Coppull Colliery Explosion – Coppull – 1852

COPPULL Coppull, Lancashire. 20th. May, 1852.

The colliery was the property of John Hargreaves. Both the upcast and downcast shafts were 12 feet in diameter but although there was a small furnace at the bottom of the shaft, it was seldom used and small common lamps were suspended in the shaft. A shaft was sunk around 1847 after the previous explosion, to increase the ventilation and was 210 yards deep. from the pit bottom a level, 360 yards connected the Coppull shaft for ventilation. There was a further level, 280 yards driven at right angles and called the shunt. The colliery worked the fiery Arley Mine. The stoppings were all built of coarse coal and rubbish and all the air was retained in one column. The colliers and drawers were bound to provide their own safety lamps and it appeared that rather than lose their work, they would risk working with candles, even if there was gas present.

On the morning of the disaster, Thomas Smith, fireman went down the pit at 4.40 a.m. to make his inspection. The men followed him down and were told to wait in the shunt. Pillars of coal were being removed and Smith found that there had been a large fall of the roof which had interrupted the ventilation and gas had accumulated. He went to the men and found that Thomas Gregson and another man had gone into the workings. Smith told the men not to go into the workings until the ventilation could be restored and Smith went to find John Ellis, the underlooker who approved what had happened and set off to stop the men entering the workings.

A little before 7 a.m. the men at the surface realised that the pit had fired as dust came up the shaft. The cage was lowered and by 8 a.m. 90 men had escaped, many affected by chokedamp and several were burned but about 40 men were not accounted for. By ten o’clock three bodies had been found and by the following day thirty-two bodies were recovered and several were found to be very badly burned.

Those who lost their lives were:

• William Ainscough aged 35 years of Coppull, left a wife and two children.
• James Almond aged 22 years of Chorley.
• Thomas Banks aged 40 years of Coppull, left a wife and three children.
• Robert Banks aged 16 years son of Thomas.
• Thomas Banks aged 14 years, son of Thomas.
• William Baxendale aged 29 years of Chorley, left a wife and child.
• Ellis Berry aged 28 years of Chorley, left a wife and child.
• William Blackhurst aged 25 years of Duxbury.
• Richard Booth aged 31 years of Duxbury, left a wife and two children.
• John Bradley aged 26 years of Coppull, left a wife and six children.
• John Butterworth aged 12 years of Coppull.
• Henry Culshaw aged 30 years of Coppull.
• William Darbyshire aged 35 years of Duxbury, left a wife and two children.
• John Ellis aged 24 years of Coppull the only son of the manager, John Ellis.
• William Green aged 30 years of Chorley, left a wife and three children.
• Richard Green aged 27 years, brother of William, left a wife and child.
• Thomas Gregson aged 40 years of Coppull, left a wife and four children.
• John Gregson aged 9 years son of Thomas.
• George Howarth, a lad of Chorley.
• Thomas Miller aged 20 years of Chorley.
• Peter Moorfield aged 25 years of Coppull, left a wife and two children.
• William Morris aged 31 years of Duxbury, left a widow and five children.
• Edward Robinson aged 30 years of Coppull, left a wife and child.
• John Roscow aged 24 years of Coppull.
• William Ryding aged 21 years of Coppull.
• Robert Smith aged 17 years, son of the fireman.
• Thomas Southworth aged 12 years of Chorley.
• Robert Tootal aged 13 years of Coppull.
• Stephen Turner aged 30 years of Wrightington, left a wife and two children.
• James Turner aged 41 years of Coppull, left a wife and four children.
• Thomas Watson aged 40 years, widower with four children.

Those injured:

• John Culshaw aged 25 years brother to the two others.
• Henry Dickenson aged 45 years, widower of Chorley.
• John Farrington aged 20 years of Coppull.
• Samuel Holcroft aged 25 years of Coppull
• James Hunter aged 18 years of Coppull.
• John Yates aged 27 years of Chorley, left a wife and two children.

Three of those injured must have died as the official total is given as 36 deaths.

Thomas Banks was at the bottom of the shaft when the blast occurred. He had two children in the pit and found Robert about 200 yards in the pit, alive and able to crawl to safety. His father left him to find Thomas. All three lost their lives to the afterdamp. The inquest was held at the Wheatsheaf public house when the cause of the accident was put down to Thomas Gregson, entering a place where he had been forbidden to go and the gas ignited by a candle.

REFERENCES
The Mines Inspectors Report, 1852.

Information supplied by Ian Winstanley and the Coal Mining History Resource Centre.