On 22nd June 1872, the old Micklefield pit run by the Micklefield Colliery & Lime Works began selling off all the working parts of its old colliery. Joseph Cliff, a wealthy Firebrick-maker from Wortley, Leeds, bought the Company, and within two years he had plans to build Peckfield Colliery, which was to be constructed in a different location to the old Micklefield Colliery, which was a much smaller venture, and was called Peckfield Colliery simply to avoid confusion. On 7th October 1874, Joseph and his son William Dewhirst Cliff were present to dig the first sod of earth in preparation for the sinking of the two shafts for Peckfield Colliery.
Charles Houfton was appointed Peckfield Colliery Manager, and William Radford was appointed Underground Manager. Despite the “earnest wish that the works begun that day might prosecuted and completed without the slightest accident to life or limb”, the first fatality at Peckfield Colliery occurred when William Martin, a colliery carpenter, aged 38, was killed on Tuesday 27th November 1877, a year after the pit opened. He was part of a team of nine men supervised by the engineer Samuel Clough who were installing a new boiler. The boiler was lowered into the pit by a rope, operated by steam, and Martin was one of three men at the pit top ensuring that the rope ran smoothly. At 2:20pm, the shackle of rope caught the end of a batten. Martin climbed a fence and called to the engineman to stop the rope, and tried to raise it, to free it, when the fence gave way. Martin caught hold of the balk and swung for a couple of seconds before falling 175 yards down the 14 foot wide shaft. Clough found his body in water at the pit bottom. He was buried in Micklefield:
James Haslegrave, aged 24, was the second fatality, when he was killed by a small fall of coal down the shaft, from a corf he’d just sent up to the surface. He was standing in for the hanger–on, James Shillito, who had been ill. The accident was witnessed by the underground manager William Radford. Both Shillito and Radford would be killed in the 1896 disaster. After a further three fatalities in the early 1880’s following roof falls, 53 year old George Mosby was crushed to death by a stone on 6th September 1886. Fellow miner, Samuel Marriott heard his cry, and found him in the goaf, his legs crushed under the stone. Marriott and John Sutton, managed to free him after 15 minutes and put him in a corf, but Mosby died 15 minutes later. John Gerrard, Inspector of Mines attended the coroner’s inquest. Samuel Marriott would also survive the 1896 Disaster, as would George Mosby’s son, Lot. John Sutton however would be killed. There were several other examples of death and injury at Peckfield Colliery before the disaster. 8 men had died at the Colliery in its first nineteen years. It was consequently considered to be a “safe” pit, as these fatalities were much lower than the average colliery:
Working conditions, whilst comparatively favourable to pits like Denaby Main, were still tough. The pit operated on the Longwall Mining system, which involved the complete extraction of the coal in a designated area, resulting in the complete subsidence or caving of the overlying rock strata into the mined-out area behind the working mine face. This type of coal extraction was known to generate gas, which could extend 1000 ft above and 250 ft below the working seam depending on the width.
Peckfield Colliery was pretty much in constant use, with the day shift starting at 7am, and the night shift at 9pm. The day shift largely focussed upon coal extraction, and the night shift would carry out repairs. However, since the miners’ strike in September 1893, led by Benjamin Pickard, miners were being restricted to 2 or 3 working days per week. There were no set days for working or non-working (‘laik’ or ‘play’) days. Miners were advised at the end of their shift. If the buzzer sounded, then the following day, miners would not be paid. Whilst this discouraged many from going into work, others would use the ‘laik’ days to gather coal as usual, and keep it underground, returning on the next paid day and then being paid for the production.
30th April 1896. The Peckfield Colliery Disaster at Micklefield 