The colliery was situated south of Church Road, Haydock, opposite the Ram’s Head Hotel. It was sunk about 1854 and became known locally as ‘Ram Pit’ although the official Ram pits were behind the Ram’s Head Hotel on Kenyons Lane. It is mentioned in the Inspector’s Report of 1894 as employing 250 people. The colliery closed in 1907.
1879 New Boston 1 and 2 Haydock Richard Evans and Co. The certificated manager was Samuel Cook.
01-01-1873 to 31-12-1878 there had been eight deaths at the colliery and there was one in 1879. Total 9.
1882 11 deaths
1872 to 1881. 1882 4 deaths Total 15. Cook still manager.
1894 James Cook manager cert. no 1857 225 under 46 surface.
28th. November 1862.
James Dearden aged 32 years, a collier was killed while stepping into the cage at the bottom. (Mines Inspectors Report)
27th. October 1869.
Richard Radcliffe aged 44 years, a drawer was killed when he was run over by a train of full tubs on the inclined plane due to a rope breaking. (Mines Inspectors Report)
9th. December 1869.
John Shaw aged 45 years, a collier was killed by a fall of the roof. (Mines Inspectors Report)
30th. August 1867.
Peter Owen, a collier was killed by a fall of the roof. (Mines Inspectors Report)
20th. September 1867.
Thomas Sutton aged 30 years, a labourer was killed by a fall of roof in the Main Delf mine. (Mines Inspectors Report)
4th. September 1867.
James Hindley aged 26 years, a collier was killed in an unexpected explosion of gas. (Mines Inspectors Report)
29th. July 1871.
Thomas Cooke aged 11 years, a taker-off at the top of the engine plane was killed by a fall of roof. (Mines Inspectors Report)
16th. December 1871.
James Harrison aged 45 years, a collier was killed by a fall of the roof. (Mines Inspectors Report)
22nd. January 1872.
Thomas Rusbottom aged 54 years, a furnaceman was killed when the rope slipping on the drum. (Mines Inspectors Report)
4th. February 1872.
John Turton aged 35 years, a collier was killed by a fall of roof in the Main Delf mine. (Mines Inspectors Report)
10th. September 1874.
James Owen aged 67 years a dataller was killed by a fall of roof in the High Delf mine. He died on the 29th. (Mines Inspectors Report)
6th. May 1875.
William Wright aged 32 years, a dataller was killed by a fall of coal. (Mines Inspectors Report)
10th. September 1876.
Matthew Bate aged 56 years, a dataller died when he was crushed between tubs on the incline. (Mines Inspectors Report)
12th. October 1867.
Fatal Accident At Haydock.
The inquest into the death of John Hindley, collier at Ram Pit, was held at the Hare and Hounds. A man working with him said he had finished a hole and used more powder than was necessary and he rammed it with an iron rod which caused a spark and exploded the charge causing injuries to his face, chest and ribs. He died the following Monday. The other man was sheltered from the blast. The jury brought in a verdict of ‘Accidental Death’. Thomas Bullen aged 20 years, a drawer was killed by a fall of coal. (Mines Inspectors Report) (St. Helens Newspaper and Advertiser)
6th. February 1877.
John Mousdale aged 50 years, a dataller died when he was crushed between a tram and the roof while riding up the incline contrary to the rules. The accident occurred on the 15th. December 1876. (Mines Inspectors Report)
5th. January 1878.
Daniel Cain aged 35 years, a dataller was killed while preparing a place for arching a portion of the roof fell on him. (Mines Inspectors Report)
6th. February 1878.
Henry Hesketh aged 43 years, a dataller was killed by a fall of the roof while drawing chocks. He had just been cautioned by the fireman. (Mines Inspectors Report)
25th. August 1879.
William Ingleby aged 47 years, a dataller was killed as he was clearing away a fall when a stone fell on him from the top of the heap striking him in the belly. He worked after the accident but died on the 11th. September. (Mines Inspectors Report)
21st. June 1881.
Andrew Gavey aged 24 years, a collier was killed by a fall of the roof between chocks at the face owing to the weight coming from the goaf behind. The place had been examined by the fireman twice previous to the accident. (Mines Inspectors Report)
15th. September 1881.
William Cook aged 40 years, a collier was injured by a fall of the roof. He died on the 20th. December. No inspection made by the Inspector of Mines as he was at the Park Lane explosion. (Mines Inspectors Report)
6th. January 1882.
James Pennington aged 38 years, a bricksetter was ascending the shaft when he fell from the cage. He was subject to fits and is supposed to have had one on this occasion. (Mines Inspectors Report)
16th. March 1882.
Robert Winstanley aged 67 years, a dataller did not recover from what was considered a slight injury by a fall of the roof which occurred on the 28th. October 1881. (Mines Inspectors Report)
4th. May 1882.
Michael O’Brien aged 37 years, a collier was killed as he was drawing a chock when his mate called that the roof was falling and before he could get clear he was caught. (Mines Inspectors Report)
28th. July 1882.
John Cawley aged 50 years, a dataller was killed as he was running across the pit bottom instead of taking the proper road when the cage came down on him. (Mines Inspectors Report)
25th. January 1883.
Patrick Kean aged 26 years, a dataller was killed as he was drawing a chock but neglected to set sufficient props to protect himself and while doing so he was ordered by the fireman when a piece of stone suddenly fell on him. (Mines Inspectors Report)
28th. June 1883.
Thomas Twist aged 24 years, a collier was injured on the 9th. November 1882 by a fall of thin shell from the roof. His note at the inquest stated that there ought to have been more props set but there had been some difficulty in getting them from the store. More care on the part of the officials would have prevented this accident. (Mines Inspectors Report)
12th. July 1883.
Michael Martin aged 38 years, a dataller was filling a water tank from the stables and instead of taking it round the empty road he and his mate pushed it through the empty cage without giving any signal to keep the cage still and just at that moment the cage was raised throwing the tub out and it fell on the deceased. (Mines Inspectors Report)
10th. September 1884.
Benjamin Lowe aged 57 years, a metalman was killed by a fall of roof. He was accustomed to the work and frequent examinations of the roof had been made by himself and others shortly before the fall and it was considered safe. (Mines Inspectors Report)
8th. April 1885.
William Clarkson aged 28 years, a drawer lost his life at the colliery. The weight was thrown over the main drawing road from the longwall workings and the two men were engaged in timbering the road when he passed under and a stone fell on him. The drawing ought to have been stopped until the timbering was fixed. (Mines Inspectors Report)
22nd. March 1886.
John Roberts aged 28 years, a dataller was killed. Some men were setting up some big bars twenty feet long and one foot square. It was necessary to knock out a prop and the men were sent back. This was done by one of their number. He was sitting on one end of one of the bars and as the roof fell a large stone fell on one end of the bar and he was crushed against the roof. (Mines Inspectors Report)
29th. May 1886.
John Hodkinson aged 15 years, a drawer was killed. A collier and two drawers were storing dirt in an old roadway when a heavy fall of roof occurred killing him and injuring two others. The place had been examined by the fireman an hour before and reported safe. (Mines Inspectors Report)
16th. December 1886.
John Bate aged 57 years, a dataller was killed as he was building a pack when the roof fell from over the drawing road. If the roof had been barred the accident would not have occurred. (Mines Inspectors Report)
22nd. July 1888.
John Berry aged 30 years, a collier was killed as he was charging a shot hole and the charge stuck. Contrary to the rules, he was trying to force it in with an iron drill when it exploded. (Mines Inspectors Report)
31st. July 1888.
Fatal Accident to Reckless Miner.
John Berry aged 30 years died in Haydock Hospital from injuries received in New Boston colliery. Mr. Berry and his father said there was something in the shot hole and he hammered it. h he did not remember anything else. John Birchall, his stepson and drawer, said they had been drilling a shothole. The cartridges went easily into the first but it stuck in this one. Berry had a stick in his hand and went to the place. After the explosion, he went forward and found him lying on the ground and the stick was on the ground. Peter Thomas, shotlighter, said he had left the deceased a wooden stick to ram the charges. He visited the place after the explosion and found an iron drill in the hole. James Goode, undermanager corroborated the evidence of the iron drill. The jury returned a verdict of ‘Accidental Death’ and made a recommendation that shotlighters should charge the holes or be present when they were charged. (Prescot Reporter)
7th. July 1892.
William Dollen aged 19 years, a drawer was killed at 10.30 a.m. in the 5th. hour of the shift. He was knocking out some bars that were four feet apart. The roof had previously fallen and the timbering that had been previously there had fallen in. (Mines Inspectors Report)
14th. February 1902.
Presentation At Haydock.
Mr. Cook’s Retirement. He worked at the Old and the New Boston collieries made a handsome testimonial by the workpeople after he had completed forty-four years service with the firm and retired as general manager. He had won the courtesy and esteem of the workpeople. Mr. J. Lawrenson, the checkweighman at New Boston organised the affair. The committee consisted of Thomas Heyes, Mr. Makinson, Mr. J. Valentine, J. Mousdale, William Halsall, J. Bailey, J. Smith, T. Heaton and George Thomas. The presentation took place on Saturday at the Rams Head and there was a large attendance including James Cook Messrs. Lawrenson who submitted a few particulars regarding the work of the man. The men had spontaneously decided to make some token of goodwill when they heard of his retirement. Old Boston collected £24-7-11d, New Boston £13-13-11d. Mr. Cook was presented with a handsome guilt bronze timepiece. On the base of the clock, there was an inscription ‘Form the workpeople of Old and New Boston Collieries’. Mrs. Cook was presented with a handsome tea and coffee service and Mr. Cook received a purse of sovereigns of 1902 dated. Mr Cook. acknowledged the presents and said that he was touched by their kindness. (Newton & Earlestown Guardian)
7th. October 1927.
Doctors Disagree’.
At the St. Helens Court before Judge Downall and Dr. Wilson a medical assessor, John Harvey, a daywageman at New Boston Colliery, Haydock who was employed by Evans and Company on March last when he was unloading rails from the top of a box which on the haulage road, He pulled hard at the rails and they gave way and he banged his shoulder blade against a bar that supported the roof. He worked until the 4th. April when he was off work and put on compensation. This was stopped on the 13th. May and he claimed that this should have continued until the 13th. June. Dr. Heaveys and Dr Whitton-Jones sent him to the radiographer at Wigan Infirmary and it was found that he had suffered a fracture of the shoulder blade. The doctor said that he had known people continue to work after fractures of this kind and that he was fit for work. The court found in favour of the man and he was awarded costs. (Newton & Earlestown Guardian)
16th May 1930.
Fall Of Coal.
An inquest in Haydock by Mr. Brighouse, the coroner into the death of John Taylor Cook of 40, Penny Lane, Haydock who died as the result of head injuries received at the colliery. He had worked at the colliery all his life and worked with his brother in law who said that Cook had never complained if t the conditions. Joseph Lee, conveyer belt man, and Michael Barrett were with him at the coalface as the coal was being holed under by the machine The cut was five inches high and four feet deep and Cook was about three and a half feet from the face getting some food when a piece of coal weighing about 1 ton fell from the face causing serious injury to his head the fireman had been in and out of the place all morning. There was no suspected fracture in the coal the coal was spragged at the base. Clarke, the fireman said that the cutter was working at the time of the accident and he did not see an indication of a break in the coal. He was standing in a place of safety when the coal fell and it caught a steel prop. The jury brought in a verdict of ‘Misadventure’. Mr. Peace expressed the firm’s sympathy with the relatives. (Newton & Earlestown Guardian)
Information supplied by Ian Winstanley and the Coal Mining History Resource Centre.
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