Fig 1: Markham Colliery Nos 1 and 4 headstocks. Photo Credit – Kevin Kew collection
Markham Colliery: A Mine-craft the Prequel project case-study
Markham Colliery in North Derbyshire (1882-1993) was chosen as one of the case studies for the 2023-24 Mine-craft the Prequel project as it had two significant anniversaries in 2023 during the project planning period. It was thirty years since its closure, being the last large deep colliery in the North Derbyshire Coalfield, and fifty years since the tragic cage mining disaster on 30th July 1973 which resulted in the death of eighteen miners.
Fig 2: Markham Colliery Medical Centre 1979 – Photo Credit – Coal Authority
Markham Colliery: Collecting the meta-data
Initially a small selection of photographs were selected from the digitalised images at the Coal Authority, Mansfield. These are part of the national collection of coalmining photographs at the National Records Office, Ref PRO COAL 80. These photographs were taken by National Coal Board photographers and date mainly from the early days of nationalisation to the 1980’s.
The archive comprises of around 60,000 images nationally of which around 13,000 are of the coalmining industry in the East Midlands. The PRO COAL 80 collection as it stands is far from complete, the rapid decline of the British coal mining in the 1980’s and early 1990’s meant many official NCB photographs were abandoned in old colliery offices and skips. Some were rescued by local and coalmining historians. The collection lacks much meta-data (information) and dates when they were taken.
Fig 3: Markham Colliery photographs at the South Derbyshire Mining Preservation Group HQ in 2017. Photo Credit – MuBu miner
Additional images of Markham Colliery, in the format of 35mm slides and negatives, were found at the former HQ of the South Derbyshire Mining Preservation Group’s HQ at Gresley Old Hall, Castle Gresley, in 2017. Importantly these documented underground scenes in the latter years of Markham Colliery when it was in the British Coal Central Group (1986-1993). Its HQ was at Coleorton Hall in Leicestershire, formerly HQ for the National Coal Board (NCB) South Midlands Area. Following the 1986 reorganisation of the NCB, the remaining collieries in North Derbyshire came under its jurisdiction. A former NCB photographer used much foresight and rescued the collection in 1994 during the latter days of the nationalisation coalmining industry.
Fig 4: T3’s coalface at Markham Colliery on 4th October 1960. Photo Credit – Coal Authority
Fig 5: Coalface at Markham Colliery in the early 1990’s. Photo SDMPG collection.
What the two collections did do was give a pictorial history of how mechanisation developed in the British coalmining industry during the nationalised era. Figs 4 and 5 compare how coalfaces at Markham Colliery evolved technologically from the early day 1960’s to the highly mechanised coalfaces in the early 1990’s.
Fig 6: Members of Markham Vale Heritage Group at the launch event of the Walking Together project booklet in April 2023. Photo Credit – MuBu miner
Fig 7: The Walking Together coalmining arts project at Markham Vale Business Park in April 2023. Photo Credit – MuBu miner
It was hoped to work with the Markham Vale Heritage Group on the Mine-craft the Prequel project but this didn’t materialise as the group were in the process of winding up following the completion of the ‘Walking Together’ coalmining arts project. An excellent website, The Markham Story Mine, compliments the Walking Together project with additional information unearthing and sharing stories about Markham Colliery. https://markhamstorymine.org/
Fig 8: Pan launcher used to install Armoured Face Conveyor pans onto the coalface-1981. Photo Credit – Kevin Kew collection
Kevin Kew, a former miner at Ireland and Markham Collieries, is one of a small number of coalmining historical researchers who meet regularly at the Coal Authority Records Office. He specialises in the history of coalmining in Derbyshire and was able to assit the Mine-craft the Prequel with information and dates for photographs of Markham Colliery. He has an extensive archive of photos and documents relating to the North Derbyshire coalfield.
Fig 9a & 9b: Example of Markham Colliery meta data provided for the Mine-craft the Prequel project.
The process of gathering the meta-data was relatively straight forward, it was a case of all the Markham Colliery images being viewed, ascertained what each image was and then put into one folder, with sub folders within it. Each image in the sub folders was numbered / titled and information added about the location or work process with a date added (Fig 9). All of the images and supporting information were then transferred to a Mine-craft the Prequel pilot project database. (Fig 10). The plan is for this information to be added to the PRO COAL 80 collection at the Coal Authority.
Fig 10: Mine-craft the Prequel database for Markham Colliery images
Markham miners: An image gallery
Fig 11: 60’s coalface, Roy Wells & machine driver, Peter Evans. (Seam and date unknown) – Photo Credit – Coal Authority
Fig 12: Markham Colliery No. 4 steam winding engine in 1969. Photo Credit – Coal Authority
Fig 13: Markham Milers, March 1987. Photo Credit – Kevin Kew collection
Fig 14: Markham Colliery coalface early 1990’s. Photo Credit – SDMPG
Fig 15: Markham miners weekly output record, 61,284 tonnes, April 1991. Photo Credit – Kevin Kew collection
Fig 16: Markham miners with underground battery loco, early 1990’s. Photo Credit – SDMPG
Fig 17: L31s coalface in the Waterloo seam with Kevin Allen (Danga) driving the shearer. Photo Credit – SDMPG
Fig 18: Celebrating turning one million tonnes of coal at Markham Colliery in 1991. Photo Credit – Kevin Kew collection
Fig 19: Markham colliery road sweepers. Photo Credit – Kevin Kew collection
Fig 20: Brain Ashley aka Brian the Singing Miner. Photo Credit – Kevin Kew collection
Brian the Singing Miner
Brian Ashley, aka Brian the Singing Miner, worked at Markham Colliery. He was famous on the local cabaret scene in the late 1980’s with his backing group, The Flying Pit Props. His live appearances always caused a chuckle and a few raised eyebrows! He passed away in November 2016, and as Kevin Kew stated, the legend that was!
Video clip 01: Report about Brian the Singing Miner on Calendar local TV news in 1988. (3 mins, 05 secs).
Video clip 02: Spanish Eyes by Brian the Singing Miner and the Flying Pit Props – 45 rpm single record. (2 mins 28 secs).
Markham Mining Memorials
Fig 21: Markham mining memorial in 2023 at the site of the Gas Plant constructed on No. 3 shaft. Photo by MuBu Miner
Fig 22: Markham memorial to the mining disasters of 1937, 1938 and 1973. Photo by MuBu Miner
Fig 23: Walking Together mining memorials at Markham Vale Business Park – June 2023. Photo by MuBu Miner
Fig 24: Walking Together information board – June 2023. Photo by MuBu Miner.
Posted by Mine-craft the Prequel project admin
2nd November 2024.