Dexter Colliery

The Dexter shaft [to the other side of Piccadilly Way and Hurley Common] was sunk in 1927 by Kingsbury Collieries Ltd to extract coal from the other side of the Arley Fault, a geological fault that had caused the coal seam to be displaced vertically upwards 90 to 120 yards. The Dexter Pit was connected to Kingsbury underground for ventilation purposes, but the coal extracted from Dexter was transported to Kingsbury above ground using a tramway system. The overland tramway was built in 1928, and all of Dexter’s output coal was taken to Kingsbury Colliery for screening and sale.

By 1955 the underground workings extended seven miles from Kingsbury and ventilation problems were acute. It was therefore decided to sink a new shaft over three miles to the south of Dexter at Daw Mill. Work commenced in 1956, and the new shaft sinking started in 1957. In 1958, when the new shaft had reached a little over a third of its planned depth, it was decided that Daw Mill would become a new colliery handling the coal from Dexter. It was completed in 1959, and a tunnel was driven to connect with the Dexter workings in the summer of 1960, and the ventilation roadway between Dexter and Kingsbury was sealed off.

Coal production ceased at Dexter following the opening of Daw Mill, however the pit remained open so it could continue to be used for manriding by the Daw Mill miners. By 1977, the workings at Birch Coppice Colliery had extended to within several hundred feet of the Dexter pit bottom. To reduce the Birch Coppice miners’ travel time, it was decided to connect the Birch Coppice workings to the Dexter Pit to allow for manriding by Birch Coppice miners. With the closure of Birch Coppice Colliery in 1986 the Dexter Pit became redundant and closed at the same time.

To view records relating to Dexter Colliery held at Warwickshire County Record Office, click here.

References

Fretwell, L. (2005) ‘Dexter Pit’, The Warwickshire Coalfield, Vol. 1, pp. 7-9.

Northern Mine Research Society. (n.d.) ‘Warwickshire Coalfield’. [online] Available at: https://www.nmrs.org.uk/mines-map/coal-mining-in-the-british-isles/warwickshire/ [Accessed 30 March 2020].

Warwickshire County Record Office, CR3166/2/1.