Loganlea Colliery closes
In 1958 NCB announced it would close 20 pits in Scotland
In 1958, the National Coal Board (NCB) announced it would close 36 pits. Twenty of the 36 were in Scotland, and they included two in West Lothian: Loganlea and Harwood, which together employed 500 men.
The closures were part of an 'economy' drive: the NCB was trying to close down old, uneconomic pits, while at the same time opening large new pits, e.g. Rothes, Monktonhall, Bilston Glen, etc. But many of these modern pits proved a failure.
Coalmining was in steep decline by the late 1950s. West Lothian gradually lost its coal mines, with another closure every few years throughout the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. The last coal mine in West Lothian was Polkemmet Colliery at Whitburn which closed at the time of the miners' strike in 1984-85 and never re-opened.
The photographs of Loganlea Colliery were among many taken by William Aitchison, formerly of Addiewell.
Did you work in Loganlea Pit? Tell us what it was like, and your memories of working there. Or did you know someone who used to work there? Tell us their story.
Loganlea Colliery - general view
William Aitchison. All rights reserved.
Loganlea Colliery and bing
William Aitchison. All rights reserved
This damaged photograph shows the headgear which raised and lowered the men and coal up and down the shaft in a cage.
William Aitchison. All rights reserved
Map of Loganlea in 1922. The site of the colliery can be seen on the extreme left.
Ordnance Survey, 1922 edition.
Site of Loganlea Colliery