was acquired by RJB Mining in 1994, it didn't resume production until 1995.[35]

Notable colliers

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References

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  1. ^ "BBC - Tyne - Features - The end of an era". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  2. ^ a b Barrie, Chris (1 November 1999). "Last deep pit in NE faces closure - again". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  3. ^ Pigott 2016, p. 15.
  4. ^ EMTF 2012, p. 1.
  5. ^ Ellison 1993, p. 304–305.
  6. ^ "Mine site pulled down". Chronicle Live. 8 May 2005. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  7. ^ "Ellington Colliery – Subterranea Britannica". www.subbrit.org.uk. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  8. ^ Dilnot, Clive (1 May 2012). "Chris Killip: The Last Photographer of the Working Class". Afterimage. 39 (6): 17. doi:10.1525/aft.2012.39.6.15.
  9. ^ Morton, David (25 May 2016). "10 images of Ellington Colliery in Northumberland". Chronicle Live. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  10. ^ Pigott 2016, p. 40.
  11. ^ Hutchinson 1992, p. 180.
  12. ^ Samuelson, Maurice (19 July 1985). "Miners At Undersea Pit Set Production Records / Ellington colliery, Northumberland". infoweb.newsbank.com. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  13. ^ Dafter, Ray (25 January 1983). "Going to sea for coal". infoweb.newsbank.com. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  14. ^ Douglas-Home, Charles, ed. (23 February 1984). "MacGregor knocked over at pit protest". The Times. No. 61, 765. p. 1. ISSN 0140-0460.
  15. ^ Gosling, Kenneth (24 February 1984). "Cabinet horror at pit incident". The Times. No. 61, 766. p. 1. ISSN 0140-0460.
  16. ^ "Last pit closes - North East, Ellington Colliery, near Ashington". infoweb.newsbank.com. 19 February 1994. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  17. ^ Stothard, Peter, ed. (4 February 1994). "Four pits and 3,000 jobs to go". The Times. No. 64, 870. p. 23. ISSN 0140-0460.
  18. ^ Clement, Barrie (25 February 1994). "Last pit ponies emerge from the darkness: Closure of North-east's only". The Independent. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  19. ^ Herbert, Ian (18 April 2000). "Ellington colliery welcomes Byers' £100m subsidy". The Independent. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  20. ^ Tieman, Ross (30 March 1995). "RJB set to cash in as coal prices soar". The Times. No. 65, 228. p. 23. ISSN 0140-0460.
  21. ^ "Coal Industry - Hansard". hansard.parliament.uk. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  22. ^ "Tinseltoon: Billy Elliot". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  23. ^ "Last deep mine is saved". BBC News. 1 May 2002. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  24. ^ "Figurine tribute to coal heritage". BBC News. 5 September 2005. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  25. ^ "Inquiry call into £100m coal cash". BBC News. 31 January 2005. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  26. ^ Vorster, Gareth (13 March 2008). "Miners bag £2m in compensation over illegal closure of Ellington Colliery". Personnel Today. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  27. ^ "Symbol of mining is pulled down". BBC News. 17 February 2006. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  28. ^ O'Connell, Ben (6 December 2018). "Nearly 100 more homes coming to old Ellington Colliery site". Chronicle Live. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  29. ^ "Lynemouth Coastal Landfill Feasibility Study" (PDF). northumberland.gov.uk. Royal Haskoning. February 2020. p. 2. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
  30. ^ Cooper, Nick; Benson, Niall; McNeill, Aaron; Siddle, Robin (May 2017). "Changing coastlines in NE England: a legacy of colliery spoil tipping and the effects of its cessation". Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society. 61 (3): 217–229. doi:10.1144/pygs2016-369.
  31. ^ a b c d e "Durham Mining Museum - Ellington Colliery". www.dmm.org.uk. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  32. ^ a b c d Ellison 1993, p. 225.
  33. ^ Hutchinson 1992, p. 182.
  34. ^ a b Tighe, Chris; Smith, Michael (11 December 1993). "Pit cuts stoke closure fears". Financial Times. No. 32, 241. p. 6. ISSN 0307-1766.
  35. ^ "Ellington". www.minersadvice.co.uk. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  36. ^ Anon (2019). "Lavery, Ian". Who's Who. A & C Black. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U251554. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  37. ^ "Mines warning". Chronicle Live. 14 October 2005. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  38. ^ Langdon, Julia (7 August 2011). "Jack Thompson obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 August 2020.

Sources

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  • Ellison, James M (1993). The political economy of opencast mining in Scotland and the north east of England (Report). Durham: University of Durham. OCLC 60110665.
  • Hutchinson, Margaret Anne (1992). Pit Closures in Northumberland: A Study of Bates Colliery (Report). Milton Keynes: The Open University. OCLC 1108946055.
  • Pigott, Nick (2016). The Rise and Fall of King Coal. Horncastle: Mortons Media. ISBN 978-1-909128668.
  • Ellington Minewater Treatment Facility (PDF). data.gov.uk (Report). Atkins. March 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
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