Having some time to kill on one of my recent jaunts up north, we popped into this place as it was close by and got shown round by a very knowledgeable chap who used to work down the pit. He certainly knew his stuff and was fascinating to listen to, so much so I almost forgot to take any photos.
Pleasley was sunk in the 1870s and produced coal until 1983. By some miracle it escaped complete demolition after closure and it still retains its headstocks, engine-houses and steam winders, one of which was installed in 1904 by Lilleshall Co. Ltd. and the other in 1922 by Markham & Co. Ltd. Pleasley Colliery is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is in the process of being developed into a mining heritage site. The engine-house roofs and the chimney have been renovated and now the winders have been restored by members of the Friends of Pleasley Pit preservation group.
Now I know this isn't urban exploration strictly speaking, but it might be of interest to some because the winding house here houses not one, but TWO very fine examples of steam driven winders in excellent condition and being restored currently to a very high standard. Infact they think given time and money they may eventually get them to move under steam again at some point in the future. This was all still in use up utill 1983 when the pit closed, which quite frankly was amazing as most had been converted to electrically driven winding gear by that time.
It's worth noting if you want to pop up here that there's a fantastic little cafe on site which do great tea and bacon cobs.
Just a few pictures for those who are interested.
Outside
Inside
This winder is in the process of being restored
And this one has been restored
There's a whole load of mining artifacts and other interesting bits and pieces there to look at, but if you want to see that then you'll have to pop in yourself.
More information on the Pleasley Colliery Website http://www.pleasley-colliery.org.uk/
Thanks for looking
Maniac.
Pleasley was sunk in the 1870s and produced coal until 1983. By some miracle it escaped complete demolition after closure and it still retains its headstocks, engine-houses and steam winders, one of which was installed in 1904 by Lilleshall Co. Ltd. and the other in 1922 by Markham & Co. Ltd. Pleasley Colliery is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is in the process of being developed into a mining heritage site. The engine-house roofs and the chimney have been renovated and now the winders have been restored by members of the Friends of Pleasley Pit preservation group.
Now I know this isn't urban exploration strictly speaking, but it might be of interest to some because the winding house here houses not one, but TWO very fine examples of steam driven winders in excellent condition and being restored currently to a very high standard. Infact they think given time and money they may eventually get them to move under steam again at some point in the future. This was all still in use up utill 1983 when the pit closed, which quite frankly was amazing as most had been converted to electrically driven winding gear by that time.
It's worth noting if you want to pop up here that there's a fantastic little cafe on site which do great tea and bacon cobs.
Just a few pictures for those who are interested.
Outside
Inside
This winder is in the process of being restored
And this one has been restored
There's a whole load of mining artifacts and other interesting bits and pieces there to look at, but if you want to see that then you'll have to pop in yourself.
More information on the Pleasley Colliery Website http://www.pleasley-colliery.org.uk/
Thanks for looking
Maniac.
Last edited by a moderator:
