Meadow Pit

Shown as "Sinking pitt" and "Meadow Pit" on plans by John Watson, Colliery Viewer, of 1749. To the north of the pit the plans mark a fault called the Great or Main Dyke. A wagonway for horse-drawn wagons ran almost due south from the pit, to join lines from Dyke Pit (HER 5104) and Lane Pit (HER 5105) leading to staiths at Walker. The description of Meadow Pit as a sinking pit, suggests that this was a new winning in 1749. A pit depth of 58.5 fathoms (351 feet) is recorded on the plans. Viewer's reports on Longbenton Colliery of 1750-4 contain frequent references to Meadow Pit in 'ye Large Field'. It was evidently connected to Lane Pit by galleries - "1752 Jany. 27 Went down at ye Meadow Pit this morning… from thence went through to ye Lane Pit". At this time Meadow Pit was served by 37 horses. In 1750-51 123 wagons of coal were led to Walker staith from the pit. From at least 1751 the longbenton Colliery was let to Lord Ravensworth and Co, a consortium of coal owners known as the Grand Allies. The Meadow Pit worked the High Main Seam which was abandoned in 1763. An undated plan probably from the second half of 18th century shows Meadow Pit as belonging to the Earl of Carlisle. The last appearance of the Meadow Pit is on a plan of the royalties and extent of manorial rights to coal under Gosforth dated 1824. It is not clear if this plan is showing pits which were still working, or was simply recording the locations of all coal workings, current and disused, in the Longbenton Colliery. As there appears to be no documentary references to the Meadow Pit at this date it seems likely that it was abandoned, and may already have been capped and the surrounding field reclaimed for agriculture. The 1842 tithe map of Longbenton does not show Meadow Pit. On an undated map of Longbenton North Farm {6} the field is labelled Meadow Pit Field. The Meadow Pit Fields were built over in the 1950s-1960s with housing.