The Irwell Valley  Mining Project

An Excerpt From The Book – The Last Pit in the Valley by Paul Kelly

Agecroft Colliery stands no more. This coal mine has disappeared from the skyline of Salford.

The former collieries winding wheels, which were enclosed in concrete towers reached a height of 200 feet and covered the number 4 and number 5 shafts. The towers were demolished using explosives in January 1991. The towers which had stood for over 30 years disappeared in seconds.

This signified the end of deep coal mining in the Irwell Valley which had lasted for about 250 years. The colliery buildings were bulldozed and flattened into history. The site was cleared in months without ceremony, to be replaced by warehouses and offices and the area renamed The Agecroft Commercial Park.

No monuments or memorials were erected to the memory of the coal miners who worked at the pit, many of whom paid the ultimate price. All their work and sacrifice was forgotten.

I wrote this book with the hope that it will educate, enlighten and remind people that not so very long ago this area had a thriving mining community. A community that took great pride in the coal mining industry and the work it provided. I hope to remind readers that it was coal which was the source of energy that powered the industrial revolution and made this country great.

This book is dedicated to all the men, women, boys and girls who toiled in the coal mining industry and worked to bring light and warmth for all. Our pits and our way of life may be gone but our memories live on

Paul Kelly, former miner at Agecroft Colliery, 1978-1990

Available To Buy Here