Arniston Colliery, Gore Pit
Colliery (Period Unassigned)
Site Name Arniston Colliery, Gore Pit
Classification Colliery (Period Unassigned)
Canmore ID 148283
Site Number NT36SW 42.01
NGR NT 3391 6142
NGR Description Centred on mining activity area
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/148283
- Council Midlothian
- Parish Newbattle
- Former Region Lothian
- Former District Midlothian
- Former County Midlothian
NT36SW 42.01 3391 6142
ARNISTON Colliery (GORE PIT)
Location: Gorebridge
Previous Owners: Arniston Coal Company
Types of Coal: Gas, House and Steam
Sinking/Production Commenced: 1858
Year Closed: 1962
Average Workforce: 980
Peak Workforce: 990
Peak Year: 1951
Shaft/Mine Details: 2 shafts, Emily (NT36SW 42.00) and Gore (NT36SW 42.01). Gore 214m deep, sunk 1878.
Details in 1948: Output 950 tons per day, 237,500 tons per annum. 964 employees. Norton washer [equipment for the wet cleaning of coal]. Baths, first-aid room, canteen. Electricity from SE Scotland Electricity Board. Report dated 15-07-1948.
Other Details: Arniston Coal Company was established in 1874, and Gore was its first pit, having a rectangular brick-lined shaft 213m deep, completed in 1878. The two pits (Emily and Gore) were subsequently known as Arniston Colliery. Sixty six men died in a fire in 1899. One of the most famous features of the pit was the circular pithead baths at Gore, designed by J A Dempster, completed at a cost of £12,000 in 1936, with facilities for 570 men, including 52 shower cubicles. A re-organsisation was planned for the pit in 1948.
M K Oglethorpe 2006.
Field Visit (April 2009 - February 2015)
The Borders Railway Project proposals are to reinstate the Newcraighall to Tweedbank section of the former Waverley Line. The reinstated railway line will be approximately 48km long and the majority of the route will use the existing railway embankment.
Several field surveys, archaeological evaluations and standing building surveys were undertaken by CFA Archaeology from April 2009 until February 2015.
CFA Archaeology