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Llanbradach Colliery, 1890's.
The sinking of Llanbradach No.1 pit (York, 570 yards) completed in 1893 by the Cardiff Collieries Ltd. No.2 pit (Lancaster, 584 yards) was begun the following year. The same company held the ownership until Nationalisation in 1947.
In 1901 eight miners were killed here in an underground
explosion. The explosion occurred in the "Pretoria district " of
No. 2 pit and it was thought a small pocket of gas was ignited by
shot-firing, which then reacted with coal dust causing a more
powerful blast.
The dead were;
George Constance David Evans William Isaac George Jeffreys Alfred Kemp James Moore Fred Probert Thomas Rees.
By the outbreak of World War 1 there were 2,330 men employed at this colliery.
From a report 1923, there were 757 employed at No.1 pit working the Nine Feet and Four Feet seam and 1,297 at No.2 working the Four and Six Feet seams. There were 366 employed on the surface.
During the early 1920's No.3 pit was sunk to mine the Nos.2 and 3 Rhondda house-coal seams.
Total output reached its peak in 1935 when 700,000 tons was produced.
In 1945 there were 1,506 employed.
Although this pit produced 500,000 tons of coal in 1959 it was still placed on the closure list.
Llanbradach closed in December 1961.
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