Onllwyn Colliery

Onllwyn, Dulais Valley (No.1. 842103, No.3. 859091)

This was a series of Anthracite slants opened and worked by Evans and Bevan Limited of Neath from between 1845 and Nationalisation in 1947. There were also Onllwyn’s in the Neath area listed as being owned by Francis & Strick in 1858, R. Parsons in 1860/5 and by James Evans in 1870. In this area there was a vertical section of coal amounting to a total of 72 feet, of which 46.5 feet was in seams of two feet or over. The Upper-Four-Feet seam was 48 inches thick and worked as the Bluers or Trigloin seam. The Six-Feet seam was 8 feet thick and extensively worked as the Eighteen-Feet seam. The Red Vein seam was 24 inches thick and worked as the Four-Feet Cornish seam.

• The Nine-Feet seam was 9 feet 9 inches thick and worked as the Big Vein seam.
• The Bute seam was 30 inches thick and extensively worked as the Brass Vein.

These figures are for a generally guide as the thickness of the seams varied tremendously, for example, the Upper-Four-Feet seam (White) had a thickness in the Main District of coal 13 inches, parting 0.5 inches, coal 30 inches, parting 1 inch, coal 3 inches. While about 1,350 yards WSW of the mouth of the Drift, this seam was one clean coal 42 inches thick.

The No.1 Slant was opened in 1845, the main drift was from north to south from the seams outcrop and dipped 1 in 9. The take was rectangular in shape and stretched 1,600 yards to the west until it hit the Pwllau Bach geological fault and 2,600 yards to the east where it hit a 107 yard deep fault. The main slant was driven in, and extensively worked the Nine-Feet seam, a cross measures drift to the Cornish Four-Feet seam was angled off 600 yards down, and 75 yards above the Nine-Feet seam. The No.3 Slant was driven in 1875, and by 1896 they employed 208 men underground and 30 men on the surface, the manager at that time was David Davies. In 1913 they employed 350 men with the manager at that time being W. Williams. This Company was a member of the Monmouthshire and South Wales Coal Owners Association. In 1918 the manager of the No.1 was Lewis Davies and of the No.3/Brass was D.J. Thomas. In 1923 the manager was D.J. Thomas. In 1927 the No.1 and 2 were managed by David Thomas and the No.3 by D.J. Thomas.

In 1935 Onllwyn was working the Peacock, Trigloyn, Eighteen-Feet, White, Nine-Feet, Bluers, Four-Feet, Brass and Big seams, with the No.1 Slant employing 79 men on the surface and 497 men underground, and the Brass and No.3 Slants employing 75 men on the surface and 778 men underground. The manager was D.J. Thomas. In 1943/5 the Trigloyn, No3 and Four-Feet were managed by J. Williams and the No.1 was managed by D.J. Howells.

The Trigloin Slant was then working the Grey Vein, the No.3 Slant worked the Eighteen-Feet and White seams, the Four-Feet Slant was working the Eighteen-Feet seam and the No.1 Drift was working the Nine-Feet, Brass, Eighteen-Feet and Bluers seams.

The Onllwyn slants had several Spanish workers in their employ, and this was reflected in the Lodge and Village taking a lead in soliciting support for the Republican side during the Spanish Civil War, with two members of the Lodge being killed in action during that war. It is also believed that the Onllwyn area collected more per head of population for this cause than any other part of the UK.

On Nationalisation in 1947 Onllwyn Colliery was placed in the National Coal Board’s, South Western Division’s, No.1 (Swansea) Area, later to be transferred to the newly formed No.9 (Neath) Area. In 1947 the No.1 Slant employed 109 men on the surface and 547 men underground working the Brass, Eighteen-Feet, Bluers and Big Vein seams. The No.4 Slant employed 95 men underground working the Eighteen-Feet and Cornish Four-Feet seams. The Trigloyn and No.3 Slants employed 156 men on the surface and 569 men underground working the Eighteen-Feet and White Vein seams. The manager at that time was J. Wiliams. This colliery had its own coal preparation plant (washery), brickworks and was the site of an Area Laboratory.

In 1949 the manager of the No.1 was J.S. Evans and of the No.3 was J. Williams. The anthracite section of the Coalfield always had difficult geology to contend with and Onllwyn was no different. For example in 1956 in the No.3 Drift the Grey seam thinned out from its normal 26 inches to 15 inches in thickness.

In 1955 in the No.1 Slant out of a total manpower of 637 men, 288 of them worked at the coalfaces, in 1956 there were 313 men working at the coalfaces in this colliery, in 1958 there were 289 men working at the coalfaces and in 1961 out of a total manpower of 560 men in the No.1 Slant, 158 of them worked at the coalfaces. In the No.3 Slant in 1955 out of a colliery total of 799 men, 379 of them worked at the coalfaces, in 1956 the coalface figure was 361 men, in 1958 it was 289 men working at the coalfaces in this colliery, and in 1961 out of the total colliery manpower of 459 men for the No.3 Slant, 122 of them worked at the coalface.

In 1961 this colliery was still in the No.9 Area’s, No.2 Group along with Seven Sisters and Dillwyn collieries. The total manpower for this Group was 2,183 men, while the total coal production for that year was 332,371 tons. The Group Manager was T, Walters while the Area Manager was C. Round. The No.3 Slant was closed in February 1962 and the last to work, with its workforce distributed to twenty six mines, the No.1 Slant closed in April 1964. The NUM Lodge Secretary at that time was G. Strangword. The No.1 Slant was officially closed due to uncertainty of the reserves and the men were needed at more profitable collieries. It had been threatened with closure in 1961 and since then had cut down its financial losses to £0.60 per ton produced by April 1963 but bad geological conditions prevented it from improving on that figure. On closure it was working the Cornish Four-Feet seam at a thickness of 34 inches using coalface shearers which also cut up ten to twelve inches of the floor which reduced the saleable output of coal to only 53%. Efforts to avoid the closure of the No.3 Slant centred on mechanizing the Brass Vein, but this failed due to the thinning of this seam.

On the 23rd of April 1909 both George Waring aged 35 years and Evan Ingrum aged 39 years died under the same fall of roof, just two of the many that died at this colliery. Listed below are some of the others:

• 21/08/1854, John Jones, Age: 28: Collier: Fall of stone in the level.
• 10/05/1875, John Morgan: Collier C: Killed by fall of coal.
• 22/04/1884, David Rees, Age: 42: Overman: Fall of roof.
• 8/12/1887, Frederick Tantrum, Age: 39: Tipper: run over by wagons.
• 18/01/1896, John. R. Davies, Age: 15: Collier boy: Run over by trams.
• 9/06/1896, William Davies, Rees Age: 40: Rider: run over by trams.
• 2/07/1898, J.M. Edwards, Age: 24: Labourer: He had been sent to a certain place for stone tools and on returning appeared to have missed his road and strayed into an abandoned heading where was found suffocated. He had passed a brattice sheet closed at the bottom two sets of cross-timbers (danger marks) and travelled over several yards of fallen roadway.
• 24/09/1912, Henry Taylor, Age: 23: Assistant repairer. He was sent from a shot, about to be fired, to prevent anyone approaching. After the shot was fired he was found injured under the shot. Why he returned was not ascertained. He died on 30th September, 1912.
• 1/02/1913, John Lovatt Jones, Age: 30: Haulier: His tram having got off the rails, three men were assisting him to put it on, when the horse started, crushing deceased between the train and the floor. He was severely injured about the spine and died on February 3rd, 1913.
• 4/04/1925, William Jones, Age: 23: Night hitcher: run over by trams.
• 7/12/1925, David Griffiths, Age: 35: Undermanager: run over by trams.
• 16/01/1926, John Wards, Age: 45: Ripper: blood poisoning.
• 19/08/1927, David Llewellyn, Age: 55: Collier: Fall of stone at face.
• 11/09/1928, John Marsh, Age: 46: Haulier: Empty journey standing at stop block was released before haulage rope was attached. 1 killed 3 injured.
• 27/11/1928, Thomas Thomas, Age: 46 , scepticema.

Some statistics:

• 1899: Manpower: 215.
• 1900: Manpower: 272.
• 1901: Manpower: 313.
• 1902: Manpower: 378.
• 1907: Manpower: 340. Onllwyn No.1
• 1913: Manpower: 350. Onllwyn No.3.
• 1915: Manpower: 400. Onllwyn No.1
• 1918: Manpower: 236. Brass: 41. Onllwyn No.1
• 1918: Manpower: 158. Onllwyn No.3.
• 1920: Manpower: 319. Onllwyn No.3.
• 1920: Manpower: 225. Onllwyn No.1
• 1923: Manpower: 321. Brass: 218. Onllwyn No.3.
• 1923: Manpower: 210. Onllwyn No.1.
• 1927: Manpower: 700. Onllwyn No.3.
• 1930: Manpower: 490. Onllwyn No.1
• 1930: Manpower: 501. Brass: 150. Onllwyn No.3.
• 1935: Manpower: 576. Onllwyn No.1
• 1935: Manpower: 850. Onllwyn No.3.
• 1947: Manpower: 783. Onllwyn No.1
• 1948: Manpower: 830. Output: 200,000 tons. Onllwyn No.1
• 1949: Manpower: 850. Onllwyn No.1
• 1945: Manpower: No.1: 607. Trigloyn: 227. No.3: 298. Four-Feet: 76. Surface: 107.

All Slants:

• 1903: Manpower: 423.
• 1909: Manpower: 342.
• 1912: Manpower: 412.
• 1922: Manpower: 538.
• 1923: Manpower: 817.
• 1925: Manpower: 1,012.
• 1927: Manpower: 1,149.
• 1928: Manpower: 1,141.
• 1929: Manpower: 1,110.
• 1933: Manpower: 1,177.
• 1937: Manpower: 1,618.
• 1938: Manpower: 1,694.
• 1940: Manpower: 1,790.
• 1941: Manpower: 1,790.
• 1942: Manpower: 1,300.
• 1944: Manpower: 1,333.
• 1947: Manpower: 656.
• 1950: Manpower; 1,642.
• 1953: Manpower: No.1: 515. Output: 85,700 tons. No.3: 828. Output: 186,100 tons.
• 1954: Manpower: 799. Output: 150,736 tons.
• 1948: Manpower: 658. Output: 100,000 tons.
• 1949: Manpower: 850. Output: 100,000 tons.
• 1954: Manpower: 628. Output: 108,584 tons.
• 1955: Manpower: 786. Output: 138,818 tons.
• 1955: Manpower: 637. Output: 114,475 tons.
• 1956: Manpower: 774. Output: 137,473 tons.
• 1956: Manpower: 629. Output: 104,956 tons.
• 1957: Manpower: 735. Output: 112,287 tons.
• 1958: Manpower: 735. Output: 104,261 tons.
• 1958: Manpower: 590. Output: 92,274 tons.
• 1960: Manpower: 542. Output: 82,758 tons.
• 1960: Manpower: 549. Output: 87,715 tons.
• 1961: Manpower: 459. Output: 56,692 tons.
• 1961: Manpower: 560. Output: 70,083 tons.

Onllwyn No.4:

• 1947: Manpower: 95.

Onllwyn Brass:

• 1935: Manpower: 850.

This area became the site for the Wimpey run opencast site which produced 189,217 tonnes of coal and employed 85 men in 1979.

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