Story
Arthur Grimbley was born in 1868, and was one of the sons of Timothy Grimbley (1835-1901) and Mary Ann Roper (1837-1906) who married in Leicestershire in 1860. The family, which included Arthur’s brothers Samuel and Thomas moved North to Micklefield after Peckfield Colliery opened and started working as coal miners.
Arthur was living at 4 Cliff Terrace with his parents and siblings on the day of the colliery explosion. Arthur had the day off work, but made his way to the pit top and volunteered to join the early rescue parties. Uppermost in his thoughts would have been the fact that his two brothers, Thomas and Samuel, were working down the pit. Thomas Grimbley was one of the first men to escape. Samuel Grimbley also survived, and despite encountering afterdamp gas, and the body of his deputy James Shillito, Samuel was later found later the same day at the village club playing a game of Billiards with a friend.
After the disaster, Arthur continued to work at Peckfield Colliery. In 1904, he married Hannah Bennett (1872-1932), and they continued to live at 4 Cliff Terrace after the death of Arthur’s parents. Arthur passed away in 1928.
30th April 1896. The Peckfield Colliery Disaster at Micklefield 