The Coal-fields of Great Britain: their history, structure, and duration. With notices of the Coal-fields of other parts of the world

Front matter

5. THE COAL-FIELDS OF GREAT BEITAIN. a By the same Author. THE PHYSICAL GEOLOGY AND GEOGEAPHY OE IEELAND. With Maps and Illustrations. Post Svo, cloth, Is. GEOLOGICAL MAP OF IEELAND. Founded on the Maps of the Geological Survey op Sir Richard Griffith and op Professor J. B. Jukes. Scale, 8 miles to an inch ; size, 31 inches by 38. Price, in Sheets, 25s. ; Mounted on Linen, in Case, 30s. ; on Rollers, varnished, 32s. CHerjtJLLL UJJ Plants of the Coal Period THE COAL-FIELDS OF GREAT BRITAIN : THEIR WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF THE COAL-FIELDS OF OUR INDIAN AND COLONIAL EMPIRE, AND OF OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD. BY EDWARD HULL, M.A., LL.D., E.E.S Director of the Geological Survey of Ireland ; Bros. of Geology in the Royal College of Science t Dublin ; Master in Enri'meering (Hon. Causa) University of Dublin ; Honorary Member Soc.

Geol. de Belgique, of the Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dudley, and Midland Geological Societies, and Cor. Mem. Acad. Nat. Sciences of Philadelphia. W.\t\) j-Bapjs anu SlUujJtrauon*. FOUMTH EDITION, REVISED. EMBODYING THE REPORTS OF THE ROYAL COAL-COMMISSION. LONDON : EDWARD STANFORD, 55, CHARING CROSS. 1881. Hazell, Watson, and Viney, Printers, London and Aylesbury. TO Cit ot SIR RODERICK I. MURCHISON, Bart., D.C.L., F.R.S., LATE DIBECTOB-GENEBAL OF THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF THE UNITED KINGDOM. PEEFACE TO THE FOUETH EDITION. This Edition has been largely re-written. It contains an entirely new chapter on Carboni ferous Plants, kindly drawn up by Professor Williamson, F.E.S., of Manchester. The classification of the Carboniferous Series of Beds has been modified in accordance with the views enunciated in my paper on this subject read before the Geological Society of London in 1877, and published in the Journal of that Society.* The account of the various Coal fields has been modified in accordance with more recent investigations as far as my information extends, and the statistical portions have been brought down to the date of 1878, the returns issued by the Mining Eecord Office for 1879 not having reached me in time for publication * Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc, No. 132, p. 613.) (1877.)

Preface

TO THE FOURTH EDITION. VIII further than the total output of coal for each division of the three kingdoms. My acknowledgments are due, and are hereby tendered, to Dr. S. V. Hay den, Superintendent of the U. S. Geological Surveys ; to Professor Williamson, F.E.S. : Mr. De Eance, F.G.S., of the Geological Survey ; Mr. G. A. Lebour, F.G.S. ; Mr. E. Hunt, F.E.S. , of the Mining Eecord Office, and his assistant Mr. E. Meade, and to several other gentlemen whose services are noted in place, including the Eight Hon. Sir M. Hicks-Beach, M.P., who, when in office as Colonial Secretary, furnished me with returns of the output of coal from various colonial districts. E. H. Dublin, December, 1880. PEEFACE TO THE THIED EDITION. So many years have elapsed since the publication of the first edition of this work, and so great has been the advance in our knowledge of the Coal-fields of nearly all countries within this period, that, in order to make the reader acquainted with it, I have found it necessary to re-write the greater portion of the book.

Within the interval here alluded to, the following are some of the more important events which have occurred in reference to the subjects herein treated : — 1. A great step towards completion has been made in the Government surveys of the British coal-fields. 2. In British India, the Government surveys of the important coal-fields lying along

PREFACE.

TO THE THIRD EDITION. X 3 4 the valley of the rivers Damuda and Nerbudda have been completed, and the results published. An important addition to our knowledge of the coal-fields of the European continent has been made, by the publication of the joint work of Professors Geinitz, Fleck, and Dr. Hartig, entitled "Die Steinkohlen Deutschlands und Anderer Lander," in three elaborate volumes, containing descriptions illustrated by maps and drawings of the coal-fields of Europe, together with then* palæontology, and the technical and mechanical operations connected with coal-mining ; to this may also be added the publication of Dr. Hochstetter's "New Zealand," in which the coal-fields of that wonderful island are very fully described. The fourth and last event I would here record, is the publication of the Eeport of the Eoyal Commissioners appointed by Her Majesty to enquire into the coal-resources of Great Britain, and

PREFACE.

TO THE THIRD EDITION. XI matters connected with the consumption of coal. In the following pages I have endea voured to embody the results arrived at by the Commissioners with the subject matter of the work, so as to bring them within reach of the general public. The addition to this work of the maps of individual coal-fields, together with its growth in size, owing to the number and variety of details, renders an increase of cost unavoidable, for which I trust the reader will consider he gets full value. From amongst the numerous expressions of approval which this work has received, both from public men and from reviewers, the author is contented to select one, extracted from the speech of the Earl of Derby (then Lord Stanley), delivered before the British Association for the Advancement of Science, at Birmingbam, in 1865.

Speaking on "The Coal-question," his Lordship says, " For those who desire to go more deeply into the facts of the case, as far as they are known, than is possible within the limits of an oral address, I should recommend

PREFACE.

TO THE THIRD EDITION. two books on the subject, published within the last two or three years, — one by Mr. Hull, the otber by Mr. Jevons. They differ somewhat widely in conclusions. The one takes what we may call 'the sanguine view' of the case, the other a view comparatively despondent; but in both one and the other you will find what is, perhaps, more important than the inferences of those authors, and that is, a very ample stock of materials upon which to found your own conclusions." — Daily News, 11th Sept., 1865. CONTENTS. PAGB Introduction ........ 1

Part I. Chapter

I. The History of Coal-mining .... 9 II. Animal Remains of the Coal-period ... 38 III. Plant Remains of the Carboniferous Period . . 47 IV. Formation of Coal ...... 66

Part II

I. The Great Coal-field of South Wales ... 88 II. Bristol and Somersetshire Coal-field . . . 109 III. Forest of Dean Coal-field, Gloucestershire . . 125 IV. Coal-field of the Forest of Wyre, Worcestershire 131 V. Shrewsbury Coal-field 136 VI. Coal-field of Coalbrook Dale, Shropshire . . 140 VII. Coal-fields of North Wales . . . .149 VIII. Flintshire Coal-field 156 IX. Anglesea Coal-field 162 X. South Staffordshire Coal-field . . . .165 XI. North Staffordshire Coal-field . . . .179 XII. Cheadle Coal-field, Staffordshire . . .191 CONTENTS. CHAPTER PAGE XIII. South Lancashire Coal-field . . . .196 XIV. The Burnley Coal-basin 215 XV. Park Gate Coal-field, Cheshire . . . .222 XVI. Ingleton and Burton Coal-field, N. Lancashire . 224 XVII. Cumberland Coal-field 226 XVIII. Warwickshire Coal-field 232 XIX.

Leicestershire Coal-field ..... 238 XX. Notts, Derbyshire, and Yorkshire Coal-field . 245 XXI. Great Northern Coal-field of Durham and Northumberland 269 XXII. Coal-fields of Scotland 286 XXIII. Coal-field of the Clyde Basin . . . .292 XXIV. Coal-fields of Mid-Lothian and Haddington . 301 XXV. Fifeshire Coal-field 307 XXVI. Ayrshire Coal-field 310 XXVII. Lesmahago Coal-basin ..... 315 XXVIII. Carboniferous Rocks of Ireland, Queen's Co., Kilkenny, Tipperary, Leitrim, Tyrone, and Antrim 322 XXIX. Northern Group of Irish Coal-fields . . . . 330 XXX. Coal-resources of the British Isles. Concealed Coal-fields of Central England . . . 345 XXXI. Do. Visible Coal-fields . . . .357

Part III

I. Coal-fields of Europe — France, Belgium, Germany, etc 363 II. Coal-fields of India .... CONTENTS. XV CHAPTER PAGE III. Coal-fields of China, Australia, New Zealand, and Africa ...... 414 IV. Coal-fields of North America (British Possessions) 446 V. Coal-fields of North America (United States of North America, etc.) .... 454 VI. Coal-fields of South America .... 469 VII. Annual Production of Coal in Various Countries 475

Part IV

I. An Inquiry into the Physical Limits of Deep Coal-mining ....... 481 II. Duration of our Coal-supply .... 506

Part V

I. Physical Geography of the Carboniferous Rocks 516 II. Distribution of the Mesozoic Formations, South-easterly Attenuation of Strata . . . 529 Index .......... LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONS. PLATES. ■^ PAGE Plate of Characteristic Plants op the Coal-formation Frontispiece 1. Lepidodendron Sternbergii, restored. 2. Sigillaria (?) ditto, magnified portion of stem. 3. Calamites — stem with fruit — ditto, magnified portion of stem. 4. Sigillaria ditto, magnified portion of stem. 5. Lepidodendron ditto, magnified portion of stem. 6. Fragment of conifer. 7. Tree fern. 8. Cordaites borassifolia. 9. Forest of the coal period, illustrating the formation of a bed of coal. Plate op Characteristic Fossils op the Coal-formation 38 1. Map op Coal-basin of South Wales . . .88 2. Map op Somersetshire Coal-pield . . . .112 3.

Map of Coalbrook Dale Coal-field . . .144 4. Map op Coal-fields of North Wales . . . 149 5. Map of South Staffordshire Coal-pield . . .165 6. Map of North Staffordshire Coal-field . . 180 7. Map op South Lancashire Coal-Field . . .196 8. Map op the Warwickshire Coal-field . . . 232 9. Map of the Leicestershire Coal-field . . . 239 10. Map of Yorkshire, Derbyshire, and Notts. Coal-field 245 11. Map op Northumberland and Durham Coal-field . 272 12. Map of British Isles, showing original Coal-areas . 520 General Map of British Coal-fields (in cover). b XY111 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. WOODCUTS. PAGE 1. Portion of Frond of Pecopteris Lonchitica 2. Lepidostrobus Ornatus 53 6 I 3. Succession of Strata in the Lower Coal-measures 4. Section across the Coal-field of South Wales 5. Section across the Pembrokeshire Coal-field . 6.

Section across the Bristol Coal-field . 74 9 2 97 Ill 7. Section across the Coalbrook Dale Coal-field 8. Section showing relations of Strata in Do. 9. Section across the Denbighshire Coal-field . 10. Section across the Anglesea Coal-field 11. Section across the South Staffordshire Coal-field . 12. Section across the North Staffordshire Coal-field . 13. Section across Carboniferous rocks of S. Lancashire 14. Section across the Warwickshire Coal-field . 15. Section across the Leicestershire Coal-field . 16. Section across the Derbyshire Coal-field 17. Section across the Castlecomer Coal-field 144 146 154 162 166 179 196 233 239 24 ; 323 18. Section across the Leinster Coal-field 19. Section across the Leitrim Coal-fields . 20. Section across the Tyrone Coal-field 21. Section through the London Basin 22.

Section across the Coal-field of Liege 23. Section across the Coal-field of Valenciennes 24. Ideal Transverse Section of England . 326 331 335 354 366 367 INTRODUCTORY. Owing to the want of reliable information regarding the resources of the British coal-fields, as exhibited during the debates in Farhanient on the Commercial Treaty with France in 1860, I ventured, in the following year, to bring out the first edition of this work, in which I gave estimates of the quantity of coal, both in the known coal-fields, and also beyond their visible limits down to a depth of 4,000 feet from the surface. For this undertaking I had at com mand both the results obtained by the Go vernment Geological Surveyors, as also much information voluntarily tendered by friends who had personal knowledge of various coal-fields, some of which had not at that time been examined by the Government Surveyors.

In 1866, the question of the duration of our coal-supplies, and other matters dependent thereon, were entrusted for examination to a B INTRODUCTORY. Eoyal Commission, consisting of gentlemen of the highest position and experience, who in 1871 issued an elaborate Eeport, dealing with the question of the actual quantities of coal in the visible and concealed coal-fields of the British Isles ; and also with other cognate subjects, such as the probable increased rate of produc tion, loss and waste in working, and the possible exhaustion of our underground supplies. Fro fessor Jevons also, in his work entitled " The Coal Question," ably followed up similar inquiries founded avowedly upon the data furnished in an early edition of this work. Hence these important subjects, which are so intimately connected with the commercial prosperity of this kingdom, have now received very full in vestigation ; and, I may venture to say, will at all times continue to furnish matter for dis cussion on the part of statesmen and political economists.

The first evidence of a decreasing supply of coal throughout the country will be a sensible rise in price ; but through the agency of railways this will not become general until the resources of all the coal-fields shall have been fully de veloped ; because, when the supply shortens in one district, a corresponding impetus will be INTRODUCTORY. 3 given to mining enterprise in another, as long as the coal-seams remain unexhausted. This reciprocal process has possibly already come into operation ; in illustration of which the following case may be mentioned. Many of us may live to see the southern half of the South Staffordshire coal-field exhausted, or nearly so ; but while this consummation is approaching, the northern half of the same great coal-tract is far from being developed to the extent of which it is capable.

The exhaustion of the southern portion is already telling upon the northern. In speaking of the exhaustion of a coal-field, I do not use the term in an absolute sense. There will always be bands of coal, besides leavings in the coal mines, sufficient to afford a small supply to the immediate neighbourhood for domestic purposes. A coal-field may be said to be exhausted, when it is necessary to import, largely from neighbouring districts for manufac turing and more general purposes. From various causes, large quantities of coal have been left in old workings, much of which it will be impossible ever to recover. I have already said, that the British coal-fields can never be utterly exhausted. This is strictly INTRODUCTORY. true. Even disregarding the coal-beds which lie concealed beneath formations newer than those of the Carboniferous period, there are, in some districts, coal-seams which are buried 6,000, 8,000, and perhaps 12,000 feet beneath the surface, and which, it may be presumed, can never be reached.

I refer particularly to the great coal-basin of South Wales, which, as Mr. Vivian has shown, is capable of supplying the whole of England with coal ; though for a period far shorter, I believe, than Mr. Vivian estimates. In a future page I shall enter in greater detail into this subject ; and here content myself with stating the broad fact of the enormous depth of some of the coal-beds in that basin.* Now, with out assigning in this place any theoretical limit to the depth at which coal may be ultimately worked, few will be disposed to deny that coal seams at the depths above stated might as well be buried beneath the waters of the Atlantic, for all the probability there is of their being rendered available. There are other districts, principally in the Midland counties, where the coal-strata, though * On the authority of the late Sir H. T. de la Beche and Sir W. Logan, through whose energy the magnificent geological survey of this district is now in the hands of the public.

INTRODUCTORY. 5 not in themselves of any very great thickness, dip under higher formations till they reach vast depths. For instance, there is no reason to doubt that coal underlies a portion of the plain of Cheshire, between the coal-fields of Lanca shire on the north, Staffordshire on the east, and Flintshire on the west ; yet, in order to reach the highest workable coal-seam under North wich, it would be necessary to carry the shaft which reaches the great bed of rock-salt at least 4,000 feet deeper than at present.* There are, however, very large districts in Staffordshire, Leicestershire, and Warwickshire, overspread by strata belonging to the Fermian and Triassic formations, where coal may be reached at depths within 3,000 or 4,000 feet. In the north-eastern counties of Durham, Yorkshire, and Notts, there are also vast stores of fossil fuel within reach, but overspread by formations belonging to similar geological periods.

In Durham, the Magnesian Limestone, which at tains there a thickness of 500 feet, has for several years been penetrated in various places down to * It has been estimated that there are in England and "Wales no less than 48,465 millions of tons of coal at a greater depth than 4,000 feet, and reaching down to 10,000 feet from the surface, where the temperature would be 3° higher than that of boiling water. — " Report of Coal-Commission," vol. i., p. 17. INTRODUCTORY. the underlying coal; and the same formation, in its southerly extension into Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire, bids fair to give rise to a coal-producing district of large extent and capacity.* The depth of many coal-shafts in the north of England is already very great. The " Arley mine " is now worked at Eose Bridge colliery, near Wigan, at a depth of 815 yards (2,445 feet).f The "cannel" seam is reached by shafts 600 yards in depth, in at least two collieries ; Pendleton colliery, near Manchester, is 536 yards deep; Duckinfield, in Cheshire, 686 yards.

The Monkwearmouth pit, near Sunderland, has a depth of 530 yards : and collieries with shafts between 400 and 500 yards are not uncommon in the coal-fields of Lancashire, Yorkshire, and Durham. \ In the Aberdare and Merthyr districts of South Wales are several deep shafts, those of Harris' Navigation Colliery being 760 and 700 yards in depth, to the " upper Four-foot seam." Notwithstanding, however, all that art and * See Map. t Appendix A. ; see Brit. Assoc. Bep., 1870, p. 30. J Some of the collieries in Belgium are of great depth ; one of these, I am assured, reaches 932 yards or 860 metres, and some in Saxony reach 800 yards and upwards. INTRODUCTORY. industry can invent to facilitate mining at great depths, — notwithstanding the increased powers of machinery and improvements in ventilation, the employment of flat wire ropes, the substi tution of steel for wrought iron, and the use of two or more "lifts," or stages, at intervals from the bottom of the mine, we must ultimately reach a depth at which the temperature will be so high as to prohibit inexorably mining operations.

What that depth may be I shall discuss in a future chapter : in the meanwhile, let us review briefly the pro gressive course of coal-mining from its infancy to the present time.