Bevercotes Colliery

Bevercotes Colliery
Location
Bevercotes Colliery is located in Nottinghamshire
Bevercotes Colliery
Bevercotes Colliery
Location in Nottinghamshire
LocationNottinghamshire
County councilNottinghamshire
CountryEngland
Coordinates53°15′29″N 0°57′40″W / 53.258°N 0.961°W / 53.258; -0.961
Production
ProductsCoal
History
Opened1965
Closed1993
Owner
CompanyBritish Coal

Bevercotes Colliery was the first fully automated mine. It went into production in July 1965.[1] Located in Bevercotes to the north of Ollerton, the colliery was, alongside Cotgrave Colliery, one of two new collieries opened in the county of Nottinghamshire in the 1960s.[2] The colliery was closed in 1993 and turned into a nature reserve.[3]

Bevercotes Colliery in 1988

The mine was served by a single track, 4.5 mi (7.2 km) branch railway opened in June 1960.[4]

Miners' strike 1984-5

During the UK miners' strike (1984–85), Bevercotes Colliery voted approximately two-to-one against strike action in a ballot held on 15–16 March 1984.[5] During the strike, Chris Butcher, a miner from Bevercotes Colliery, became well known as 'Silver Birch' who was funded by the Daily Mail to travel around the UK actively opposing the strike; he was also involved in organising legal action to block the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), who were running the strike.[6] In October 1985, Bevercotes miners voted to leave the NUM in favour of the Union of Democratic Mineworkers by 782 votes out of 1,372 cast (57%).[5]

References

  1. ^ "U.K: World's First Remotely Controlled Mine Opened at Retford, England -- Push-Button Colliery Will Produce 6,000 Tons of Coal a Day". www.itnsource.com. ITN. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  2. ^ "The coal industry in Nottinghamshire > Overview". www.nottsheritagegateway.org.uk. Nottinghamshire Heritage Gateway. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  3. ^ Edgar, Gordon. "Bevercotes Colliery". Flickr. Flickr. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  4. ^ "Colliery Branch Construction in Nottinghamshire". The Railway Magazine. Vol. 106, no. 709. May 1960. pp. 352–354.
  5. ^ a b David, Amos. "The Nottinghamshire miners, the Union of Democratic Mineworkers and the 1984-85 miners strike: scabs or scapegoats?" (PDF). University of Nottingham repository. University of Nottingham. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  6. ^ Maguire, Kevin (29 February 2004). "No regrets from key players in dispute". The Guardian. The Guardian. Retrieved 17 December 2016.