Blackhall Colliery
Encyclopedia
Blackhall Colliery is a village on the North Sea
coast of County Durham
, in England
. It is situated on the A1086
between Horden
and Hartlepool
. To the south of the Blackhall Colliery's Catholic church is Blackhall Rocks
.
Built around the once extensive mining industry, Blackhall's colliery closed in 1981. There is now an industrial estate built over part of the old colliery buildings, the colliery itself was pulled down in the 1980s. Blackhall Colliery is on the edge of Castle Eden Dene
, and Castle Eden Dene Mouth.
Over the past couple of decades, there have been many changes. Following the closure of the colliery, the once busy village has economically gone downhill. As time has passed since the closure, other industries have now begun to emerge to once again create employment in the region.
With both Blackhall Colliery and Blackhall Rocks being on the main road to Peterlee
and Hartlepool. This has meant that these villages have become commuter villages, supplying workers for the now busy and expanding call centre
s in the nearby towns of Hartlepool and Peterlee.
starring Michael Caine
; in the climactic scenes the main character is involved in a chase across a coal-strewn beach.
The film shows the beach black with coal spoilings, dumped there by mine's conveyor system. Since the mine closed, £10 million has been spent removing the conveyor and its massive concrete tower and cleaning tons of coal waste from the now pristine beach.
Neighbouring beaches of Blackhall Colliery is Horden beach (North) and Crimdon beach (South), both are within 30 minutes of walking distance each way from the beach. The continuation of the improving regenerative beach can be seen via the coastline.
The allotments are continually improving security within the area as vandals and binge drinkers tend to hang out around the site before making their way to the beach. Added security like gates and security cameras help reduce vandalism and unwanted trespassing.
There has been an increase in rabbit and foxes within the allotments that residents of the gardens are aware of, crops tend to get destroyed or damaged which leads to hunters in hunting prey to keep the numbers down!
Fisherman normally park up in the allotment car park and head down to the beach front since there is no access to the beach banks, the allotments had a big car park bay for around 20 cars and a smaller car park on entry to the gates for about 5 to 10 cars.
There is big demand for allotments and a waiting list is scheduled in priority of people who put their names down on a first come first served basis, there is on average a 1 year waiting list.
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
coast of County Durham
County Durham
County Durham is a ceremonial county and unitary district in north east England. The county town is Durham. The largest settlement in the ceremonial county is the town of Darlington...
, in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is situated on the A1086
A1086 road
The A1086 is a road in County Durham, north-east England.The route of the A1086 starts from the A19 junction in Easington and runs to the A179 junction in Hartlepool via Peterlee, Horden, Blackhall Colliery, Blackhall Rocks, Crimdon and Hart Station. It is known locally as the Coast Road. The road...
between Horden
Horden
Horden is a village in County Durham, England. It is situated on the North Sea coast, to the east of Peterlee, approximately 12 miles south of Sunderland. Horden was a mining village until the closure of the Horden Colliery in 1987. Main features include the Welfare and Memorial Parks and St...
and Hartlepool
Hartlepool
Hartlepool is a town and port in North East England.It was founded in the 7th century AD, around the Northumbrian monastery of Hartlepool Abbey. The village grew during the Middle Ages and developed a harbour which served as the official port of the County Palatine of Durham. A railway link from...
. To the south of the Blackhall Colliery's Catholic church is Blackhall Rocks
Blackhall Rocks
Blackhall Rocks is a village on the North Sea coast of County Durham, England. It is situated on the A1086 between Horden and Hartlepool, and just south of Blackhall Colliery which it adjoins...
.
Built around the once extensive mining industry, Blackhall's colliery closed in 1981. There is now an industrial estate built over part of the old colliery buildings, the colliery itself was pulled down in the 1980s. Blackhall Colliery is on the edge of Castle Eden Dene
Castle Eden Dene
Castle Eden Dene is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and National Nature Reserve in the Easington district of County Durham, England. It is located immediately south of Peterlee, between the A19 and A1086 roads....
, and Castle Eden Dene Mouth.
Over the past couple of decades, there have been many changes. Following the closure of the colliery, the once busy village has economically gone downhill. As time has passed since the closure, other industries have now begun to emerge to once again create employment in the region.
With both Blackhall Colliery and Blackhall Rocks being on the main road to Peterlee
Peterlee
Peterlee is a new town in County Durham, England. Founded in 1948, Peterlee town originally mostly housed coal miners and their families.Peterlee has strong economic and community ties with Sunderland and Hartlepool.-Peterlee:...
and Hartlepool. This has meant that these villages have become commuter villages, supplying workers for the now busy and expanding call centre
Call centre
A call centre or call center is a centralised office used for the purpose of receiving and transmitting a large volume of requests by telephone. A call centre is operated by a company to administer incoming product support or information inquiries from consumers. Outgoing calls for telemarketing,...
s in the nearby towns of Hartlepool and Peterlee.
Blackhall beach
Blackhall beach made a notable appearance in the 1971 film Get CarterGet Carter
Get Carter is a 1971 British crime film directed by Mike Hodges and starring Michael Caine as Jack Carter, a gangster who sets out to avenge the death of his brother in a series of unrelenting and brutal killings played out against the grim background of derelict urban housing in the city of...
starring Michael Caine
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine, CBE is an English actor. He won Academy Awards for best supporting actor in both Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules ....
; in the climactic scenes the main character is involved in a chase across a coal-strewn beach.
The film shows the beach black with coal spoilings, dumped there by mine's conveyor system. Since the mine closed, £10 million has been spent removing the conveyor and its massive concrete tower and cleaning tons of coal waste from the now pristine beach.
Neighbouring beaches of Blackhall Colliery is Horden beach (North) and Crimdon beach (South), both are within 30 minutes of walking distance each way from the beach. The continuation of the improving regenerative beach can be seen via the coastline.
Allotments
Blackhall Colliery has a garden association, which is located around 500 yards inland from the beach front. The garden association consists of around 250 gardens covering six alleyways.The allotments are continually improving security within the area as vandals and binge drinkers tend to hang out around the site before making their way to the beach. Added security like gates and security cameras help reduce vandalism and unwanted trespassing.
There has been an increase in rabbit and foxes within the allotments that residents of the gardens are aware of, crops tend to get destroyed or damaged which leads to hunters in hunting prey to keep the numbers down!
Fisherman normally park up in the allotment car park and head down to the beach front since there is no access to the beach banks, the allotments had a big car park bay for around 20 cars and a smaller car park on entry to the gates for about 5 to 10 cars.
There is big demand for allotments and a waiting list is scheduled in priority of people who put their names down on a first come first served basis, there is on average a 1 year waiting list.
External links
- Blackhall Colliery from the Durham Mining Museum