The North Staffordshire Coalfield was a

coalfield A coalfield is an area of certain uniform characteristics where coal is mined. The criteria for determining the approximate boundary of a coalfield are geographical and cultural, in addition to geological. A coalfield often groups the seams of ...

in Staffordshire,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, with an area of nearly , virtually all of it within the city of Stoke on Trent and the borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme, apart from three smaller coalfields, Shaffalong and Goldsitch Moss Coalfields near Leek and the

Cheadle Coalfield The Cheadle Coalfield is a coalfield in the United Kingdom. Centred on the town of Cheadle, Staffordshire and its outlying villages it lies to the east of Stoke-on-Trent and the much larger North Staffordshire Coalfield. The area has been mined fo ...

. Coal mining in North Staffordshire began early in the 13th century, but the industry grew during the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

when coal mined in North Staffordshire was used in the local Potteries ceramics and iron industry (

ironstone Ironstone is a sedimentary rock, either deposited directly as a ferruginous sediment or created by chemical replacement, that contains a substantial proportion of an iron ore compound from which iron (Fe) can be smelted commercially. Not to be con ...

deposits were also found with the coal in certain areas). Before the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, 20,000 men worked in the industry and over 50 pits were in operation. After nationalisation in 1947, the industry was gradually reduced in size as smaller pits closed or merged with larger, more modern mines. The industry began its final decline after the 1984-85 miners' strike and the last deep mine, Silverdale, closed on Christmas Eve 1998.

Geology

The superficial geology in this area predominantly consists of Devensian

glacial till image:Geschiebemergel.JPG, Closeup of glacial till. Note that the larger grains (pebbles and gravel) in the till are completely surrounded by the matrix of finer material (silt and sand), and this characteristic, known as ''matrix support'', is d ...

s, which overlie the Middle and Upper Pennine Coal Measures; the same sequences of

sandstones Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) b ...

mudstones Mudstone, a type of mudrock, is a fine-grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. Mudstone is distinguished from ''shale'' by its lack of fissility (parallel layering).Blatt, H., and R.J. Tracy, 1996, ''Petrology.'' ...

and

coal seam Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron fro ...

s as forms the impressive coalfields of

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

. The North Staffordshire Coalfield is a compact and heavily faulted coalfield, which is triangular and troughed like a saucer in its shape. However, for its relatively small size it has an amazing number and variety of workable

seams Seam may refer to: Science and technology * Seam (geology), a stratum of coal or mineral that is economically viable; a bed or a distinct layer of vein of rock in other layers of rock * Seam (metallurgy), a metalworking process the joins the en ...

. :Seams within the Middle Coal Measures :* Winghay :* Rowhurst :* Burnwood :* Moss :* Five Feet :* Yard :* Ragman :* Hams :* Bellringer :* Ten Feet :* Bowling Alley :* Holly Lane :* Hard Mine :Seams within the Lower Coal Measures :* Banbury :* Cockshead :* Bullhurst :* Winpenny :* Diamond :* Brights :* King :* Crabtree :* Two Feet

History

Coal and ironstone were being dug in the Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire area as early as 1282, and by 1467 the Great Row coal seam was being mined and used for firing pottery. The actual area within which the coal is exposed at the surface is , which is small compared to other coalfields, but along the central part of this the thickness of the seams is much greater than that of any other English coalfield except

. The coal industry gradually expanded due to demand from the

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...

and

iron industry Ferrous metallurgy is the metallurgy of iron and its alloys. The earliest surviving prehistoric iron artifacts, from the 4th millennium BC in Egypt, were made from meteoritic iron-nickel. It is not known when or where the smelting of iron from ...

. It was also due to the establishment of the new transport system,

canals Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface flow un ...

(1777) and later

railways Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

(1837). The coalfield's worst-ever loss of life occurred on 12 January 1918, when 155 men and boys died in the

Minnie Pit Disaster The Minnie Pit disaster was a coal mining accident that took place on 12 January 1918 in Halmer End, Staffordshire, in which 155 men and boys died. The disaster, which was caused by an explosion due to firedamp, is the worst ever recorded in th ...

. The coal industry went from private small owners to big group iron-master owners, to nationalisation in 1947, until the last deep mine (Silverdale) was closed in December 1998. Most former colliery sites have since been reclaimed. Chatterley Whitfield, bordering Chell Heath, which was the first UK mine to produce more than 1 million tons of coal per annum, closed in 1976. Two years later it was reopened as a museum, dedicated to the local industrial heritage. This closed in 1991 and the site was declared a local nature reserve, and a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

by English Heritage in 1993. The Phoenix Trust, an independent not-for-profit foundation, is campaigning to turn the North Staffordshire Coalfield into a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

due to its historic economic significance, leading role in the industrial revolution and role as the birthplace of

Primitive Methodism The Primitive Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination with the holiness movement. It began in England in the early 19th century, with the influence of American evangelist Lorenzo Dow (1777–1834). In the United States, the Primit ...

Incidents

* 7 February 1881 - Chatterley Whitfield Colliery Disaster * 14 January 1895 - Diglake Colliery Disaster * 12 January 1918 -

* 2 July 1937 - Holditch Colliery Disaster * 1 January 1942 - Sneyd Colliery Disaster

References

External links

* http://www.staffspasttrack.org.uk/exhibit/coal/default.htm {{coord, 53.01, -2.19, type:landmark_dim:20000_region:GB-STE, display=title Mining in Staffordshire Coal mining regions in England