Seven Sisters Colliery

Seven Sisters Colliery 1943

Seven Sisters, Dulais Valley (82140914)

This anthracite pit was sunk between 1872 and 1875 to a depth of 653 feet 7 inches to the Nine-Feet seam by Evans and Bevan Limited of Neath. The one shaft was 14 feet in diameter and the other one was elliptical in shape measuring 12 feet by 9 feet. It was intended to name the mine Isabella after one of Evan Bevan’s seven daughters, but his son David insisted that there be no preferential treatment so they called it Seven Sisters. This colliery was flanked to the south by Brynteg Colliery, to the west by Ystradgynlais Colliery, to the north-east by Onllwyn Colliery, and to the north by Abercrave Colliery. In this area through 2,000 feet of vertical strata there was 72 feet of coal seams, of which 46.5 feet was in seams of two feet or over.

• The Upper-Four-Feet seam had a thickness of 48 inches.
• The Six-Feet seam was 8 feet in thickness and was worked as the Eighteen-Feet seam.
• The Two-Feet-Nine seam was 29 inches in thickness.
• The Red Vein seam was 46 inches in thickness and worked as the Four-Feet-Cornish seam.
• The Nine-Feet seam was 10 feet in thickness and worked as the Big Vein seam.
• The Bute seam was called the Brass Vein seam and extensively worked at a thickness of 33 inches.

In 1878/84 the manager was Thomas Jenkins, and in 1886 it was working the Big and Nine-Feet seams with Benjamin Rees the manager. In 1896 it employed 253 men underground and 43 men on the surface with the manager being John Reid. In the 1890’s the No.1 Pit was working the Nine-Feet seam and the No.2 Pit was working the Four-Feet seam. Both were worked on the pillar & stall method using safety lamps. Ventilation was by a 26 feet diameter Waddle fan.

On the 10th of November 1907 an explosion at this colliery killed five miners and injured another three. Those that died were:

• Owen Gethin aged 55 years,
• Morgan Hugh Jones aged 33 years,
• Evan Harries aged 39 years,
• Phillip Williams aged 17 years
• Edward Jones aged 45 years.

Morgan Howells carried a boy to safety for 500 yards and received the Edward Medal for his endeavours.

A record that the colliery didn’t need was attained on the 24th of January 1914, four hauliers were fined 25 shillings each for working ‘unfit’ horses and not keeping a register of horses. It is believed that this was the first prosecution of the law introduced in the Mines Act of 1911.

In 1908/1913/1916/1918/1919/1927 the manager was Daniel W.Thomas. Evans and Bevan dominated coal mining in the Dulais Valley and by 1935 controlled 6 mines employing 2,631 men and produced 500,000 tons of coal. In that year Seven Sisters employed 83 men on the surface and 720 men underground with the manager being R.D. Morris.

At the onset of the Great War Evans & Bevan offered free rent and coal to all their workmen who volunteered for the army.

Pit head baths were installed at this colliery on the 18th of September 1937.

In 1943 this colliery employed 636 men working underground in the Four-Feet, Nine-Feet, Black and Braslyd seams and 123 men working at the surface of the mine. In 1943/5 the manager was R.F. Phillips. This company was a member of the Monmouthshire and South Wales Coal Owners Association.

On the 25th of March 1945 three miners were killed and another four were seriously injured in an explosion at this mine.

On Nationalisation of Nation’s coal mines in January 1947, Seven Sisters Colliery was placed in the National Coal Board’s, South Western Division’s, No.1 (Swansea) Area, and at that time employed 126 men on the surface of the mine and 677 men working underground in the Four-Feet, Nine-Feet and Brass Vein seams. The manager was still R.F. Phillips. This colliery had its own coal preparation plant (washery) and prop repair workshop.

By 1955 Seven Sisters Colliery had been transferred to the newly formed No.9 (Neath) Area, and in that year out of the total colliery manpower of 722 men, 303 of them worked at the coalfaces. In 1956 these figures were 549/192 respectively, while in 1958 there were 217 men working at the coalfaces of this colliery.

In 1957 the NCB had grand designs for this colliery claiming that it had 25 years of reserves to the south-west. The plan was to sink a new shaft between Seven Sisters and Cefn Coed, link up with Tareni and form a super-mine. It never happened. In 1958 the pit was mechanised with ploughs being installed in the coalfaces of the Eighteen-Feet seam.

In September 1959, the 650 NUM members at this mine were out on strike for eleven days when the under-manager was re-instated after being found underground with matches and cigarettes. They return to work when they were told that he was not on the premises.

In 1961 this colliery was still in the No.9 (Neath) Area’s, No.2 Group, along with Onllwyn Nos.1 and 3 and Dillwyn Collieries. The total manpower for this Group in that year was 2,183, while the total coal production for the Group in that year was 332,371 tons. The Group Manager was T. Walters and the Area Manager was C. Round.

On the lead up to closure the NCB stated that very difficult geology was giving poor production results and losses were running at £5 per ton. They continued to add that if closure was accepted immediately they would start to open the Blaenant Colliery straight away, plus they would guarantee everyone jobs at Abercrave, Glyncastle or Cefn Coed. Seven Sister’s Colliery was closed by the National Coal Board in May 1963.

Some of those that died at this mine:

• 29/07/1875 E. Morris, Age: 30: Sinker: Killed by falling down the shaft.
• 19/10/1876, T. Lewis, Age: 19: Collier: Killed by going past danger signal into gas.
• 12/10/1877, R. Hopkin, Age: 21: Collier: Killed by fall of stone.
• 2/04/1878 Thomas Williams, Age: 13: Haulier: Killed by surface drum chain.
• 26/08/1879, William Lewis, Age: 15: Collier, John Thomas, Age: 20: Collier, Thomas Thomas Age: 29: Collier: They were descending the pit when the cage caught in a beam and precipitated them down the shaft. 3 killed.
• 30/10/1882 Herbert James, Age: 13: Collier boy: Killed by an explosion of firedamp.
• 10/11/1883, F. Williavers, Age: 56: Fireman: Fall of roof.
• 3/11/1886 David Davies Age: 38: Repairer: Fall of stone while engaged in repairing.
• 17/02/1887 John Thomas Age: 23: Collier: Fall of roof (strong clift) at face while filling a tram.
• 13/11/1889 Thomas Evans, Age: 16: Haulier: Fall of roof.
• 4/12/1889 John Jones, Age: 62: Collier: Fall of roof (cliff),
• 16/01/1890, Thomas Howells, Age: 29: Collier: Fell out of cage while ascending shaft.
• 25/05/1893, Phillip George, Age: 16: Collier boy: Crushed between the buffers of trucks while attempting to pass between them a locomotive having at that moment joined the trucks.
• 16/01/1911, Joseph Thomas Age: 32: Repairer: Scalp wound by falling stone.
• 8/06/1911, John Harris, Age: 30: Collier: Explosion of firedamp or coal dust.
• 27/11/1911, William M. Davies, Age: 19: Haulier: While riding on the gun and bringing out eight trams of coal, the front one left the rails and was overturned by the load behind.
• 30/08/1912, Henry White, Age: 41: Collier: Fall of roof at working face.
• 27/01/1925, David Evans, Age: 15: Collier boy: Fall of roof.
• 7/03/1927, John K. Thomas, Age: 29: Collier: Fall of coal.
• 27/08/1929, T. Edmunds, Age: 35: Collier: Fall of roof while working coal.

Some Statistics:

• 1899: Manpower: 291.
• 1900: Manpower: 307.
• 1901: Manpower: 361.
• 1903: Manpower: 486.
• 1905: Manpower: 453.
• 1907: Manpower: 444.
• 1908: Manpower: 549.
• 1909: Manpower: 549.
• 1910: Manpower: 558.
• 1911: Manpower: 528.
• 1912: Manpower: 637.
• 1913: Manpower: 670.
• 1916: Manpower: 450.
• 1919: Manpower: 314.
• 1920: Manpower: 463.
• 1922: Manpower: 463.
• 1923: Manpower: 617
• 1924: Manpower: 721.
• 1925: Manpower: 610.
• 1926: Manpower: 736.
• 1927: Manpower: 769.
• 1929: Manpower: 750.
• 1930: Manpower: 763.
• 1933: Manpower: 732.
• 1934: Manpower: 828. Output: 226,700 tons.
• 1935: Manpower: 945. Output: 240,600 tons.
• 1936: Manpower: 945. Output: 219,200 tons.
• 1937: Manpower: 944.
• 1938: Manpower: 1,015.
• 1940: Manpower: 984. Output: 227,500 tons.
• 1945: Manpower: 759.
• 1946: Manpower: 829. Output: 141,100 tons.
• 1947: Manpower: 803. Output: 127,400 tons.
• 1948: Manpower: 793. Output: 150,000 tons.
• 1950: Manpower: 710. Output: 116,900 tons.
• 1952: Manpower: 766. Output: 120,700 tons.
• 1953: Manpower: 770. Output: 154,000 tons.
• 1954: Manpower: 688. Output: 147,000 tons.
• 1955: Manpower: 722. Output: 130,188 tons.
• 1956: Manpower: 685. Output: 124,326 tons.
• 1957: Manpower: 667. Output: 113,632 tons.
• 1958: Manpower: 631. Output: 78,191 tons.
• 1960: Manpower: 582. Output: 73,854 tons.
• 1961: Manpower: 549. Output: 64,505 tons.

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