Roundwood Colliery was a coal mine situated in the Don Valley, about north of

Rotherham Rotherham ( ) is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies at the confluence of the River Rother, South Yorkshire, River Rother, from which the town gets its name, and the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don. It is the largest settlement ...

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire ...

, England on the borders of Rotherham and

Rawmarsh Rawmarsh (locally ) is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham, in South Yorkshire, England. Historically within the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is north-northeast from Rotherham town centre and south-southwest of Swinton. The ...

History

Coal gathering in the Aldwarke area, lands of the old manor which stretch across the Don Valley from Parkgate to

Thrybergh Thrybergh is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England, from Rotherham. It had a population of 4,327 in 2001, reducing to 4,058 at the 2011 Census. History Thrybergh – which is mentione ...

, goes back to the 17th century with documents relating to tenants' rights of way over the grounds and the river Dunne (Don) at Aldwarke ford, on both sides of river; and to any person fetching coals from pits. Earlier records still refer to charkcole (charcoal) to be cut in Rounde woodde near Aldwarke Manor house. It is from Rounde woodde that this colliery takes its name.

Deep Mining

The Deep Mine, named Roundwood, was set a short distance north of

Aldwarke Main Colliery Aldwarke Main Colliery was a coal mine sunk in the Don Valley, near Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. History The name "Aldwarke" refers to an area in the Don Valley about 2 miles north of Rotherham, South Yorkshire stretching to the outsk ...

between the main line of the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 in rail transport, 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had ...

, north of Parkgate and Rawmarsh and the Mexborough to Sheffield line of the

Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR) was formed in 1847 when the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway joined with authorised but unbuilt railway companies, forming a proposed network from Manchester to Grims ...

, north of Parkgate and Aldwarke. It was established in the early 1860s and had connections to both railways and to staithes alongside the River Don. In 1880 the colliery was listed as being owned by Cooper, Sellars and Company, becoming The Roundwood Colliery Company by 1896. This company was purchased by

John Brown and Company John Brown and Company of Clydebank was a Scottish marine engineering and shipbuilding firm. It built many notable and world-famous ships including , , , , , and ''Queen Elizabeth 2''. At its height, from 1900 to the 1950s, it was one of the ...

becoming the Dalton Main Colliery Company in 1899, and who undertook the sinking of

Silverwood Colliery Silverwood Colliery was a coal mining, colliery situated between Thrybergh and Ravenfield in Yorkshire, England. Originally called Dalton Main, it was renamed after a local woodland. It was owned by Dalton Main Collieries Ltd. History Dalton ...

. These collieries being joined by a railway built by the owners and known as

John Brown's Private Railway John Brown's railway was a line constructed in the Rotherham area of South Yorkshire, England, in order to link Silverwood Colliery to staithes situated alongside the River Don. The line, along with the collieries, became the sole property of J ...

and over which a

Paddy Mail Paddy mails were workmen's trains operated by companies in Britain to transport workers from their "shanty villages" to their place of work or between the work sites. Originally they were operated by railway contractors on temporary tracks laid ...

service operated until the 1930s when it was discontinued in favour of "pit buses" which were operated by private companies and, later Rotherham Corporation. From 1908 the collieries were joined underground. This underground joining of the collieries meant that the drawing of coal could be concentrated at Silverwood and the Roundwood shafts used for materials and men. In 1947 the colliery passed to the

National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...

and was closed in the early 1960s.

References

{{coord, 53, 27, 21, N, 1, 19, 29, W, region:GB_type:landmark_source:wikimapia, display=title Coal mines in Rotherham Coal mines in South Yorkshire Underground mines in England