Hafod Colliery

HAFOD COLLIERY
Porth

The original Hafod pit was sunk by the brothers, David and John Thomas, who leased the mineral rights of the Hafod Fach and Nyth Bran farms and in 1850 sunk down to the No.3 Rhondda seam. Encountering a thin seam they then decided to sink lower to the steam coal seams but after an expenditure of £30,000 they abandoned the project. The pit was later re-opened to work the No.3 Rhondda seam.

In the 1870s this pit, along with the Coedcae pit was purchased by William Thomas Lewis (later Lord Merthyr) who sunk the Hafod Nos. 1 and 2 pits to the steam coal seams in 1893, but on the other side of the river to the original pit.

The Hafod No.1 Pit was 16 feet in diameter and the downcast ventilation shaft while the No.2 Pit was elliptical 15 feet by 9 feet in shape and was the upcast shaft. In 1896 they employed 520 men underground and 79 men on the surface with the manager being Thomas Richards. In 1918 they employed 1,266 men underground and 230 men on the surface with the manager being W. Kestell. Lewis continued to sink the Bertie and Trevor pits, and in 1900 consolidated the Bertie, Trevor, Coedcae and Hafod pits into Lewis Merthyr Colliery.

The Hafod No.2 pit closed as a production unit in 1930, and the Hafod No.1 pit closed as a production unit in 1933. The manager at that time was J.H. Williams.
The Hafod seam was worked at a section of between 30 inches to 42 inches with dirt partings, while the Hafod No.2 Pit extensively worked the No.3 Rhondda seam at a thickness of between 31 inches to 36 inches.

Please see the listing on Lewis Merthyr Colliery for more details.

• Some statistics:
• 1896: Manpower: 599
• 1899: Manpower: 673
• 1905: Manpower: 324
• 1909: Manpower: 884

BERTIE AND TREVOR PITS
Porth

In the 1870’s the Coedcae and Hafod Pits were bought by Thomas Lewis (later Lord Merthyr of Senghenydd) who was at that time working the No.2 Rhondda seam. He then went on to deepen the Hafod pit and sink two new pits, the Bertie and Trevor, to the steam coal seams, the sinkings completed by 1890. The Bertie Pit was sunk to a depth of 482 yards, and the Trevor Pit to a depth of 474 yards.

In 1900 all these pits were merged into one unit and the Lewis Merthyr Colliery was born.

The main seams to have been worked here were the Six-Feet, Nine-Feet and Red Veins. For further details please see Lewis Merthyr Colliery.

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