Pooley Hall Colliery

Pooley Country Park and Heritage Centre

Useful Information

Location:	Polesworth. M42 Junction 10, A5 towards Atherstone, after 1.9 km turn left through Dordon and Birchmoor 2.4 km to Polesworth, turn left on Tamworth Road, after 350 m turn right on Pooley Lane, 500 m.
Open:	JAN to MAR Mon-Sat 8-18, Sun, Hol 10-18. APR to SEP Mon-Fri 8-18, Sat 8-16, Sun, Hol 10-16. OCT to DEC Mon-Sat 8-18, Sun, Hol 10-18. Visitor Centre: JAN to MAR Sat, Sun, Hol 10-18. APR to SEP Sat, Sun, Hol 10-16. OCT to DEC Sat, Sun, Hol 10-18. [2007]
Fee:	Car Parking GBP 1. [2007]
Classification:	Coal Mine
Light:	Incandescent
Dimension:
Guided tours:
Photography:
Accessibility:
Bibliography:
Address:	Pooley Country Park, Pooley Lane, Polesworth, Warwickshire, B78 1JA, Tel: +44-1827-897438.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1848	first deep shaft sunk at the Pooley Hall site.
1897	start of mining at Pooley Hall Colliery.
1951	merged with nearby Amington and Tamworth Collieries to form North Warwick Colliery.
1965	colliery closed.

Geology

Description

Pooley Hall Colliery is part and location of the new theme park Pooley Country Park and Heritage Centre. A site of 62.5 hectare offers various coal mining related sights. There is a Visitors Centre, the Miners Walk - a footpath used by miners as long ago as 1846, several pools caused by mining subsidence, and the Coventry Canal, which was used to transport the coal. The Heritage Centre shows memorabilia donated by former Pooley and North Warwickshire miners. There is also a DVD shown and for sale where former miners tell stories about their hard and dangerous work underground. A life size replica shows how the seams were mined.

Coal has been mined in Polesworth on a small scale for hundreds of years. Shallow seams running close to the surface were exploited. At the end of the 17th century coal mining was established and there were citizens earning their living with coal mining. But the mining was at a very small level until the beginning of the industrial revolution. Now there was both, demand and infrastructure: in 1790 the Coventry Canal was extended through Polesworth. Increasing use of steam power encouraged a steady growth in coal production. Other industries established in the village.

There were numerous small collieries in the area. Beneath Pooley Hall there was Whitehouse Colliery, also called Gorby Knob Pit, and Polesworth Colliery located at todays city centre. Nearby Amington and Tamworth Collieries later merged with Pooley Hall. Birchmoor Colliery aka Cockspur Colliery near the village of Birchmoor was operated between 1860 and 1927. Birch Coppice Colliery in 1875 was in operation for over a hundred years, finally closing in 1987.