Chatterley Whitfield Heritage Centre

The date at which coal was first mined systematically in the Whitfield area is not known, but there are references to mining in the manor of Tunstall from the late 13th century onwards. A local tradition claims that the monks of the Hulton Abbey came to nearby Ridgeway during the 14th and 15th centuries, to work coal from some of the eight seams outcropping half a mile east of Whitfield. These early workings were known as 'footrails' and were driven down from the surface. Shaw's 'History of the Potteries' tells us that in 1750, Ralph Leigh of Burslem collected coal from Whitfield twice a day. His six horses each carried between two and three hundredweights of coal along lanes which were impassable to wagons. These draughts of coal were each worth about seven pence (3p) and Leigh received one shilling (5p) a day for his services. In 1838, Thomas Hargreaves conducted a survey and valuation of the colliery at Whitfield on behalf of its proprietors, representat

The Friends of Chatterley Whitfield   The members of the Friends all have different reasons for joining. Some used to work at Whitfield while others worked in the mining industry elsewhere. Some live or used to live nearby while others have never been to the city. Some are interested in the site’s past, and others in its future. We have one thing in common, however. We don’t want to this important site to be forgotten. The Association started in 2001 as part of the project by English Heritage, English Partnerships, Stoke-on-Trent City Council and others to regenerate the site. We are independent of any other organisation, but we are a member of the Chatterley Whitfield Partnership. We have a formal constitution with elected officials and a committee. Our Patron is Sir Neil Cossons OBE, who used to be one of the directors of the Chatterley Whitfield Mining Museum and was the Chairman of English Heritage during the first six years of this regeneratio