Monument record 30/1 - Denna/Denhall Colliery, originally Ness Colliery

<1> Ordnance Survey, 1870-1982, Ordnance Survey Archaeological Record Card, SJ27NE3/1961 (Index). SCH2487.

Site of former coal mines in the area centred on SJ 29 76 near Denhall quay, which was first mentioned in 1184.

<2> 0, Industrial Archaeology County Treasures Index, 3/AR/ 038 (Book). SCH1479.

Denna Colliery on Dee Estuary disused and not investigated. "Coal to be raised out of the …. Bank Heys" 1768.

<3> Ashmore, O, 1982, The Industrial Archaeology of North West England, p.50 (Book). SCH3181.

Spoil heaps, pit bank and shafts of colliery which operated from c.1850 until 1928, latterly worked by Wirral Colliery Co., employing 200-250 men. Remains of Denhall Quay to south and of railway branch from Birkenhead Railway to north.

<4> Dawson G, 1996, Wyrale: Wirral Topics, p. 39-62 (Book). SCH3853.

Coal from the area was recovered from Romano-British smithying features excavated at Irby. Some small scale coal extraction recorded from the 1600's. First commercial deep mining began when the Stanley's of Hooton opened a colliery between 1750 and 1760; skilled labour was brought into the area from North Wales and Lancashire for the purpose. In 1791 two underground canals were cut to transport the coal, within the mines, by boat. Early in the C19th the canals were pumped out and replaced by a horse drawn railway to improve efficiency. References to the Denna Coal Works in the 1830’s and in 1841. The 1846 Tithe map and apportionment of Ness record Charles Stanley as the owner of the Denhall Colliery and Limekilns. Closed by the 1850’s, mainly due to the silting up of Denhall Quay, the main shipping point for the coal to Wales, Ireland and the Isle of Man. A new shaft known as the King Mine sunk in 1876 and opened in 1877 with a new winding house, engine and pumps. The colliery was re-opened and renamed the Neston Colliery Company. The deepest seam was 500ft below ground level. A rail link was also established at this time to connect the colliery to the main line, in order to transport the coal away. The railway companies became one of the collieries main customers. A miners strike in 1884 lead to the closure of the Neston Colliery Company. The mine re-opened under the name of the Wirral Colliery Company. In 1891 it employed 153 men and boys. The 1899 and 1912 maps shows the Denhall Colliery closed and the Wirral Colliery were operating two shafts. The Wirral Colliery went bankrupt in 1911, but soon re-opened only to close again in 1914. It was re-opened yet again in 1915 and renamed the Wirral Colliery (1915) Ltd, only to be taken over by the government in 1916. This lead to most of the pit ponies being put out to grass and replaced by modern machinery to increase production for the war effort. In 1919 it was returned to the ownership of the Wirral Colliery (1915) Ltd. The mine ceased production during the general strike of 1926, to re-open after in 1927 for only a few months before closing due to being uneconomic on March 12th 1927.

<5> Ordnance Survey, 1871-1882, Ordnance Survey County Series (Epoch 1) 25 inch to 1 mile - Cheshire (Maps and Plans). SCH2462.

<6> Annakin-Smith, A, 2006, The Neston Collieries and Associated Industrial Workings, 1759 to 1855., p.22-3, p.105 & p.145-8 (Unpublished Document). SCH4771.

Anthony Annakin-Smith does not believe the name 'Denna Colliery' was ever established at Ness. 'Denna Coal Works' appears on Thomas Boydell's map surveyed 1770-1 and 'Denhall Coal' on Evans 1794 map. The earliest records by the owners (in 1769) refer to 'Ness Colliery' and this is the name used in almost all correspondence, financial accounts, land tax returns, advertisments, etc. Also, while there may have been an anchorage at Denhall in 1184, the Denhall Quay we see today dates from 1791. None of the evidence to date supports the assertion that the Romans used Neston coal. Nor is there any evidence that the coal was being worked in the 1600's, although this is not impossible. There is no evidence of miners being brought in from Lancashire in the early days. (See also source 7)

<7> Annakin-Smith, A, 2007-8, The Neston Collieries - Birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in Wirral and West Cheshire, Cheshire History, 47, 2007-8, p.96-111 (Article in Journal). SCH9364.