tarboat's photos with the keyword: caphouse colliery

Whilst the old steam winder is still in good order at the National Mining Museum at Caphouse Colliery, it was deemed unsuitable for winding visitors going underground. This hydraulic winder was erected to handle the work having been built by engineering company Needham Brothers & Brown Ltd of Barnsley, a firm with a long history of working for the coal industry. It has now been taken over by Qualter Hall & Co Ltd.

Steam winding engine and drum at Caphouse Colliery, built in 1876 by Davy Bros Ltd, Sheffield. This wound coal until 1974 and continued in use for shaft inspections until 1979. It is very small for colliery use and the shaft capacity was only 33 tons per hour. This led to the driving of a drift to enable output to be significantly increased. Today the engine is preserved as part of the National Coal Mining Museum which is based at the colliery. It no longer winds the shaft as a modern electric winder is used to take visitors underground.