Kellingley: The Last Deep Coal Mine in England

On the 26th November 2015, Sam Welburn photographed the last deep coal mine in England, Kellingley Colliery three weeks before production ceased and coal mining was due to be no more.

Kellingley Colliery or known locally as 'Big K' in North Yorkshire, was distinct for its two head shaft winding towers and opened its doors to workers in April 1965, and at a time at it's height employed over 2000 workers.
At the time of its closure, there was only 451 workers remaining at Kellingley on the day of its closure on their final shift and the often remarked saying that coal mining is a 'job for life' proved inaccurate in this circumstance.
The legacy of the coal mining industry is brought upon its turbulent final thirty years through a period including the year long miners strike in 1985/86 and through the tenure of then PM Margaret Thatcher, of whom brandished the miners "the enemy within". Whilst Kellingley survived, other pits were rapidly closing at an accelerated rate, Kellingley was to be the final nail.
Then, on the 18th December 2015, the last working deep coal mine closed its doors for a final time, marking an end to the site but the demise of the coal mining industry.

A decade since, to mark this Ten Year anniversary of Kellingley Colliery closing, Sam Welburn and Four Stone Press have published the following book 'Kellingley: The Last Deep Working Coal Mine in England. The images in this book focuses upon the quieter moments of life around the surface of the pit, three weeks before it closed its doors. The photographs present the physical remnants of the workspace of the rare breed of men who toiled in harsh circumstances of a once demanding and physical job. A sense of loss is echoed through the landscape of the 58 hectare site along with the reminders to the past and the bitterness to how the story of coal mining came to an end at the doors of Kellingley Colliery.