The Pretoria Pit Disaster
(No.3 Bank Pit, Hulton Colliery, Westhoughton)
21st of December 1910

The Pretoria Pit explosion was the 2rd worst mining disaster in British history. This project to record information about the disaster is a cooperative venture involving members of the Lancashire OnLine Parish Clerk project and the Westhoughton Local History Group. Many other people, either in a private capacity or as members of public authorities, have freely and generously given information and help. All are acknowledged below, but we wish to give special thanks to Dr. Trevor Griffiths of Edinburgh University, who opened his invaluable resource on the financial impacts of the disaster on the families involved, and provided us with data otherwise unavailable.

Information will be presented in two or more stages. As befits a family history project, this first stage concentrates on the personal details of the 344 men and boys who were killed. We believe this is the most comprehensive, freely available record of the victims of any British mining disaster. In later stages we will describe the explosion and its effects, with maps, transcripts of reports, and photographs. Eventually we hope to build up a photo gallery of as many of the victims as possible.

Crowds at the pit head on the day of the explosion. The headgear of No.3 Pit where the explosion occurred is the one with steam billowing around. Downcast shaft No.4 is in the foreground.

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