Photographs made during the last week before the closure of Ashington Colliery in 1988.

Around 90% of the colliery buildings & workshops had been demolished and only a skeleton group of workers remained on the payroll.

Coal production had ceased & salvage operations were underway to retrieve as much viable mining equipment from the mine as possible, to be later transported to the last remaining working collieries around the UK.

The Ashington group of Collieries at its peak in the 50's & 60's gave full time employment to over 5,000 miners.

The town has never recovered from the loss of these jobs and still has one of the highest rates of unemployment and social/economic deprivation in the UK.



Warning: Some images contain strong written language & may offend.

Not Suitable for Minors - Parental Guidance Necessary!