Dysart, Frances Colliery: Surface Arrangement

Date 24 July 1991

Event ID 1192204

Category Recording

Type Field Visit

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1192204

NT39SW 25.0

Surface Arrangement layout at 1:2500 scale - see MS 8435/1

1. Fan Drift and Fan House (ventilation mine), post-1943:

Walls: one-storey, rendered brick

Roof: fan houses have flat roofs covered with bitumen felt.

Windows: steel-framed, with reinforced glass

Floors: concrete

Other Details: Of the two fan towers, the east tower is of shuttered concrete, the west tower is of steek plate. The connecting conduits between the towers and the drift are also of steel construction.

2. Fan Drift Winder House, post-1943:

Walls: one-storey, rendered brick

Roof: flat roof covered with bitumen felt

Windows: steel framed, with reinforced glass

Floors: concrete

Other Details: contains electric winder used to wind men and materials down 600m drift.

3. Fan Drift Winder Cable

4. Main Winding Engine House, 1943:

Walls: one-storey, cement rendered brick, steel-framed

Roof: corrugated cement asbestos, pitched, concrete skews

Windows: steel-framed, reinforced glass

Floors: concrete

Other Details: Small external electricity transformer at SE corner. Built in 1943 - bleak appearance due to wartime building standards.

5. Canteen, post-1960:

Walls: one-storey rendered, probably brick

Roof: flat, slight slope, bitumen felt covered

Windows: Steel-framed, concrete sills. some barred

Floors: concrete

Other Details: now used as store [1991]

6. Headstock and Main Shaft, 1943:

Other Details: New tandem headframe designed by Dickson Mann Limited in 1943. All-steel, built around original headframe, pulleys and winding ropes being transferred to new headframe on a Sunday, only losing a few hours work. The shaft is eliptical (23 feet 6 inches in length by 12 feet 6 inches in width), 100 fathoms deep and brick -lined. Two pages have rail guides, each having two decks. Thee cages measure 10feet long by 4 feet in width, each deck accommodating one mine car.

7. Medical Centre, built between 1914 and 1943:

Walls: one-storey

Roof: flat, sloping, covered with bituman felt

Windows: wood-framed, concrete sills and lintels

Floors: concrete

Other Details: 'L'-shaped wing to east similarly constructed and contains a methane store

8. Baths (including toilets, heated lockers etc.), built between 1914 and 1943:

Walla: one-storey, rendered brick, panited white

Roof: two main ranges gabled, corrugated sheet metal each with a five round sheet-meta ridge ventilators. Central bay, and projections at east and west ends of block have flat roofs covered with bitume felt.

Windows: steel-framed, with wall vetilators beneath

Floors: concrete

Oher Details: concrete tower/chimney towards east end marks position of calorifier.

9. General Offices - Main Office and Pay Hall, built between 1914 and 1943:

Walls: one-storey, rendered brick

Roof: corrugated cement asbestos, hipped at east end and corrugated cement asbestos awning over entrance at east end

Windows: wood-framed, sash and case

Floors: concrete

Other Details: Main administration, including managers and deputy manager's 's offices

10. Electricity Sub-station, built between 1914 and 1943:

Walls: one storey, brick, painted, buttresses on west and east walls

Roof: corrugated cement asbestos, gabled, concrete skews

Windows: steel-framed, segmental-arched at ground floor level on east and west sides, circular windows in north and south gables

Floors: concrete

Other Details: steel-framed external stair with wooden treads to upper floor on north side of the building. Small extension built onto north end, built into slope on lower course of brick, main walls and pitched roof built entirely of corrugated sheet metal.

11.Fire Station, built between 1914 and 1943:

Walls: one storey, brick, painted white

Roof: flat with slight slope, covered with bitumen felt

windows: steel-framed, with reinforced glass

Floors: probably concrete

Other Details: a lean-to extension on south side of item 10 (electricity sub-station)

12. Control Room, Lamp Room, Time Office, post-1943 and pre-1968:

Walls: one -storey, rendered brick upper walls, exposed brick courses at wall base

Roof: gabled, corrugated cement asbestos on main bay, corrigated sheet metal over lean-to bay on north side

Windows: mostly steel-framed

Floors :concrete

Other Details: main block consists of central bay with addition of lean-to bay on north side and lean-to porch on south side

13.Electrical Workshop, possibly pre-1914, possibly former engine house:

Walls: one-storey, steel-framed, brick-infill panels

Roof: corrugated sheet-metal

Windows: steel-framed

Floors: concrete

Other Details: appears to be newer brick than the main body of the pithead buildings (item 17), onto the north side of which it is attached. Pit car hist is the steel-framed structure projecting from the north side of the building, itself covered by a small corrugated sheet-metal canopy.

14. Electricity Sub Station, post -1943 but before 1968:

Walls: one -storey, rendered brick, exposed at base

Roof: sloping, corrugated cement asbestos

Windows: steel-framed, reinforced glass

Floors: concrete

Other Details: Outside building on east side are three Bryce, 300v. transformers and on the west side, two smaller Johnson Phillips 3,300v. transformers.

15Open Storage Space

16. Compressor House, post 1943 but pre-1968:

Walls: 0ne storey, brick, painted white with buttresses

Roof: gabled, corrugated cement asbestos

Windows: steel-framed, three pairs of tall wooden double doors in north wall

Floors: concrete

Other Details: Contains three Alley and McLellan type 45B air compressors, electrically driven, producing 1,000 cubic feet air per minute. A fourth machine, also Alley and McLellan was type 23B. There is also a transformer outside the south west corner of the building.

17. Car Hall and Main Winding Level, of mixed origin - parts possibly pre-1914 with major alterations in 1943:

Walls: two-storeys, steel-framed infilled brick panels

Roof: gabled, corrugated sheet metal

Windows: Steel-framed

Floors: concrete, upper floor shuttered concrete

Other Details: Upper level contains car hall with back-shunt car circuit with tippler, standby tippler, creeper etc. After screening , coal passed on to coal preparation plant butted onto the west side (now demolished). A large steel external double stair leads to upper level on east side.

18. Tool Store and Rest Room/ Shaftsman's Cabin, built between 1893 and 1914:

Walls: one-storey, brick, painted white

Roof: gabled, slate, concrete skews

Windows: wood-framed, now boarded up [in 1991]

Floors: probably concrete

Other Details: Formerly weighbridge house. Weighbridge on north side and rail-mounted, made by Pooley of Birmingham. At its east end, there is a brick-built derelict building which has an oil tank mounted on its east end.

19. Winding-Engine House for Shaft Repairs, built between 1943 and 1949:

Walls: one-storey, brick

Roof: sloping, corrugated sheet metal

Windows: wood framed

Floors: concrete

Other Details: none

20. Rope Shed, post-1960:

Walls: one-storey, corrugated sheet metal on light steel frame

Roof: gabled, corrugated sheet metal

Floors: concrete

Other Details: Shorter block of similar construction at west end of main block, and has boarded-up wood framed windows.

21. Retaining Wall

Other Details: Above ground level, concrete posts infilled with brick panels. Below ground level, concrete rendered surface but exposed brick near to pithead.

22. Coal Preparation Plant, built 1 between 1914 and 1943:

Other details: Demolished, formerly attached to pithead complex (see item 17)

23. Colliery Store, built between 1949 and 1968:

Walls: one -storey, brick base, cement asbestos upper walls

Roof: corrugated cement asbestos, shallow pitch curving into wall heads

Roof: gables, corrugated cement with skylights

Windows: round window in east gable

Floors: concrete

Other Details Contains rescue room. Lean-to brick-built extension with corrugated sheet metal roof at west end, containing urinal.

2425. Training Centre, post-1959:

Walls: one storey, wood, horizontal tongue and groove boards

Roof: gabled, covered with bitumenn felt

Windows: large, wood-framed

Floors: wood

Other Details: disused [1991]

26. Coal Storage Area

27. Spoil Bing

28. Former Drift -Mine winder House/ Oil Stores, built between 1914 and 1943:

Walls: one -storey, brick, painted white, truncated and containing exposed steel beams

Roof: flat, slightly sloping

Windows: wood-framed

Floors: concrete

Other Details: a wedge-shaped building which appears to have been cut back. Current use unknown [1991] and was part of a much larger structure since demolished [by 1991].

29. Mechanics Stores, built between 1959 and 1968:

Walls: one- storey, brick

Roof: sloping, east half corrugated cement asbestos, wets part metal clad

Windows: wood-framed

Floors: concrete

Other Details: a long, roughly-built range of stores

30. Cement Store, , partly built in 1968?

Walls: one-storey, brick with concrete render

Roof: sloping corrugated sheet metal

Windows: no information

Floors: concrete

Other Details: partly built by 1968?

31. Incline for Tubway to Upper Level of Car Hall and Main Winding level (item 17), built between 1914 and 1943 in part:

Walls: one-storey, wedge-shaped elevation, brick

Roof: flat, slightly sloping, covered with bitumen felt

Windows: steel-framed

Floors: probably concrete (not viewed)

Other Details: ?disused [1991]

32. Store and Joiner's Shop, shown on 1943 map:

Walls: one-storey, brick, painted white

Roof: sloping, corrugated sheet metal

Windows: steel-framed, reinforced glass

Floors: concrete

Other Details: none

33. Electrician's Apprentice Training Centre, possibly in 1943 block:

Walls: one-storey, brick, painted white

Roof: sloping , corrugated sheet metal

Windows: wood-framed

Floors: concrete

Other details: none

34. Emergency Diesel Generator and Air Receivers for Winder, post 1943:

Walls: one-storey, rendered brick butted onto item 4

Roof: sloping , corrugated sheet metal

Windows: no information

Floors: concrete

outside buildings are two cylindrical steel air receivers (100psi swp) and emergency diese; generator backup for winder

35. Explosives Store, post 1943:

Walls: one-storey, rendered, possibly brick

Roof: flat, sloping concrete, covered with bitumen felt

Windows: small, reinforced glass, steel frames, concrete sills, protected by vertical steel bars

Floors: probably concrete

Other Details: steel doors

36. Bicycle Shed, post -1943:

Walls: one-storey, brick end walls, back (north) wall corrugated sheet metal

Roof: sloping corrugated sheet metal

Windows: none

Other Details: open-fronted, probably housed about 70 bicycles

37. Electricity Sub-station, built 1943 and 1959

38. Vent Branch, built between 1914 and 1943:

Walls: one storey, rendered, brick, painted white

Roof: sloping, covered with bitumen felt

Windows: none

Floors: concrete

Other Details: very small rectangular building, use unknown

39 Railway Siding: no details

40. Store: no details

visited by RCAHMS, Industrial Survey (MK Oglethorpe), 24 July 1991.