| Entry Type | Corporate |
| Corporate Name | Arkwright Colliery |
| Parent Body | Arkwright Coal Co. Ltd (1897-1947) |
| National Coal Board (1947-1988) |
| Also Known As | Wagnum Pit |
| Place | Arkwright Town |
| Epithet | coal mine |
| Dates | 1897-1988 |
| History | A small-scale mining was first opened in 1897. This closed in 1934. A slightly larger scale colliery opened in 1938 as a small mine to work a small area of the Top Hard coal seam that larger collieries in the Markham valley area couldn’t reach in an economically viable way. This was expanded in the 1940s, with new shafts being added in 1953 to replace exhausted resources. It is thought that a drift was in operation here at the same time as the shafts, with the drift becoming the priority later on. Prior to the nationalisation of the coal industry in 1947, the site was run by the Arkwright Coal Company, which was run by same managers as Staveley Coal and Iron Company.
The colliery was locally known as Wangum Pit. It was thought this could be a mispronunciation of the term ‘wagon’, which were used there instead of the typical tubs. There were always issues with water as the colliery worked on a steep gradient. It worked the Top Hard, Deep Soft, Waterloo, Sitwell, Tupton and Silkstone coal seams. The highest recorded manpower was 994 in 1978-1979, with the highest record output of 708,523 in 1972-1973. Onsite facilities, including pithead baths, were opened between 1952 and 1954. A coal preparation plant was opened in 1977.
When nearby Bonds Main Colliery closed in 1949, some of the men were transferred to Arkwright. When resources again began to dwindle, the site was merged with nearby Markham Colliery in 1986. However, it officially closed in 1988. Even after the colliery closed, there were still attempts to work opencast mines. Gas from the extinct workings also seeped into the houses in the pit village, which meant the village had to be moved away a short distance from its original location.
Known Managers:
• L. W. Limb
• G. Baxter
• Alfred W. Gray
• Len E. Fletcher
• Frank Rimmer
• Alan Hird
• William W. Bryan
• C. Arnold Heeley
• Brian Bell |
| Key Events | 1897: First small-scale workings opened
1934: Closed
1938: Reopened
1947: Nationalisation
1953: New shafts added
1986: Merged with nearby Markham Colliery
1988: Closed |
| Source | ‘Arkwright Colliery’, http://www.healeyhero.co.uk/rescue/individual/Bob_Bradley/Bk-6/B6-1988-P2.html
British Coal North Derbyshire Area, A Profile of Arkwright Colliery (1986)
Durham Mining Museum, Arkwright Colliery, http://www.dmm.org.uk/colliery/a224.htm
Mining Heritage in the East Midlands, Arkwright Colliery Closure – 30th anniversary, http://www.miningheritage.co.uk/arkwright-colliery-closure-30th-anniversary/
Bridgewater, A. N., North Derbyshire Collieries (2009) https://www.aditnow.co.uk/documents/Doe-Lea-Coal-Mine/North20Derbyshire20Collieries20Small20Update.pdf |
| Authorised Form of Name | Arkwright Town; Arkwright Colliery; 1897-1988; coal mine |
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