Woodhorn Colliery

A short walk around the site of Woodhorn Colliery

Tbe well preserved Woodhorn Coliery near Ashington in the north east is a survivor of the an industry that once dominated the area. The mine opened in 1894 and closed in 1981. Though the once busy sidings where train loads of coal were dispatched are now tidy lawns the majority of the mine buildings themselves survive. 

More information about the Woodhorn Museum can be found on the Museums Northumberland website.

Google Map

1923 Map (bottom of map)

1923 Map (top of map)

I cycled from Morpeth station, mainly along the A197. At the time of writing the railway through Ashington is freight only, however it is currently being upgraded to reopen it to passengers in 2024 so it will soon be possible to walk or cycle to the Woodhorn Museum from Ashington station. North of Ashington is a section of cycle path next to Woodhorn Colliery Houses on the road named Aged Miners Homes. This was the route of the line onward to Newbiggin by the Sea. The line later diverged to the north to serve Lynemouth power station, which it still does but with biomass rather than coal. The former line towards Newbiggin is now a cycle route.

The entrance to Woodhorn Museum is just north of the roundabout with the A189 after crossing under the railway bridge and approaches the site from the east.

Below - Once past the ticket booths the path heads to the main colliery buildings.

Below - On the western edge of the buildings are the engine shed and workshops.

Below - To the north of the workshops are the former stable blocks.

Below - To the north of the stable block is a narrow gauge heritage railway, the Woodhorn Railway. The 2ft gauge line runs to a lakeside cafe and car park about 1km north in the Queen Elizabeth II Country Park established where the spoil tips for the mine would have been. My visit was in 2019 and at the time of writing the railway hasn't reopened since the Covid 19 pandemic though. More information about the railway can be found on the Woodhorn Railway website.

Below - West of the two shafts and headstocks is a memorial to the 13 men killed in an accident in 1916. More information about the accident can be found in this Chronicle Live article commemorating the centenary of the accident.

Below - The two sets of headstocks and their winding houses. In many closed mines these have been the first remnant of the mine to go as they are scrapped for their metal. Unfortunately that was the fate of the metal buildings of the coal screens that stood to the right of the picture. As well as the two winding engines there was a smaller auxiliary engine in the building between the two headstocks which also drove a fan.

Below - The former auxiliary engine on display. The machine has a small winding drum which seems to be set up to wind cables from the direction of the shaft to the east.

Below - The fan house between the two sets of headstocks.

Below - The auxiliary engine house.

Below - The foot of one of the headstocks with the narrow gauge lines from the shaft entrance that would have continued to the demolished coal screens building behind.

Below - Old sign in the buildings around one of the shafts.

Below - Some of the narrow wagons used to move equipment and explosives rather than coal.

Below - The top of one of the shafts.

Below - One of the headstocks with its winding house to the left and the auxiliary engine house and fan house in the foreground.

Below - The headstocks and their winding houses.

Below - To the east of the main pit buildings is a later additional fan house. This would have been electrically powered rather than having a steam engine.

North of the pithead buildings is a modern building housing parts of the museum including art exhibitions that feature the Ashington Group Gallery, a collection of paintings by local miners who formed an after-work club. The building is designed to be reminiscent of a coal cutting machine.