Opening of New Delaval Blyth Christian Lay Church

John Wesley had a great influence on his tours of the Northern Coalfield during the 18th century. The mining district adopted the Methodist Lay Church with great vigour. The Church of England was often seen as "the Tory party at prayer". Coal mine owners often welcomed the Methodist churches into their colliery villages as this religious influence had a positive effect on what could be quite a "rough and ready" society of mineworkers.

1897 OS New Delaval

Location Map

However, it was not a Methodist church (as Methodism had split into separate branches by this stage) that the Morpeth Herald were reporting on the laying of a foundation stone in 1886 at New Delaval Colliery Village to the west of Blyth but a Christian Lay Church. The Church by the time of the 3rd edition Ordnance Survey in 1922 was another branch of the Methodist movement and was pulled down in recent years to make way for educational buildings. But according to the newspaper article a time capsule was buried in the church. Was it ever found during demolition? What happened to it? This is the article:

"On Saturday afternoon an interesting ceremony took place in the laying of a foundation stone of a new Christian Lay Church at New Delaval. The Christian Lay Denomination first took up habitation at this colliery about three years ago and has hitherto worshipped in the in the colliery schoolroom which was kindly lent by the Seaton Delaval Coal Company. The body grew rapidly in earnestness and numbers until the building now became an imperative necessity. An excellent central site was secured in the heart of the village, in close proximity to the Weslyan Chapel and to several school buildings, and the work of erection briskly commenced. Fine weather favoured the ceremony on Saturday, and there was a large attendance. After the opening of the proceedings Mr James Haswell of Newcastle [Christian Lay Church Minister] gave an address bearing on Lay Church affairs. He said that though the church was of comparatively recent establishment it had already unquestionably justified its claim to live and had given unmistakable evidence of its vitality. Progress had marked its brief career and that day they had a practical demonstration of advancement and a promise of future usefulness. The church had had its disappointments, which the members had met manfully and nobly. He then referred to the kind treatment the church had received from the owners of Seaton Delaval Colliery. He congratulated the members upon the site they had obtained; it was all that could be desired. He reminded them that though as a denomination they were comparatively young as a church they were the most ancient of all dating from Apostolistic times. They were also the most democratic of the churches. Mr Haswell concluded by presenting, on behalf of the members of the church, a silver trowel to Mr R E Ornsby of Seaton Delaval [The manager of Seaton Delaval/New Delaval Collieries]  in commemoration of that gentleman’s connection with the laying of the stone. Mr Ornsby having returned thanks, said that though he did not belong to the church, yet from the bottom of his heart he was glad to offer a helping hand to every denomination. He then proceeded to lay the stone. In the cavity beneath there was placed a bottle containing a newspaper for that day, copies of the circuit rules, preacher’s plan, names of trustees and teachers and a bill of the day’s proceedings - Mr Ornsby expressed the hope that the church would prosper, not only in his lifetime, but for ages to come - A public tea was afterwards held in the colliery schoolroom, and a meeting was held at night. On Sunday the anniversary services of the Sabbath School were successfully held."

1922 OS New Delaval

As can be seen on the 2nd edition Ordnance Survey map of 1897 the Church of England had established a small mission chapel near to the Christian Lay Church. This also had the assistance of the colliery owners who donated the land and the necessary building materials. Previously the parishioners had to walk across the field to Horton Church, some distance away. It was opened in 1892 but by 1920 had proved to be too small and the present St Bede's Church was opened on Newcastle Road in 1930 and was the centre of a parish in its own right.

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Plessey Wagonway

It is a well-known fact that Plessey Road, stretching all the way from Blyth town centre to Newsham (2.4 miles) was laid down along the course of an old wagonway. It causes an odd appearance to what should be a gridiron layout to the streets of the town. The course of the road continues westward through Newsham fields as a modern-day footpath. There are also some earthworks remaining at Boghouses which was originally part of a wagonway bridge across the Horton Burn.

Interactive Map of Plessey Wagonway (may take a few seconds to load on some devices) or click here for larger stand-alone map

The wagonway started at Plessey Checks, a distance of five-and-a-half miles from Blyth. It has obviously had a great influence on the layout of the landscape, even up to the present day, but no obvious trace of any former industrial activity in this area would indicate why such an expensive undertaking as the construction of a wagonway was ever needed. Today it is a barren, rural area with a large roundabout at its centre. Plessey had once been a thriving coal mining area with a village of miners' cottages at its heart. What could I find out about the Plessey pits?

Earthworks at Boghouses crossing the Horton Burn

The subject had been studied by Janet Bleay for the book Plessey: The Story of a Northumbrian Woodland (1981). There is an outcrop of a very rich coal seam on the south bank of the River Blyth at Plessey. A geological fault throws this seam down 30-60 ft on the north bank where the Plessey Woods Country Park is now situated, so the early mining activity was concentrated on the south bank where the coal was more easily accessible.

Current Open-cast mining operations at Shotton and Plessey (looking east)

Mining had taken place here since medieval times, mostly by the monks of Newminster, near Morpeth, who had been granted rights of mining in the area. The operation was primitive and small scale in these early days. Drift mines were dug along the seam where it outcropped or a bell pit was sunk vertically. The bell pit was so named because it resembled the shape of a bell when seen in cross section. A small shaft was sunk down to the seam and then coal was dug out as far as was possible to go until the roof was likely to cave in or the air became too foul with suffocating gases. Coal and men were hauled up to the surface by means of a windlass with a large wicker basket attached to the rope.

When the bell pit had reached its limit you then dug another a few yards further along.

Bell Pit

Technological development meant that as time went by pits could become deeper and the coal dug further away from the shaft into the seam. The developments were: propping up the roof of the mined seam; ventilating the pit by means of lighting a furnace which used rising hot air to create a draught, air shafts were also sunk; and using engines to pump water from the workings, although in the 17th and probably even in to the late 18th centuries this would have been a horse engine in an arrangement known as a cuddy's wheel or horse gin.

Horse Gin at Beamish Museum (This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International, 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Genericand 1.0 Generic license.)

Even by 1813 when the pits ceased operation and the wagonway was ripped up the workings were not extensive. Thirteen pits were in operation in this year working by the rib and stall method. But still the extent of the workings were only tens of yards from the shaft bottom. Steam engines were by this time in common use to pump water and haul men and coal up the shaft. Deep mining had been started at Cowpen in 1794 and with the pits at Plessey being almost exhausted the owners agreed to close.

Charles Brandling was the proprietor of the mines in 1663. He was a landowner from Gosforth, near Newcastle, with extensive estates. Presumably not much coal could have been shipped via Blyth in those days? Roads were just cart tracks that became muddy during the winter season. Carts carrying coals would have soon become stuck axle deep. Long journeys were impracticable.

In 1692 the Blyth Coal Company was formed, although we know little of the organisation. Between that date and 1709 the Plessey Wagonway was laid down to allow coal wagons to run on rails. According to the Blyth News' "Story of Blyth" (1957) "The wagonway was made of a double line of beech rails laid on oak sleepers. The wagons had wooden wheels into which nails were driven to prevent wear and tear. Each wagon was pulled by one horse and driven by one man. Three journeys, or gaits, was a day's work. The first quay on this side of the river was constructed at the end of the way. There the coal was unloaded from the wagons and later loaded from barrows into the ships. This practice was continued till the building of a staith some years later." WR Sullivan in "Blyth in the Eighteenth Century" (1971) states: "As early as 1772-73 there are references to loading there from some kind of 'spout'. In 1784 we have a detailed account of expenditure on a 'staith'.

Blyth soon became established as a coal exporting port.

The Ridley family purchased the Plessey Colliery in 1722 and the following year bought the estate of Blyth. They were entrepreneurial and poured much investment into the development of the town and their business interests. In the first year they sent 58,000 tons of coal along the wagonway to Blyth. Although there was a significant domestic sale of coal most of it was sent via sea routes from Blyth.

Wagonways, however, were expensive undertakings and a major investment. In 1783 the upkeep of the Plessey Wagonway reached £1140 (roughly £230,000 in today's money) £843 the following year and £830 in 1786. Wayleave was also expensive and Lord Delaval demanded £300 per annum for the wagonway to go over his lands at Horton. Even after a series of not very friendly negotiations Ridley was not able to get this amount reduced and he proposed another, alternative, route "missing out this awkward gentleman's land altogether". The alternative route was never carried out.

Eneas MacKenzie writing in 1825 gave a statistical account of the parish of Stannington:

"For the great decrease in the population of the parish as compared with the last census of 1811, I can very satisfactorily account. About eight years ago a very extensive colliery in the South Division and townsip of Plessey was (what is technically called) laid in - that is discontinued to be worked or carried on; from which circumstances about 300 pitmen removed to the chapelry of Cowpen, where a fresh pit, or colliery, was opened, and where they continue to dwell."

The old housing was quickly removed although the old Three Horse Shoes pub and smithy buildings remained in place at Plessey Checks for quite a few decades after closure serving the Plessey New Houses to the south of the site.

Article gives useful info on NE wagonways...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2379064/Wooden-railway-built-200-years-ago-discovered-near-colliery.html

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