Chatterley Whitfield: Hesketh heapstead (6) and mine car circuit (24)

This complex comprises the Hesketh heapstead, built between 1915 and 1917 by Norton-Harty Engineering, and a tub hall dating from circa 1952, constructed for the National Coal Board.

The heapstead is a steel-framed structure with brick infill panels, and has a metal-sheeted roof, with some sections now missing. The tub hall has a corrugated asbestos roof with a patent glazed ridge (now removed) over the main hall and double-depth sections, and flat reinforced concrete roofs over the remaining areas.

The building has an L-shaped layout, with the heapstead at the northern end and the tub hall attached beyond. The Hesketh heapstead is an elevated structure with a lower floor that is open, supported by free-standing stanchions, and three upper storeys. The elevations show an exposed steel frame, supporting single-skin brick panels and continuous steel-framed windows to the upper floors. The main, braced legs of the headstock are enveloped by the north end of the heapstead, and feature lattice box sections with horizontal and inclined lattice members. Steel-sheet metal plates are positioned on the upper part of the structure. The tub hall, also elevated, connects to the heapstead on the first floor. The northern section of the tub hall crosses the area of former sidings and may incorporate remnants of an earlier high-level tubway. Visible lattice girders on the lower part of the east elevation of both the tub hall and the heapstead may be part of this earlier phase. The tub hall elevations also have an exposed steel frame supporting brick panels and metal-framed windows, the majority of the glazing now missing. The ground floor is generally open, with free-standing stanchions, although a central section is fully enclosed in brick. Remnants of an elevated conveyor system remain at the south-west end of the building, originally carrying dirt and waste to the spoil tip.

The interior of the heapstead, which was not inspected in 2013, incorporates a complex arrangement of reinforced concrete platforms and ramps, partly supported or hung from the steel frame. At the base of the headstock, the double-deck cage and its metal framework remain, along with narrow-gauge rails on either side of the shaft. The tub hall contains the remains of an old blacksmith’s shop on the ground floor, and has a reinforced concrete floor to the upper storey. The main hall includes two upper-level tub runs accommodating five tracks overall, with a single track for the return run. Tippler and creeper railways survive, with their rails still in place. The roof structure incorporates steel trusses and steel portal-frame rafters.