This mine (also called the Globe) was sunk by Edmund Thomas in 1870 to the No.3 Rhondda seam as a house coal pit, and deepened in 1877 to the Red Vein seam of the steam coal seams of the Middle and Lower Coal Measures. It found this seam at a depth of 1,134 feet 4 inches. The housecoal pit was the No.2 shaft and along with the No.3 Pit was located at 983949.

In November 1873, a correspondent for the Derby Mercury newspaper described the pumping engine at this mine, which had won the medal for progress at the Vienna Exhibition.

On entering the level we observed a wrought iron pipe running overhead, which carries the steam to the engine. At 852 yards we came to the first pumping engine. Though the steam cylinder is but twelve inches, and the pump six inches, it is forcing 10,000 gallons of water per hour 117 feet high, and through 485 yards of pipe. The steam pressure is 40 pounds on the boiler, which is placed on the outside of the heading, the steam being carried 404 yards through a 2 ½ inch pipe. The second pump is working at an incline not far from the first, and supplies it with a part of its water; its dimensions are the same as the first; it is raising the water 18 feet vertically through about 120 yards of pipe, the steam being carried 498 yards. The third pumping engine is of rather larger dimensions, having a steam cylinder of 15 inches, and pump of 7 ½ inches. It is raising about 17,000 gallons per hour to a vertical height of 156 feet, through 388 yards of piping, the steam being carried 406 yards through 3 inch pipes. The machines appear to have been working without the slightest effort, and, to our astonishment, quite alone, the attendant regaling himself in the open air.

On Thursday, May 24th 1877, the following advert appeared in the Western Mail:

TO SINKERS CONTRACTORS, AND BRICK MANUFACTURERS. Messrs. Thomas and Griffiths, Gelli Colliery, invite TENDERS for SINKING, WALLING &c, on their Gelli property, two pits to the steam coal. Approximate depth of pits, 350 yards each. They are also prepared to receive tenders for ONE MILLION FIRE BRICKS. Tenders to be delivered on or before June 1st.

The colliery was owned in 1878 by Thomas and Griffiths and managed by D. Thomas. In January 1883, a visiting party of six ladies and six gentlemen, including the manager and his wife, were riding in trams down an incline when they were derailed. They were all thrown out and injured, one lady losing a leg.

In January 1881 the men walked out when a Mr. Chubb was appointed under manager stating that he was a danger to safety. The manager denied this and told the men that Chubb would be underground at the same time as them, and if he was dangerous, he himself would be killed. However, he conceded to their demands and Mr. Chubb was not appointed. On the 21st of August 1883, there was an explosion of firedamp in which 21 miners were injured some severely burned, one of them ripped the head of his stall without making special precautions and had a man hold a lamp in an improper position. Five of the men later died from their injuries.

Those who died were:

  • Thomas Woodliffe aged 26 years, collier,
  • David Thomas aged 32 years, collier,
  • John Lewis aged 34 years, collier,
  • John Jones aged 46 years, collier and
  • John Chubb aged 44 years, undermanager who was the undermanager at the Dinas Colliery at the time of the 1879 disaster.

THE GELLI COLLIERY EXPLOSION. DEATH OF THE UNDER MANAGER.

We are requested to state that a lady, simply wishing herself known as Amy, has kindly sent a cheque for £20 to be distributed among the sufferers from the above accident. Two of the men who died from the effects of the burns they sustained were buried at Merthyr on Saturday.

The bodies of John Jones and John Lewis were escorted to the Ystrad Railway Station by a large concourse of people, many of whom took the train to Merthyr, where they were met by others, and the funeral took place. A paper posted up at the colliery on Friday week stated that Mr. Crawshay Bailey wrote to the Messrs. Thomas and Griffiths condoling with the sufferers and families, and asking for information as to their condition, &c.

We regret to state that Mr. John Chubb, under manager of the Gelli Colliery, succumbed on Tuesday morning to the injuries sustained by him in the explosion on the Tuesday previous. He was 44 years of age and leaves a widow and six children. He was employed as a collier at Dinas until Mr. Morgan Rowland, the then head-manager of Dinas Collieries, observing his natural shrewdness, engaged him as under-manager. In his turn Colonel Hunt, the proprietor of the works, placed him head manager on the resignation of Mr. Howland, and he continued to occupy that post until the terrible explosion at Dinas Colliery. After this, he went to America, but soon returned, when Messrs. Thomas and Griffiths engaged him as overman of the house coal colliery at Gelli. Two months ago he was made under-manager of the steam coal colliery, which position he occupied at the time of the disaster. The company (Messrs. Thomas and Griffiths) have been untiring in rendering all aid possible to the sufferers at the explosion. Credit is also due to Mrs. Thomas and the Misses Thomas, Maindy Hall, for the kindness they have exhibited towards the unfortunate men by providing them with the necessary nourishment.

The pit was described at the inquest as a large colliery 380 yards deep, employing 400 men. The Jury returned a verdict of accident death but was of the opinion that the ventilation was defective and that there was neglect by management. After the inquest verdict which also brought in a verdict of ‘contributory negligence’, there was a case presided over by Judge Stevens. He found that there could be no compensation when the plaintiff contributed to the accident. He also commented that the Employers Liability Act would be faced with many legal difficulties.

On the 29th of September 1883 just over a year after the explosion John Rees was riding out on one tram of 13 when the wheel broke, he fell off and was killed when run over by the other trams. There was another explosion in July 1885, this time in the housecoal pit, but this time no men were killed but two were slightly injured. The fireman, George Collier, had failed to visit all the workplaces that morning and thereby breached the Mines Act. He was fined £2.00.

Pushing trams at the pit bottom, the chalk marks on the trams are the collier’s signature’ and were the way that he got paid. The tram would be weighed at pit top and the weight of the large coal only was marked against his name for his wages. The small coal was used to fuel the boilers for the colliery.

In November 1882 it was custom for the payment of colliers to be made by weighing the trams of coal that they had filled. To do this at Gelli the men would put their mark on the side of the tram with chalk. This tram was weighed on the surface and a ticket with a number on it was issued for the value of their earnings and payment was made accordingly. At that time their were two pits producing coal at Gelli, the steamcoal pit which was working the Six-Feet seam, and the housecoal pit which was working the Two-Feet-Nine seam. Due to them being different units the same numbered tickets were used for both pits. Colliers called John Caesar, Sidney Humphreys, John Davies and Elias Matthews, had a problem. They worked in the Six-Feet seam but were only given two trams to fill each which was not enough to give them a good wage, on top of this they all had lost sometime during the last fortnight and were facing tough times. So they had this bright idea of claiming the same numbered tickets from the housecoal pit, which belonged to William Emerson and Enoch Thomas. They also cashed those tickets thereby committing fraud and obtaining money by false pretences. On the 11th of November, Messrs. Caesar and Humphreys used their number 18 to receive £5.10s 9d that was due to Caesar, and Davies and Matthews drew £5.3s 9d due to Davies. Just after this Enoch Thomas (No.18) and then William Emerson (No.16) came to claim their wages but neither had their tickets so were not paid. Thomas had been due £3.0s 7d and Emmerson £2.10s 11d. On investigation, it was then found that the defendants had cashed Emerson and Davies’ tickets as well. They ended up in front of a stipendiary magistrate but denied that they had done any wrong, they believed that they were owed more money and simply went back to draw it. This didn’t wash with the magistrate and they were sent for trial by jury.

At the time of the accident it was owned by Thomas and Griffiths’ Gelli & Tynybedw Steam Coal Company Limited but in December 1883 it came under the control of the Cory Brothers’ Gelli and Tynybedw Collieries Company with John Thomas as the manager. The Bodringallt shaft of this colliery was 371 yards deep and was linked to the Nebo level by means of a landing at the Pentre seam level of 64 yards deep.

The Nebo Level was 450 yards away. The Gelli upcast ventilation shaft was linked to the Abergorchy by means of a landing 241 yards deep. The downcast shaft was deepened in 1914/5 to the Gellideg seam at a depth of 1,667 feet 7 inches.

In 1886 tempers won when:

ASSAULTING A COLLIERY MANAGER AT GELLI. At Ystrad police court; Monday (before Mr. Ignatius Williams (stipendiary magistrate) Joseph Charles, hitcher, was charged with assaulting Mr. J.D. Thomas, manager of Gelli Collieries. Mr. Simons was prosecuted. It appeared that the defendant had let three trams fail into the sump, and the overman told him that if he was so careless again he would move him to another part of the pit. This was on the 2nd of April. On the same day, as Mr. Thomas, the manager, was coming out of his office, with his hands in his pockets, the defendant met him, seized him by the coat, and struck him a violent blow on the jaw. There had been no provocation whatever, and not a word was spoken by the defendant before committing the assault.—Defendant admitted the charge, but said he was drunk —Fined £3, or to go to prison for a month.—Defendant said he must go to prison, as he had not the money. Mr. Simons asked if he would be released as Mr. Thomas would find the money – this was agreed to.

On the 21st of July 1887, there was a strange series of events at the colliery. The limit to the number of men allowed onto a cage going down the pit was 8. The undermanager noticed 9 in the one cage and told the manager who ordered Morris Cummins to get off, he refused and the matter ended up in court. Cummins was fined 20 shillings, but his representative in court, the famous miner’s leader Mabon was so upset with the verdict that he threw his pencil and notebook to the floor in disgust. The fine was not paid. It was a win for the men in 1889, when after a fortnight’s strike, the owners agreed to monthly, instead of weekly contracts.

In 1896 the manager was William O’Connor. In 1908 the manager of the House Coal Pit was F.W. Dyke, and for the Steam Coal Pit, it was A. Davies, in 1918 the House was managed by T. Williams and the Steam by H.V. Thornley.

This mine was served by the Taff Vale Railway, Gelli Colliery had a sidings capacity in 1898 of, full wagons 393, empty wagons 424 other wagons 201. In September 1910, 800 men went on strike over a price list, three years later on the 18th of July 1913 there were less than 100 men still on strike and the strike was abandoned. This colliery employed 296 men in 1913, 238 in the house coal pit and 58 in the steam coal pit. The manager for the house coal pit was F.W. Dyke and for the steam coal pit was J.W. Steele.

An advert for the company at that time stating:

Cory Brothers & Co.Ltd., supply all the principal Lines of Steamers, and are Contractors to the Governments of Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Greece, Austria,, Brazil, &c. The Head Office of the Company was at Bute Docks, Cardiff, with other offices at London, Glasgow, Liverpool, Pans and Genoa. With Coal Depots at 77 foreign destinations.

This company was a member of the Monmouthshire and South Wales Coal Owners Association.

In 1920 the colliery had a South Wales Miners Federation membership of, house coal pit, 336. The Steam coal pit had 105 members. In 1923 the colliery manager was H.V. Thornley while in 1927/30 the manager was W.H. Heppell.

In 1935 along with the Nebo Level the pits employed 170 men on the surface and 979 men underground. The company was then based at Cory’s Buildings, Cory’s Corner, Cardiff. The Chairman of the company and managing director was Sir Clifford J. Cory. Annual output was 1,600,000 tons of coal and the manpower was 5,722.

In the early 1930s, the Four-Feet seam was abandoned due to a weak roof, the Six-Feet seam and the Yard seam had been exhausted and work was concentrated in the Five-Feet and Lower-Five-Feet seams with each coal seam producing 136 tons of coal per day. The Bute seam was worked in 1934 by a drift up from the Yard seam and attempts to work the Gorllwyn seam in 1936 failed. They tried to work the Nine-Feet seam but found it disturbed. It was hoped that by driving through a 45-yard geological fault they could work the Seven-Feet seam and also the Lower-Seven-Feet seam between the Dinas and Pentre Faults. By 1938 the House Coal Pit had been abandoned. In 1943 this colliery employed 427 men underground working the Five-Feet, Lower Five-Feet and Lower Seven-Feet seams and 109 men on the surface, the manager was A.D. Thomas.

On Nationalisation in 1947 this colliery was placed in the National Coal Board’s, South Western Division’s, No.3 Rhondda Area’s, No.3 Group and at that time employed 111 men on the surface and 414 men underground working the Five-Feet seam. The manager was still A.D. Thomas. In 1954 there were 128 men on the surface and 538 men underground working the Five-Feet and Gellideg seams. The manager was now T.J. Davies.

In 1955, 346 men were employed at the coalfaces at this colliery, with this figure gradually dropping to 318 men at the coalfaces in 1956 and to 254 men at the coalfaces in 1958. In 1961 this colliery was still in the No.3 Area’s, No.3 Group along with Cambrian Nos. 1 and 4 collieries. This Group employed a total of 2,162 miners, and produced a total of 396,828 tons of coal. The Group Manager was T. Pugh while the Area Manager was G. Blackmore.

Gelli Colliery was closed on the 13th of January 1962 for economic reasons.

Just some of the early fatalities at this mine;

  • 26/6/1873, Evan Bowen, aged 25, collier, roof fall.
  • 31/5/1878, John Morgan, aged 25, Isaac Morris, aged 35, sinkers, fell down the shaft.
  • 12/8/1878, Noah Llewellyn, aged 36, sinker, fell down the pit.
  • 11/4/1879, David Thomas, aged 36, collier, roof fall.
  • 30/7/1880, John Davies, aged 14, collier boy, run over by trams.
  • 24/10/1880, Richard Henry Deacon, aged 12, door boy, run over by trams.
  • 28/3/1882, Noah Morgan, aged 50, overman, hit by haulage rope.
  • 15/8/1882, David Evans, aged 32, timberman, roof fall.
  • 13/9/1882, Evan Evans, aged 21, haulier, run over by trams.
  • 24/9/1883, W. Rees, aged 24, rider, run over by trams.
  • 16/10/1883, A. Tissington, aged 70, collier, roof fall.
  • 20/1/1885, Watkin Rowlands, aged 63, labourer, crushed by trams.
  • 26/1/1885, Francis Beadle, aged 50, mason, roof fall.
  • 6/7/1886, Harry Edwards, aged 17, collier boy, roof fall.
  • 10/8/1888, Elias Morgan, aged 42, labourer, crushed by trams.
  • 17/11/1888, Lewis Williams, aged 21, engineman, scalded.
  • 27/10/1890, Benjamin James, aged 21, haulier, roof fall.
  • 20/5/1889, John Jones, aged 24, rider, hit by haulage rope.
  • 3/3/1891, Isaac Thomas, aged 17, rider, run over by trams. 19th June 1891, Benjamin McGill, labourer, was crushed by trams.
  • 25/8/1891, John Evans, aged 27, tipper, crushed by tram.
  • 5/5/1892, George Chinnick, aged 28, haulier, fell down the pit.
  • 7/1/1893, John Jones, aged 28, haulier, roof fall.
  • 18/1/1894, James Bowley, aged 22, assistant timberman, roof fall.
  • 16/7/1894, C. O’Conner, aged 30, stoker, crushed by trams.
  • 6/11/1894, David Reed, aged 19, Edward Parlour, aged 18, hauliers, roof fall.
  • 16/2/1895, James Ashman, aged 56, tipper, crushed by trams.
  • 9/3/1895, William Steger, aged 39, assistant timberman, Rees Morgan, aged 54, labourer, William Davies, aged 26, timberman, roof fall.
  • 14/8/1895, Daniel Edwards, aged 65, road cleaner, run over by trams.
  • 19/9/1895, John Watkins, aged 39, contractor, crushed by trams.
  • 5/6/1896, John Jones, aged 61, timberman, run over by trams.
  • 19/9/1896, Francis Rees, aged 38, collier, roof fall.
  • 26/3/1897, John Jones, aged 13, signal boy, run over by trams.
  • 29/5/1897, Frederick Wallbutton, aged 25, coke burner, Charles Pocock, aged
  • 30, ripper, run over by trams.
  • 21/2/1898, Albert Wilkes, aged 28, fireman, suffocated by gas.
  • 21/2/1899, Robert Davies, aged 55, repairer, run over by trams.
  • 17/9/1910, Edward Morris, aged 49, fireman, roof fall.
  • 16/6/1914, Cyril Arthur Ware, aged 18, collier, roof fall.
  • 15/9/1927, John Parry, aged 50, haulier, crushed by trams.
  • 25/10/1927, William Whitelock, aged 34, labourer, crushed by wagons.

Some Statistics:

  • 1889: Output: Steam Pit: 241,113 tons. No.2 Pit: 28,051 tons.
  • 1894: Output: Steam Pit: 185,014 tons. Housecoal Pit: 88,474 tons.
  • 1896: Manpower: 578.
  • 1899: Manpower: House: 189. Steam: 457.
  • 1900: Manpower: House: 184. Steam: 555.
  • 1901: Manpower: House: 199. Steam: 199.
  • 1902: Manpower: House: 170. Steam: 772.
  • 1903: Manpower: House: 133. Steam: 750.
  • 1905: Manpower: House: 116. Steam: 769.
  • 1907: Manpower: House: 84. Steam: 846.
  • 1908: Manpower: House: 138. Steam: 777.
  • 1909: Manpower: 193.
  • 1910: Manpower: House: 232. Steam: 795.
  • 1911: Manpower: House: 207. Steam: 792.
  • 1912: Manpower: House: 70. Steam: 284.
  • 1913: Manpower: 296.
  • 1915: Manpower: House: 126. Steam: 353.
  • 1916: Manpower: House: 353. Steam: 112.
  • 1918: Manpower: House: 23. Steam: 120.
  • 1920: Manpower: House: 428. Steam: 170.
  • 1922: Manpower: House: 365. Steam: 143.
  • 1923: Manpower: House: 433. Steam: 256.
  • 1924: Manpower: House: 554. Steam: 687.
  • 1925: Manpower: 1,140.
  • 1926: Manpower: 1,237.
  • 1927: Manpower: House: 482. Steam: 676.
  • 1928: Manpower: House: 397 Steam: 878.
  • 1929: Manpower: 1,230.
  • 1930: Manpower: House: 261. Steam: 710 (underground figures only).
  • 1933: Manpower: 1,049.
  • 1934: Manpower: 933.
  • 1937: Manpower: 289.
  • 1938: Manpower: 225.
  • 1940: Manpower: 600.
  • 1942: Manpower: 520.
  • 1944: Manpower: 437.
  • 1945: Manpower: 536.
  • 1947: Manpower: 525.
  • 1948: Manpower: 540. Output: 126,000 tons.
  • 1949: Manpower: 570. Output: 172,000 tons.
  • 1950: Manpower: 565.
  • 1953: Manpower: 871. Output: 210,000 tons.
  • 1954: Manpower: 711.
  • 1955: Manpower: 718. Output: 166,261 tons.
  • 1957: Manpower: 687. Output: 134,861 tons.
  • 1958: Manpower: 654. Output: 138,564 tons.
  • 1960: Manpower: 605. Output: 89,460 tons.
  • 1961: Manpower 334. Output: 69,446 tons.

 

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

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