Tag Archives: Grove Colliery

90 years ago today: The Grove Pit Disaster

Ninety years ago today, the 1st October 1930, an underground blast killed 14 men working in a coal mine, The Grove Colliery, underneath Brownhills Common. Ten of those lost souls are buried in the Churchyard of St James, Brownhills, in … Continue reading

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Living next door to the Grove – what do you know?

Last year I featured a very popular set of images from a place I genuinely didn’t realise still existed: The Grove Colliery, the remnants of which – the house and offices situated just off Lime Lane, between Pelsall, Brownhills, Norton and Great Wyrley – were documented by old pal of the blog Simon Swain and drone wizard Steve Martin also captured the site from the air.

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The Grove Colliery – remembering a lost pit

Last year I featured a very popular set of images from a place I genuinely didn’t realise still existed: The Grove Colliery, the remnants of which – the house and offices situated just off Lime Lane, between Pelsall, Brownhills, Norton and Great Wyrley – were documented by old pal off the blog Simon Swain and posted here as a gallery I include below.

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Was the investigation into the Grove Pit Disaster a whitewash?

The 1st October 2016 was the 86th anniversary of the worst modern-day pit disaster in our area, the Grove Pit Disaster, in which fourteen miners perished following an explosion a mile and a half below Brownhills Common, beneath the Ring Sun Inn.

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All that remains of the last one standing

Following my feature yesterday on perhaps the last passenger train to ever traverse the line from Aldridge to the Conduit Colliery in Norton Canes, Simon Swain has sent me a great gallery of images of the Grove Colliery site as it is today.
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A mine of information

In my last article, I pointed out that I’d received extra information on a couple of posts over the weekend – both on the Anglesey/sea question, and also on the Mine Rescue Team image shared by John Sale and Bill Mayo.

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Rescue me

The great Bill Mayo, local historian and photo collector, has recently been digging in his files and found a few mystery images, like the one above of a local mines rescue team.

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A town united in mourning

The Grove Pit Disaster that took the lives of fourteen men on October 1st, 1930 left deep scars on the Brownhills and Norton communities – and the funeral and memorial service for the men taken was a huge public event that drew massive crowds.
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A local mining accident – more information available

A couple of days ago I asked for information about a local mining accident, suffered by the Grandfather of reader Gill Joesbury, but the request it was a bit of a mission impossible, as we didn’t have a name to go on – since then, Gill has now been in touch with more information.

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A local mining accident – can you help?

Here’s a quick one to get the researchers scratching their heads – and it’s a very long shot, but please do what you can, I’ve asked for more information from Gill, and I’m hoping she’ll comment here.

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One of the last standing

Here’s the final blast of pictures from the mystery archive found by local historian Clive Roberts back at the beginning of November – these images are remarkable as the show the Grove Colliery on the Cannock Extension Canal at Lime Lane in 1958 and 1959, and I know of few extant images of the time – perhaps the only good representation being in the 1963 cinefilm of Brownhills, donated by Brian Stringer.
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Private investigations

David Evans has had access in recent weeks to lots of material from the Norton Canes Historical Society – one of the things he found was a wonderful 1975 report into the Grove Pit Disaster.
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After the gold rush

I thought that today, I’d dig some interesting mapping out of the archive. In the light of Gerald Reece’s talk on Brownhills and it’s colliery history, I thought this 1884 1:2,500 scale plan of Wyrley Common was due an outing. It shows – in some clarity – the extent of mining in the Engine Lane area at the height of the Victorian period.
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Underground investigations – The Grove Pit Disaster remembered

The 1st October 2012 – a couple of hours away from when I post this – will mark 82 years since the Grove Pit Disaster that killed fourteen local men in the mine that stood just off Lime Lane, on … Continue reading

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Holding on for a hero

Top bloke and contributor Stevie378 recently commented that a relative was in a local mine rescue team. With that in mind, and especially for his mum, whom I know to be a keen reader of this blog, I’ve dredged the … Continue reading

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Odds and sods

One of the things about compiling the weekly old pictures post that irritates is that there are some really interesting old images floating about that you just can’t fit into a post. One or two-offs that don’t really fit in … Continue reading

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Remembrance

I was pleased to see today that there were loads of flowers on the Grove Pit Memorial in Brownhills Cemetery. It’s nice to see so many people remember those lost men, and marked their passing so lovingly. We shall never … Continue reading

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The men below

Eighty years ago today, on the 1st October, 1930, fourteen men died underground, as a result of a gas explosion at the Grove, or Brownhills Colliery. It is thought that the men perished when a naked light was struck in … Continue reading

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Grove Colliery Disaster Memorial Service: This Saturday.

My most grateful thanks go out to Janet Whittaker, who kindly answered my plea for details of the memorial service for the Grove Pit Disaster memorial service, which will be taking place at St. James Church, Church Road, Brownhills on … Continue reading

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The Grove Colliery Disaster – details of memorial event, anyone?

I’ve been aware for a few weeks now that there is to be a memorial service for the victims of the Grove Colliery Disaster shortly. Unfortunately, what I don’t know, and can’t seem to find out, is where and when … Continue reading

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Was yer ferther a miner?

I had a lovely email from Janet Whittaker, who regular readers will remember asked last week about the grave of her grandfather, John Bernard Whittaker. John died in the Grove Pit Disaster in 1930, and Janet, her family having moved … Continue reading

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John Bernard Whittaker, rest in peace.

Further to yesterday’s enquiry from Janet Whittaker, and my subsequent blog post, this evening I went to see if I could find the resting place of John Whittaker, Janet’s grandfather, tragically lost along with 13 other miners in the Grove … Continue reading

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The Grove Pit Disaster Mining Memorial, Brownhills Cemetery

I’ve had an enquiry from Janet Whittaker, granddaughter of John Whittaker, who died in the Grove Pit Disaster in 1930. Janet had this to say: I came accross your website whilst looking for a site for Walsall Wood Cemertary as … Continue reading

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