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High Darngavil Colliery

Greengairs, Lanarkshire.

High Darngavil Colliery seems to have been the sucessor to Darngavil Colliery (established 1887) and may have operated several mines (with up to 15 or more separate pits) in the New Monklands area with early mines (18th century) supplying coal mostly to the local area. The area was criss-crossed by mineral railways and waggonways - at first, horse drarwn and gravity assisted but later steam powered - linking the mines to the Forth and Clyde Canal at Slamannan and the Monkland Canal at Coatbridge/Airdrie. In the earl 19th century these independent rail lines were linked to the wider rail network. By the time the coal was being more widely exported, to Glasgow and beyond it was handled by the Darngavil Coal Company (Darngavil Coal Co also owned and operated pits elsewhere).

Darngavil Coal Co. Limited (John Pollock, managing director), Darngavill; registered office, 40 St. Enoch's square, Glasgow; TA "Darngavil, Glasgow". [Slater's Directory, 1903]

High Darngarvil Colliery was named after High Darngavil Farm (NS 78820 68935). The farm was previously known just as Darngavil but when coal mining began, the shorter name shifted to the miners' rows at Darngavil Village to the west. Do not confuse with other similarly named farms and villages including Darngavel Farm near Shotts and Dargavel near Bishopton..

It was local demand that generated colliery activity in New Monkland, answered bfrom the long established Mochrieinsh Colliery and Darngavil Colliery. [Skillen]

[From Canmore]

Previous Owners: J Crawford & Company

Types of Coal: House (landsale)

Sinking Commenced: pre-1947

Year Closed: 1949

Year Abandoned: 1949

Statistics: appears to have worked only for a short time in 1949

Shaft/Mine Details: 2 surface mines, main mine 27m (1 in 3), companion mine 18m (1 in 2.5)

Details in 1949: Output 10 tons per day, 2,500 tons per annum. 14 employees. No washer [no equipment for the wet cleaning of coal prior to sale at this mine], no baths, no canteen. Steam power, generated from small vertical boiler. Report dated 12-02-1949. Transferred to National Coal Board (NCB) in 1949 and subsequently closed. Situated close to earlier Darngavil collieries. The area has since been erased by opencast coal mining.

In the 1970s, open cast mining led to the stripping back of surface overburden and direct extraction of the exposed coal. Opencast Mining finally removes all traces of the mining villages athough some structures survived until the 1990s.

This area used to be a treasure trove of old buildings and industrial relics. Now, thanks to opencast mining and poorly regenerated land, it's an eyesore. [Texas Radio]

See also FCC Environment, Drumgray Energy from Waste Recovery Centre, 2021. eplanning.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/online-applications/files/30A6E53601C4CE33D4E278638EF65CFD/pdf/.... Construction started on the Drumgray ERC in 2022 on a site between Darngavil Villafe anf North Standrigg Rows.

Alternative Names: Darngavil Colliery

Notes: Coordinates given by Canmore are arbitrary (centred on name on map not mine buildings. Possibly associated with Dargavil Coal Pit no. 10, NS78862 69268 ). There is no known shaft or adit at this location (no. 10 is closest). Individual shafts are listed in separate entries.

Nearby [at Hill of Drumgray?] there was also a Darngavil Brick and Tile Works using waste from the spoil heaps to produce silca bricks.

04/10/1884 - Lanarkshire Upper Ward Advertiser - To let clay, blaize and fire clay, part of the lands of Dargavil for the purpose of making bricks - for particulars apply at Darngavil Colliery Office, Airdrie.

1910 - The location of the future Darngavil Brickworks. (Hill of Drumgray Coal Pits). [scottishbrickhistory]

In 1910, Darngavil was mentioned in a report on the poor condition of mine workers' housing.

In 1913, Lloyd George, then Chancellor of the Exchequer was asked about an Exchequer circular which referred to a court case with the Exchequeur pursuing Darngavil Coal Co. for taxes unlawfully claimed as exempt (relating to waggon hire for transporting coal). The Exchequer circular, attempting to standardise the treatment of such taxes, explained that waggon hire was not normally separated from other operating costs therefore could not be held to be exempt. Sir George Younger pointed out that the Lord President of the Court of Session had given an opinion that the issuing of such circulars without legal advice rendered them meaningless and that 'any Law Officer who supported the contention of the circular would be supporting nonsense'. [Hansard]

Darngavil Colliery, 18 August 1920 Whitehall, 20th April, 1922. His Majesty the KING has been graciously pleased to award the Edward' Medal to John Shields. [Scottish Mining Website]

1927 - Aberdeen Press and Journal - New Companies - Darngavil Brickworks (Ltd.), 21 Bath Street, Glasgow (private company), brick and tile manufacturers and merchants, clay workers and potters. Capital, £10.000, in shares. (Note - SBH - This company was likely started up to exploit and utilise the shale bing waste of the Darngavil Coal Company).

1977 - Wishaw Press - Darngavil Brickworks Limited's application to start working an opencast coal and fireclay site at Parkside, Cleland, was approved, as were those from Wellwood Brick Company Limited for the working of and restoration of Allanton Fireclay Works, Newmains, and HiWarm Coal Company Limited for the working of and extension of the former Hartwood Colliery in Dykehead, Shotts.

1977 - Edinburgh Gazette - Change of name - Darngavil Limited (formerly Darngavil Brickworks Limited).