Colliery that made its name in history
ON APRIL 21, 1993, Doncaster’s defiant women pit campaigners celebrated a milestone in their bid to save 31 threatened collieries.
The country’s first pit-gate camp – established outside Markham Main Colliery, Armthorpe –was 100 days old. It was set up by Doncaster Women Against Pit Closures, who were highlighting the strength of feeling against what they called the Tory Government’s ‘butchery’ of the mining industry.
Leading member Brenda Nixon said: “This is a milestone for the camp. Markham Main was the first to be set up and it will remain here until the pit and the others like it are saved. It’s been hard work, but well worth it.
“We have had literally thousands of visitors. People have come from all over the world to see us and sign our visitors’ book, and we have been inundated with messages of support.”
The Greenham Common-style settlement was spawned during the previous year’s occupation of Markham Main’s offices by Brenda, Aggie Currie and women protesters from Barnsley and Sheffield.
A number of Greenham women turned up to help establish the Markham Main camp on January 11, helping to light a brazier which burned continuously as a sign of determination.
Within days, other camps began to spring up outside the 10 most threatened pits.
But in May 1993, it was announced that the Markham Main Colliery women’s camp was to shut.
Brenda Nixon said: “We feel that we have done all we can at Markham Main, although we are still going to carry on fighting against the closures.”
Armthorpe’s Markham Main colliery took some time to develop during the early years of the 20th century. The First World War interrupted operations, and coal was not raised until the early 1920s.
Boring began as early as August, 1913. The coal to be mined was under Earl Fitzwilliam’s estate and adjoining lands belonging to Doncaster Corporation – all south east of
Doncaster town centre. Coal leases were obtained by Sir Arthur Markham MP who had other colliery enterprises in the Doncaster district as well as elsewhere in the country.
In April, 1914, about 25 men, mostly Germans, were initially involved with the boring work and sinking operations began a little later. In the following year, a plan of the proposed Armthorpe colliery village, submitted by Sir J. Tudor Walters, was approved, subject to a building line of 15ft from the side of each street being fixed.
Under a ‘Workmen Wanted’ advertisement, appearing in August 1916, miners at Armthorpe were promised ‘good wages and prospects’; and ‘good houses available near the pit’. Workmen with families were to be ‘specially considered’.
Sir Arthur Markham died in August 1916. He had served as Liberal MP for the Mansfield division of Nottinghamshire, from 1900 to 1916. Many villages, businesses, streets and areas in Wales, Derbyshire and South Yorkshire are named after him.
By December 1916, the war had prevented further mining developments in the Doncaster district.
One news report said: ‘Very trifling progress is being made at Armthorpe owing to the war. In fact, only the reservoir and the laying down of the railway sidings have been proceeded with and only men outside the claims of the military have been employed.’
At the beginning of April, 1917, the South Yorkshire Joint
Railway Co started putting in a temporary connection of their line to the projected Armthorpe pit in preparation for developments after the war.
Important work continued on the Armthorpe colliery village during December 1919, with the Doncaster Rural District Council announcing that an application had been made to borrow £12,000 for sewers.
News of further progress at the colliery, now becoming known as Markham Main, made the headlines in June 1920. Construction work was stopped because of cement and the shortage had thrown between 30 and 40 men out of employment. Fortunately, the work was welladvanced and this temporary stoppage would not prevent workmen continuing to erect the machinery and plant.
But a tragedy occurred in October when George Adlington, working at the top of the headgear, fell from scaffold and dropped 64ft to his death.
Although Armthorpe’s new pit advanced after the war, work was stopped for a period in 1921 due to unsettled conditions in the coal industry. Sinking operations resumed at the end of May 1922.
Sinking the shafts was not without tragedy. During October 1923, Tom Shaw and Thomas Durkin were working in No. 2 shaft, at a depth of 120 yards, when the ‘hoppit’ (hoist bucket) crashed into them. The Borough Coroner returned a verdict of ‘death by misadventure’ for both men.
Coal was reached at Armthorpe/MarkhamMain early in May 1924 at a depth of about 730 yards and two 17ft diameter shafts were sunk.
A weekly coal output of 16,000 tons was achieved by 1926 and 20,000 tons by the end of the decade as the Barnsley Seam was worked extensively.
In the colliery village, the first house was occupied in January 1920 and nearly a 1,000 houses were completed around 1927. The colliery company, which owned the properties, deducted rents, rates and lighting costs from the miners’ weekly wages.
Collieries were often noted for their enterprising brass bands, bringing enjoyment to themselves and their audiences.
Armthorpe’s Markham Main Colliery St John’s Ambulance band was formed in 1925.
A set of second-hand instruments was acquired and band members had to pay weekly contributions to pay off their debt.
An unexpected visitor – author JB Priestley – appeared at the colliery on Friday, June 20 1942. He was researching an article called ‘This problem of Coal’. Prior to descending the pit, Priestley walked through Armthorpe colliery village where he chatted candidly to miners and their families.
Forty-two years on, the miners’ strike was creating resentment. The refusal of some miners to support the strike was seen as a massive betrayal by those who did participate.
In Armthorpe, a number of ‘strike breakers’ came under attack. One individual’s house was daubed with white gloss paint and a blue aerosol paint spray was used to smear his front door. The paint also hit neighbours on both sides.
In another incident, a miner’s car was covered in red paint. The attack on the car came just as NCB workmen finished repainting his house after it was daubed in brown and white paint.
Whilst Markham Main was closed on October 16 1992, it was subsequently re-opened by Coal Investments, with Malcolm Edwards, a former British Coal commercial director, in charge.
Sadly, the venture floundered and Markham Main finally closed in 1996.
People have come from all over the world to see us and sign our visitors’ book.