# Rotherham Main Colliery > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Rotherham_Main_Colliery > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Rotherham_Main_Colliery.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotherham_Main_Colliery > Source revision: 998441069 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Former coal mine in South Yorkshire, England **Rotherham Main Colliery** was situated in [Canklow](/source/Canklow), about 0.5 miles south of Rotherham town centre in the [Rother Valley](/source/River_Rother%2C_South_Yorkshire). The area was the site of an ancient crossing of the river set below the [crag](/source/Cliff) on which were Canklow Woods, an ancient woodland area. ## History The first shaft was commenced in 1890 with the pit going into production in 1894. The owners of the [colliery](/source/Colliery) and later the [coke](/source/Coke_(fuel)) ovens and by-products plant were Sheffield-based steel makers [John Brown and Company](/source/John_Brown_and_Company) who also built houses for their workers and a school for the children of the colliers.[1] An accident occurred in 1891 when 8 miners fell 60 feet (18 m) from their wooden platform.[2] The colliery had problems, the area was prone to flooding but prior to the [First World War](/source/First_World_War) it employed around 2,000 miners. Following the [General Strike](/source/1926_United_Kingdom_general_strike) in 1926 the colliery was virtually closed and needed just 300 employees to maintain it. The colliery closed in 1954 and nowadays there are no signs of its existence, the last of what did remain being swept away under a road scheme which followed the Rother Valley linking the town's relief road to the M1 via Rother Way to Junction 33. ## The Railway Connection The colliery was linked to the main [railway](/source/Railway) network by a branch line from the [Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway](/source/Manchester%2C_Sheffield_and_Lincolnshire_Railway) at a junction known as "Rotherham Main", situated about 0.75 miles (1.2 km) on the Sheffield side of [Rotherham Central](/source/Rotherham_Central_railway_station). This branch line was also the subject of an agreement between the [Great Central Railway Company](/source/Great_Central_Railway) and steel makers [Steel, Peech and Tozer](/source/Steel%2C_Peech_and_Tozer) giving access to the steel company's locomotives and wagons across the main line tracks and to tip furnace waste (slag etc.) on land adjacent to the line. ## References - Original agreement between the G.C.R. and Steel, Peech and Tozer, 1912. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** [Mining Heritage, Rotherham](http://www.rotherhamweb.co.uk/h/mining.htm) 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** [About Canklow, Rotherham, South Yorkshire](http://www.rotherhamweb.co.uk/district/canklow.htm) ## External links [Rotherham Main Colliery Disaster, Canklow, 1891](http://www.rotherhamweb.co.uk/h/extracts/canklow1891.htm) v t e Coal mining in Yorkshire Coal mines in North Yorkshire Selby complex2 (Gascoigne Wood, North Selby, Riccall, Stillingfleet, Whitemoor Wistow) Tan Hill Coal mines in South Yorkshire1 Aldwarke1 Askern Barnburgh Barrow Bentley Brodsworth Brookhouse Bullcroft1 Birley Cortonwood Dalton Dinnington Elsecar Fence Harry Crofts1 Hatfield Hickleton High Hazels Huskar Kilnhurst Kiveton Park Maltby Manvers Markham Main New Stubbin North Staveley Nunnery1 Orgreave Rossington Rother Vale Rotherham1 Roundwood1 Silverwood Smithies Thorne1 Thurcroft Tinsley Park Treeton Waleswood Warren House Warren Vale Wath Wharncliffe Woodmoor Yorkshire Main Coal mines in West Yorkshire Caphouse Flockton Frickley Garforth Collieries (Isabella Pit, Sisters Pit, Trench Pit) Kellingley Killingbeck Middleton Shuttle Eye Prince of Wales Upton Waterloo Main Wheldale Woolley Incidents Allerton Bywater Colliery Explosion Cadeby Main pit disaster Lofthouse Colliery disaster Lundhill Colliery explosion Oaks explosion Peckfield Colliery disaster Coalfields and seams Coal seams of the South Yorkshire Coalfield Ingleton Coalfield South Yorkshire Coalfield Industrial relations UK miners' strike (1969) UK miners' strike (1972) UK miners' strike (1984–85) Battle of Orgreave South Yorkshire Miners' Association West Yorkshire Miners' Association Yorkshire Miners' Association Other articles Geology of Yorkshire List of collieries in Yorkshire (1984–2015) Monckton Coke Works National Coal Mining Museum for England British MPs sponsored by mining unions Notes 1 Pre 1974, most coal mines in South Yorkshire were actually in the West Riding of Yorkshire. Those annotated with a number 1, were closed before 1974. 2 The Selby Coalfield straddled the border of North and West Yorkshire [53°24′38″N 1°21′44″W / 53.41056°N 1.36222°W / 53.41056; -1.36222](https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Rotherham_Main_Colliery¶ms=53_24_38_N_1_21_44_W_type:landmark_region:GB) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Rotherham Main Colliery](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotherham_Main_Colliery) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotherham_Main_Colliery?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.