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Garn Pit, Blaenavon, 1890.
Sited about a mile northeast of Big Pit, Blaenavon, the
Blaenavon Iron and Coal Company sunk the Garn Pit in the late
1830's.
Ventilation was by furnace, the typical short stack is shown in
the photograph.
It originally worked the deeper ironstone veins but later work was concentrated in the production of coal.
The unusual line-in arrangement of the winding gear allowed simultaneous winding in one split shaft or in two adjacent shafts. The ropes came off the top and the bottom of the winding drum, lowering the cage in one shaft and raising it in the other.
From the Inspector of mines list 1896, this colliery was producing Steam coal from the Old coal, Byddeg and Bottom Vein mine seams with a workforce of 164 men.
Production ceased in 1903 although it was maintained to serve Garn No.2 (Garn Slope).
Garn Slope, 1967.
Also known as Garn No.2, it was opened near the surface of the Garn pits around 1881, it served and was connected underground to a number of the Blaenavon mines including Garn Pits, Milfraen, Kay's slope and others.
A new slope was opened in 1925, which became its main adit and in 1938 and 1945 there were 690 and 686 men employed respectively.
Production ceased in 1963 after working the Garw seam for many years.