Hillside Colliery

Pontrhydyfen, 796937.

This mine was opened in 1920 by the Oakwood Colliery Company which held it until 1922. In 1923 it was owned by the Hillside Colliery Company when it employed 13 men working the Wenallt Rider seam. It was abandoned in that year.

In 1931 Jonathan Owen re-opened it or drove another level. It employed 3 men in 1933 and by then was owned by the Hillside Colliery Company, 10 men in 1937 and 5 men in 1938. This small level was owned in 1940/5  by J. & E. Griffiths of Pontrhydyfen and employed 10 men underground and one man on the surface of the mine in that year. It was also a small mine that was worked under licence from the NCB in 1947 and 1955/7 by the same owners. In 1957 both the Hillside and the Hillside No.2 were listed and employed 19 men working the Field and Wernddu Rider seams.

They closed in 1959 when the Field Vein was abandoned, the Wernddu Rider seam having been abandoned in 1957.

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