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| Author | NCB Old Boston Training Centre, Haydock |
Lister Joined: 07/10/2007 Location: Helsby, Cheshire View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
NCB Old Boston Training Centre, Haydock
Posted: 08/12/2010 19:23:41 Reply | Quote Has anyone any infomation on this place?? Just found the picture while researching mines in the Haydock area. (click image to open full size image in new window) ....Lister;~) -- 'Adventure is just bad planning' Roald Amundsen IP: 2.98.154.98 |
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Phil Ford Joined: 01/05/2008 Location: Caernarfon View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
NCB Old Boston Training Centre, Haydock
Posted: 09/12/2010 17:49:36 Reply | Quote Old Boston Colliery was sunk in 1884 and closed in Nov 1952.The reason that it closed was due to a fire that started at the downcast pit bottom and spread very fast through the workings. The fire started during the weekend, shafts men and blacksmiths where working in the shaft removing a pipe range with gas cutting equipment. It is certain that sparks from the cutting set the pit alight. The fire was not discoverd for many hours. With no men being underground and the dark November day nobody saw the smoke comming up the fan drift. It was only when the undermanager Alex Pownall was walking his dog smelt the smoke that the alarm was raised. The fire was so bad that it was not possible to get down the pit. The pit was flooded and abandoned. The workforce from Wood Pit then started to use the pithead baths until Wood Pit closed in the 1970s. In the 1950s the NCB set up the North West Division Training Centre there. I started with the NCB there in 1965 to do my basic training. The training centre had Electrical, Mechanical and Mining appretices. They used to bus us over to Bold Colliery for our underground training. They ran courses for officials and refresher courses for all craftsmen and officials. In 1968 I was there doing a pre-face training course we put up four sets of arches on the tip this was the start of the building of a large surface training gallery. Gresford Colliery training centre used to do all the locomotive training but with its closure a loco training circuit was built around the outside of the surface gallery included was a steep bank for emergency break training. When the pit was working it had used a lot of methane drainage, with the pit flooded it was soon found out that the methane was still coming up the drainage pipes. This gas was utilised in the boiler house for heating etc. and was still being used in the late 1980s the last time that I went there on a refresher course. The Mines Reserch Establishment had a small unit there and it was them that had succesfull trails on fluidised bed boilers. IP: 81.156.102.88 |
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Lister Joined: 07/10/2007 Location: Helsby, Cheshire View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
NCB Old Boston Training Centre, Haydock
Posted: 09/12/2010 19:35:59 Reply | Quote Many thanks Phil, thats great interesting infomation, i've learnt something! I could not find any reference to the training center, not knowing it was a former colliery  Thats another for me to add to the database.....Andy;~) -- 'Adventure is just bad planning' Roald Amundsen IP: 78.150.224.8 |
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Phil Ford Joined: 01/05/2008 Location: Caernarfon View Profile View Posts View Personal Album View Personal Files View all Photos Send Private Message |
NCB Old Boston Training Centre, Haydock
Posted: 10/12/2010 18:06:00 Reply | Quote Should have said that the building in the photo was the winding house. There where two winders one at each end of the bulding. The shafts where opersite each end. The building was made into workshops and classrooms. IP: 81.156.102.88 |
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