“A simple plaque” you might think. But let me tell you about the Puits n° 8 bis Plaque and the story it represents. This plaque marks the spot of a former mine shaft. It is a memorial to the mining history of this region.
The Puits n° 8 bis Plaque is more than just metal and words. It’s a portal to the past. It speaks of the lives, the labor, and the legacy of the miners who toiled beneath our feet.
The Compagnie des mines de Bruay started opening pits at the end of 1852 in Bruay-la-Buissière. The first pit was situated 70 meters south of the road from Saint-Pol-sur-Ternoise to Béthune. It was also 755 meters east of the bell tower. The initial work began at the end of 1852. By the end of 1853, the level had reached a depth of 77 meters.
However, when workers passed through the blue marl at 85 meters a large spring flooded the works. The miners barely escaped. To pass this second level they installed four pumps. These pumps were 46 and 50 centimeters in diameter and arranged on two floors. A 120-horsepower machine struggled to manage the water. Yet they established the base of the tubing at 98 meters in the coalfield. The coalfield was reached at a depth of 100 meters.
More difficulties arose at 132 meters. A bed of coal sandstone below two small coal veins released a large amount of water again. This required a permanent drainage system which was still in use in 1880. In Bruay and Marles the coalfield wasn’t covered by a thick layer of earth. This differed from other coal mines in the basin. The earth was either missing or very thin. This explains the water at the top of the coalfield in pit no. 1. The layers could connect through fissures.
The installation of drainage equipment and the difficult sinking in the coalfield caused delays. In 1855 the first pit produced only a small amount of coal 2000 tons. But it found a rich and regular deposit and production increased. It reached nearly 53000 tons in 1859. From 1864 to 1868 it produced 80000 to 90000 tons. Between 1869 and 1871 production was 100000 to 120000 tons. From 1872 to 1878 it reached 130000 to 160000 tons. The deposit was rich and regular making the pit very productive.
The pit had a 250-horsepower extraction machine and a 120-horsepower drainage machine. Eleven generators powered these machines with a heating surface of 1000 square meters. Cages with three levels held six cars. It exploited a rich and regular deposit. The pit was one of the most productive in the basin. The extraction equipment transformation in 1874 cost 321424.34 francs. This modernization replaced the first 80-horsepower extraction machine. The pit extracted house coal. Firedamp was present. The pit was then 320 meters deep.
Puits n° 8 bis Plaque, the air shaft was started in 1888. It was located 49.60 meters east of pit no. 1. In the late 1890s Alfred Soubeiran noted that the first pit had wooden tubing with sixteen sections. It was 79.88 meters high. Its useful diameter was 4.04 meters. Its landings were at 166 188 229 277 316 and 360 meters deep. The opening of pit no. 1 was at an altitude of 60.14 meters. It was 465.36 meters deep. Pit no. 1 bis also encountered the top of the coalfield at 100 meters. Its total depth was 454.52 meters. It was sunk using the Chaudron process. Its cast iron tubing extended 74.50 meters high. Its useful diameter was only two meters. This pit only served for air return and underground pump pipes. The base of the tubing was secured in the coalfield head with twelve meters of false tubing. Jules Gosselet indicated an altitude of 59 meters for pit no. 1.
Pit no. 1 bis was backfilled in 1929. The pit stopped extracting in 1930. Pit no. 1 was backfilled in 1932. The buildings were kept. They served as a store and central laboratory for the Bruay Group. They were demolished in 1981.
In the early 21st century Charbonnages de France marked the heads of pits nos. 1 and 1 bis. The BRGM inspects them every year. The only remains of the pit is a section of wall. A memorial was built to remember the miners near pit no. 1 between the two pits.
Today the Puits n° 8 bis Plaque stands as a reminder. It is a reminder of the coal mining past. It’s also a testament to the resilience of the community.