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92-554: Originally opened in 1850, the Clifton Hall Tunnel was heavily used by freight trains to and from Clifton Hall Colliery and other neighboring collieries. Construction had been complicated by the unstable ground, which had already been subject to mining. Throughout its operational life, it was subject to routine inspections and several rounds of remedial work aimed at stabilising sections of the tunnel roof, principally using steel ribbing. The neighboring land around and above

184-449: A brick roughly 42 cm long, 20 cm wide, and 10 cm thick), smoothing the surfaces with a wire-strung bow, removing them from the frames, printing the fronts and backs with stamps that indicated where the bricks came from and who made them, loading the kilns with fuel (likelier wood than coal), stacking the bricks in the kiln, removing them to cool while the kilns were still hot, and bundling them into pallets for transportation. It

276-516: A brief discussion with Simon Horrocks (the agent for Andrew Knowles and Sons) set off back by horse and cart to his own colliery. At Agecroft colliery Crook met the men ascending from the Dow and Five-Quarters mines. He asked for volunteers, and led a team of about 18 men down the Agecroft, along the "travelling way" (tunnel) into Clifton Hall Colliery. Crook felt the afterdamp and wedged the doors between

368-502: A cutting just beyond the then Swinton cricket ground (Barton Road) between Dorchester Road and Overdale. On 13 April 1953, 15 days prior to the main incident, several elements of brickwork fell from the roof of the tunnel at the site of an undocumented construction shaft. Immediate steps taken included the enactment of a stoppage on all rail traffic through the tunnel and daily inspections of the affected area to observe any further degradation. While preparations for emergency strengthening of

460-507: A distance of 200 yards (180 m) and reduced the air space to as little as 2 feet 6 inches (0.76 m). Ventilation was provided by a furnace near the upcast shaft on the Trencherbone seam. All air from the Trencherbone mine passed over this furnace, reliance being placed on mixing for reducing the possibility of an explosion. In the official report Morley expressed doubts over this practice and in his "General Remarks" at

552-972: A dry, small aggregate concrete which is formed in steel moulds by vibration and compaction in either an "egglayer" or static machine. The finished blocks are cured, rather than fired, using low-pressure steam. Concrete bricks and blocks are manufactured in a wide range of shapes, sizes and face treatments – a number of which simulate the appearance of clay bricks. Concrete bricks are available in many colours and as an engineering brick made with sulfate-resisting Portland cement or equivalent. When made with adequate amount of cement they are suitable for harsh environments such as wet conditions and retaining walls. They are made to standards BS 6073, EN 771-3 or ASTM C55. Concrete bricks contract or shrink so they need movement joints every 5 to 6 metres, but are similar to other bricks of similar density in thermal and sound resistance and fire resistance. Compressed earth blocks are made mostly from slightly moistened local soils compressed with

644-582: A first-class medal and the Salford Humane Society Gold Hundred Medal. As is normal in England the coroner's inquest into the deaths was opened for evidence of identity and to permit the funerals to take place, and then adjourned before the main proceedings. The adjourned inquest opened on Tuesday, 30 June 1885 and took evidence that day, Wednesday 1 July, Thursday 2 July, Wednesday 8 July and Thursday 9 July. Following

736-443: A history older than fired bricks, and have an additional ingredient of a mechanical binder such as straw. Bricks are laid in courses and numerous patterns known as bonds , collectively known as brickwork , and may be laid in various kinds of mortar to hold the bricks together to make a durable structure. The earliest bricks were dried mudbricks , meaning that they were formed from clay-bearing earth or mud and dried (usually in

828-457: A kiln which makes them durable. Modern, fired, clay bricks are formed in one of three processes – soft mud, dry press, or extruded. Depending on the country, either the extruded or soft mud method is the most common, since they are the most economical. Clay and shale are the raw ingredients in the recipe for a fired brick. They are the product of thousands of years of decomposition and erosion of rocks, such as pegmatite and granite , leading to

920-424: A material that has properties of being highly chemically stable and inert. Within the clays and shales are the materials of aluminosilicate (pure clay ), free silica ( quartz ), and decomposed rock. One proposed optimal mix is: Three main methods are used for shaping the raw materials into bricks to be fired: In many modern brickworks , bricks are usually fired in a continuously fired tunnel kiln , in which

1012-588: A pillar of coal about 200 yards (180 m) square had been left some 600 yards (550 m) beyond the limit of the 1885 workings. In the goaf the roof broke away from the Trencherbone rock resulting in voids forming above the low grade coal. The tunnel to the five-quarters mine and on to the Agecroft Colliery was not in regular use. Although driven with 5 feet (1.5 m) height the pressure from above had closed it to as little as 3 feet (0.91 m) in places. Furthermore, water had collected in it for

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1104-483: A relatively low embodied energy and carbon footprint . The ingredients are first harvested and added together, with clay content ranging from 30% to 70%. The mixture is broken up with hoes or adzes , and stirred with water to form a homogenous blend. Next, the tempers and binding agents are added in a ratio, roughly one part straw to five parts earth to reduce weight and reinforce the brick by helping reduce shrinkage. However, additional clay could be added to reduce

1196-401: A retreating wall basis. The coal north of the shafts had already been worked out (apart from a pillar to support the shafts and workings). South of the shafts the coal had largely been worked out back to the supporting pillar for about 2 ⁄ 3 of the distance, that to the south was being actively worked at the time of the explosion. Headings were labelled numbers 1 and 2 east and west in

1288-516: A strike began. After some weeks miners were brought in from the Black Country to break the strike. The incoming miners (known as " Bilston scabs") were given the houses formerly occupied by the striking miners. However other researchers have cast doubt in the details. Cutler (2018) cites newspaper reports from 1866 indicating discontent with the management due to the banning of a trades union . The Wigan Observer (quoted by Cutler) reported

1380-416: A temporary closure had already been enacted earlier that month following the discovery of debris in the tunnel. The tunnel was subsequently stabilised and largely infilled; further measures were taken during 2007 and the 2010s to reinforce the closed tunnel and infill any remaining voids. The origins of the Clifton Hall Tunnel came out of a desire to develop a link between Clifton Hall Colliery and others in

1472-441: Is a similar term referring to a rectangular building unit composed of clay or concrete, but is usually larger than a brick. Lightweight bricks (also called lightweight blocks) are made from expanded clay aggregate . Fired bricks are one of the longest-lasting and strongest building materials , sometimes referred to as artificial stone, and have been used since c.  4000 BC . Air-dried bricks, also known as mudbricks , have

1564-935: Is common in Sweden as well as Russia and other post-Soviet countries, especially in houses built or renovated in the 1970s. A version known as fly ash bricks , manufactured using fly ash , lime, and gypsum (known as the FaL-G process) are common in South Asia. Calcium-silicate bricks are also manufactured in Canada and the United States, and meet the criteria set forth in ASTM C73 – 10 Standard Specification for Calcium Silicate Brick (Sand-Lime Brick). Bricks formed from concrete are usually termed as blocks or concrete masonry unit , and are typically pale grey. They are made from

1656-495: Is dug, 6–9 metres (20–30 ft) wide, 2–2.5 metres (6 ft 7 in – 8 ft 2 in) deep, and 100–150 metres (330–490 ft) in circumference. A tall exhaust chimney is constructed in the centre. Half or more of the trench is filled with "green" (unfired) bricks which are stacked in an open lattice pattern to allow airflow. The lattice is capped with a roofing layer of finished brick. In operation, new green bricks, along with roofing bricks, are stacked at one end of

1748-451: Is manufactured differently for various purposes. Unfired bricks, also known as mudbrick , are made from a mixture of silt , clay , sand and other earth materials like gravel and stone, combined with tempers and binding agents such as chopped straw, grasses, tree bark , or dung. Since these bricks are made up of natural materials and only require heat from the Sun to bake, mudbricks have

1840-435: Is safe to work it [Trencherbone] with naked lights". An explosion of the mine occurred at 09:20 on Thursday 18 June 1885. Higson's report (read into the record of the inquiry by the coroner) explains that the explosion must have originated at the extremity of number 2 East level. The explosion was compounded by gas being sucked out of the large goaf beyond the eastern workings. The mine was acknowledged to be dusty by Hall and

1932-544: The Brick Renaissance as the stylistic changes associated with the Italian Renaissance spread to northern Europe, leading to the adoption of Renaissance elements into brick building. Identifiable attributes included a low-pitched hipped or flat roof, symmetrical facade, round arch entrances and windows, columns and pilasters, and more. A clear distinction between the two styles only developed at

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2024-584: The Building Research Establishment in Watford , UK, the use of improved masonry for the construction of tall structures up to 18 storeys high was made viable. However, the use of brick has largely remained restricted to small to medium-sized buildings, as steel and concrete remain superior materials for high-rise construction. Four basic types of brick are un-fired, fired, chemically set bricks, and compressed earth blocks. Each type

2116-540: The London and North Western Railway 's Clifton Branch. It was connected to the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal by a ¼-mile long tramway . It is thought that the colliery was operating by 1820 and its tramway is shown on a parliamentary plan from 1830 and on an 1845 map. According to some reports in 1869 the miners complained about the safety conditions underground, but Andrew Knowles and Sons refused to concede and

2208-470: The afterdamp . The ten men in number 3 East were initially trapped by the after-damp, but after 13 hours were able to escape and reach the pit bottom. 122 of the men who were working in the Dow and Five-quarters mines were able to escape along the tunnel connecting Clifton's Dow mine to Agecroft Colliery's Trencherbone mine. Nine men were found dead in the tunnel from their injuries or from the after-damp. Morley reports that 177 men and boys died: However

2300-475: The woodlots . The advantage of the BTK design is a much greater energy efficiency compared with clamp or scove kilns . Sheet metal or boards are used to route the airflow through the brick lattice so that fresh air flows first through the recently burned bricks, heating the air, then through the active burning zone. The air continues through the green brick zone (pre-heating and drying the bricks), and finally out

2392-559: The Clifton Hall Tunnel by grouting compromised sections. To support this activity, a comprehensive 3D subsurface laser scan survey was performed by Geoterra to ascertain the specifics and condition of the tunnel, which was accessed via a series of 100mm vertical shafts which were bored from the surface. Following the infilling of voids, further remedial work was undertaken. 53°30′30″N 2°19′29″W  /  53.508291°N 2.324754°W  / 53.508291; -2.324754 Clifton Hall Colliery Clifton Hall Colliery

2484-461: The Dow, Five-Quarters and Trencherbone mines. The shafts terminated at the Cannel mine which at the time of the explosion was not being worked. The Trencherbone seam is about 6 feet (1.8 m) high. Above it is around 6 feet of "white metal" a rock forming a fair roof, and above that some low grade coal which was not worked. Above this poor coal is "good solid rock" 20 yards (18 m) thick known as

2576-736: The Herculaneum gate of Pompeii and the baths of Caracalla . During the Early Middle Ages the use of bricks in construction became popular in Northern Europe , after being introduced there from Northwestern Italy. An independent style of brick architecture, known as brick Gothic (similar to Gothic architecture ) flourished in places that lacked indigenous sources of rocks. Examples of this architectural style can be found in modern-day Denmark, Germany, Poland, and Kaliningrad (former East Prussia ). This style evolved into

2668-714: The Institute of Civil Engineers and a fellow of the Geological Society) who stated that the Davy was "by no means a safe lamp". He explained that in an explosive atmosphere the Davy would ignite it in a current of 6 feet per second (1.8 m/s) whereas the Mueseler was safe up to 50 feet per second (15 m/s) and the Marsant 30 feet per second (9.1 m/s). Higson also categorically stated that "I do not think it

2760-468: The Trencherbone rock. All the strata in the colliery sloped down from the north to the south at about 1 in 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 . A horizontal tunnel ran from where the downcast shaft met the Trencherbone mine southward until it intersected the Five-Quarters and finally Dow mines. The mine was worked by driving headings east and west to the limit of the colliery and then the coal was extracted on

2852-534: The ancient Indus Valley cities of Mohenjo-daro , Harappa , and Mehrgarh . Ceramic, or fired brick was used as early as 3000 BC in early Indus Valley cities like Kalibangan . In the middle of the third millennium BC, there was a rise in monumental baked brick architecture in Indus cities. Examples included the Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro , the fire altars of Kaalibangan , and the granary of Harappa . There

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2944-405: The brick pile. Historically, a stack of unfired bricks covered for protection from the weather was called a "hack". Cooled finished bricks are removed from the other end for transport to their destinations. In the middle, the brick workers create a firing zone by dropping fuel (coal, wood, oil, debris, etc.) through access holes in the roof above the trench. The constant source of fuel maybe grown on

3036-465: The bricks are fired as they move slowly through the kiln on conveyors , rails, or kiln cars, which achieves a more consistent brick product. The bricks often have lime , ash, and organic matter added, which accelerates the burning process. The other major kiln type is the Bull's Trench Kiln (BTK), based on a design developed by British engineer W. Bull in the late 19th century. An oval or circular trench

3128-444: The buildings more visible in the heavy fog and to help prevent traffic accidents. The transition from the traditional method of production known as hand-moulding to a mechanised form of mass-production slowly took place during the first half of the nineteenth century. The first brick-making machine was patented by Richard A. Ver Valen of Haverstraw, New York, in 1852. The Bradley & Craven Ltd 'Stiff-Plastic Brickmaking Machine'

3220-420: The causes of the explosion. His key findings were: the compulsory use of safety lamps in place of candles, the provision by the owners of the best type of safety lamps, banning smoking in the pit, greater care in the selection of underviewer and firemen, replacing direct furnace ventilation with dumb-drift ventilation of fans, and the "taking of the ventilation on more frequent occasions with measurements of each of

3312-464: The chimney, where the rising gases create suction that pulls air through the system. The reuse of heated air yields savings in fuel cost. As with the rail process, the BTK process is continuous. A half-dozen labourers working around the clock can fire approximately 15,000–25,000 bricks a day. Unlike the rail process, in the BTK process the bricks do not move. Instead, the locations at which the bricks are loaded, fired, and unloaded gradually rotate through

3404-444: The collapse, it was decided to fill in the tunnel using spoil and other waste materials produced by one of the nearby collieries. As a result of this infilling, the structure's portals are both buried and cannot be seen, however the route of the railway can still be made out by cuttings and embankments, especially when viewed on an aerial map. During the 2010s, civil engineering company M & J Drilling were contracted to stabilise

3496-456: The colour of bricks to blend-in areas of brickwork with the surrounding masonry. An impervious and ornamental surface may be laid on brick either by salt glazing , in which salt is added during the burning process, or by the use of a slip , which is a glaze material into which the bricks are dipped. Subsequent reheating in the kiln fuses the slip into a glazed surface integral with the brick base. Chemically set bricks are not fired but may have

3588-779: The construction materials for architectural wonders such as the Hanging Gardens of Babylon , where glazed fired bricks were put into practice. The earliest fired bricks appeared in Neolithic China around 4400 BC at Chengtoushan , a walled settlement of the Daxi culture . These bricks were made of red clay, fired on all sides to above 600 °C, and used as flooring for houses. By the Qujialing period (3300 BC), fired bricks were being used to pave roads and as building foundations at Chengtoushan. According to Lukas Nickel,

3680-503: The construction of canal , roads , and railways . Production of bricks increased massively with the onset of the Industrial Revolution and the rise in factory building in England. For reasons of speed and economy, bricks were increasingly preferred as building material to stone, even in areas where the stone was readily available. It was at this time in London that bright red brick was chosen for construction to make

3772-736: The construction of the tomb of China's first Emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi . The floors of the three pits of the terracotta army were paved with an estimated 230,000 bricks, with the majority measuring 28x14x7 cm, following a 4:2:1 ratio. The use of fired bricks in Chinese city walls first appeared in the Eastern Han dynasty (25 AD-220 AD). Up until the Middle Ages, buildings in Central Asia were typically built with unbaked bricks. It

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3864-452: The contents from the mine owners. The sixth and final verdict was to recommend the appointment of additional Inspectors of Mines in order to increase the frequency of inspection. A juryman then asked that the thanks of the court be given to the explorers, specifically Worrall, Crook and a man named Issac Johnson. Hall was also praised for his actions and courage. It was hoped that some official recognition would be forthcoming. Questions about

3956-441: The coroner's summing up the jury retired at 12:30 and returned with their verdicts at 15:30 on the second Thursday. Six verdicts were returned, the first three being the causes of death mentioned above. The third verdict went on to blame the gas being ignited by a candle and that "such emission of gas was sudden and unexpected, and that in the opinion of this Jury no person is either criminally or censurably to blame" and in consequence

4048-537: The culprit. Sir William Galloway (an Inspector of Mines and later Professor of Mining at the University College of Wales) was of the opinion that "the explosions are chiefly or very largely promoted by coal dust". The explosion travelled throughout the Trencerbone mine with the exception of number 3 East, where ten men survived. All the other men in the mine were killed either by the explosion or by

4140-518: The curing process accelerated by the application of heat and pressure in an autoclave. Calcium-silicate bricks are also called sandlime or flintlime bricks, depending on their ingredients. Rather than being made with clay they are made with lime binding the silicate material. The raw materials for calcium-silicate bricks include lime mixed in a proportion of about 1 to 10 with sand, quartz , crushed flint , or crushed siliceous rock together with mineral colourants . The materials are mixed and left until

4232-418: The damp conditions; resulting in the tunnel's arch ring having to carry the full weight (roughly 200 tons) of wet sand in the filled-in construction shaft. It also ruled out mining activity as having played any attributable role in the collapse. Furthermore, that repeated recommendations by assistant chief works inspector H. Bradley for the tunnel's strengthening had been postponed, partially due to questions over

4324-467: The ejection of locked out miners in 1866 and their replacement by "200 men from Cornwall and 300 from Staffordshire" brought by the company along with "about twice as many" who came "at their own expense". By the time of the 1885 disaster (below), all the men killed had a local address and were identified by people who also had a local address (where one was given). For many years afterwards the area became known as Little Bilston. Ventilation by furnace

4416-503: The end of the 19th century, the Hudson River region of New York State would become the world's largest brick manufacturing region, with 130 brickyards lining the shores of the Hudson River from Mechanicsville to Haverstraw and employing 8,000 people. At its peak, about 1 billion bricks were produced a year, with many being sent to New York City for use in its construction industry. The demand for high office building construction at

4508-399: The end of the report explicitly recommended its replacement by a dumb-drift furnace or by fan-driven ventilation. Fresh air from the downcast shaft travelled along the main passages and was drawn off by several "splits". One such ran along number 2 east, across number 2 east faces, then across number 1 faces before rejoining the main return air passage leading to the furnace. Trencherbone

4600-454: The explosion when a "rush of wind" put out their candles and most of the lamps. One of the miners, Samuel Travis, gave evidence to the Coroner's inquest as to what happened thereafter. Travis, his brother and another man walked the 700 yards (640 m) to the "engine brow" (central roadway of the mine) and found there a "lot of foul air" and so returned to the far end. After repeated attempts,

4692-455: The firemen's checks. At the time of the explosion a crack in the overburden opened up and the gas escaped to where men were working at the end of number 2 East. A naked candle ignited the gas. This initial blast would have been insufficient to explain the devastation. Higson's report supposes that the initial blast sucked more gas into the explosion and propagated it throughout the mine. Other contemporary and later research implicated coal dust as

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4784-483: The first bricks with dimension 400x150x100 mm. Between 5000 and 4500 BC, Mesopotamia had discovered fired brick. The standard brick sizes in Mesopotamia followed a general rule: the width of the dried or burned brick would be twice its thickness, and its length would be double its width. The South Asian inhabitants of Mehrgarh also constructed air-dried mudbrick structures between 7000 and 3300 BC and later

4876-648: The inquest were raised in the House of Commons on 21 July, but the Secretary of State for the Home Department declined to comment further until the official government report was in. Present at the inquest was Arnold Morley MP on behalf of the Home Office . Morley wrote his report to Parliament by 31 July. Morley also summarised his findings under six headings, but admitted that only the first dealt with

4968-454: The lime is completely hydrated; the mixture is then pressed into moulds and cured in an autoclave for three to fourteen hours to speed the chemical hardening. The finished bricks are very accurate and uniform, although the sharp arrises need careful handling to avoid damage to brick and bricklayer. The bricks can be made in a variety of colours; white, black, buff, and grey-blues are common, and pastel shades can be achieved. This type of brick

5060-691: The line ran under the Manchester-Preston Line , the station providing an interchange. After passing over the Clifton Viaduct and through the station, the line entered the tunnel, which took a straight route under the Manchester-Southport line just to the east of Pendlebury railway station . The tunnel continued very close to St Augustine's Church, Pendlebury , under Temple Drive and the extreme south east corner of Victoria Park until it reached its southern portal in

5152-479: The line's potential singling or closure, as well as restrictive funding available for such works. The collapsed tunnel was determined to be in such a condition, particularly in regards to its brickwork, that extensive, and costly, remedial works would have been necessary to render it usable to rail traffic once again. Thus, decision makers quickly came to favour its permanent closure. Despite this, emergency reinforcement measures were carried out. Several years following

5244-432: The main splits". The fifth point expressed his concern that potentially explosive gases were drawn directly through the furnace. Using an induced draught or fans meant that there should be nothing to ignite escaping gases. The last point referred to measuring ("taking") the quantity of air both at the main downcast shaft and also at those points where the air current split to go to different districts. Morley drew attention to

5336-431: The memorial records 178 as having died, a statement repeated by modern commentators who record 159 as dying in the mine. The official report includes the minutes of proceedings and the title thereof mentions 178 men and boys as being killed, however the contents only list 177 names. On the plan of the mine showing where men were found, there are only 157 shown. The ten men who were working in number 3 East were aware of

5428-444: The men finally found breathable air by 16:30, some seven hours after the explosion. Six of the men started to walk out, four "required assistance" and were left behind, the walkers reached the pit bottom at 10:30. The other four men were later brought to the surface by a team led by John Crook, the manager of the connected Agecroft Colliery. Crook was the certified manager of the adjacent, and connected, Agecroft colliery. At 09:20 he

5520-512: The men had them in their pockets, along with matches, prior to the second visit. Safety lamps were provided by the company, but had to be paid for by the men. The men also had to pay for candles and lamp oil. Three types of lamp were in use: " Davy ", " Clanny " and " Bainbridge ". The certified manager (Jonathan Hall) only had experience of the Davy and Clanny but admitted that he was aware of safer and brighter lamps. The inquiry examined an expert witness (Mr John Higson, mining engineer, member of

5612-401: The need for straw, which would prevent the likelihood of insects deteriorating the organic material of the bricks, subsequently weakening the structure. These ingredients are thoroughly mixed together by hand or by treading and are then left to ferment for about a day. The mix is then kneaded with water and molded into rectangular prisms of a desired size. Bricks are lined up and left to dry in

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5704-412: The question the coroner put and the jury's finding of "no person is either criminally or censurably to blame". Morley pointed out that this did not mean that there had been no management faults, merely that they did not meet the higher levels of culpability. Brick A brick is a type of construction material used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly,

5796-425: The roadways had to be watered to control this. Coal dust was implicated in the blast: "the props being coated thickly in some instances with coked or burnt coal dust". The white metal above the goaf was weak and in the large unsupported span (600 yards (550 m) by 400 yards (370 m) ) formed a bridge which fell away from the stronger Trencherbone rock. Within this space, firedamp was accumulating, undetected by

5888-476: The sun for three days on both sides. After the six days, the bricks continue drying until required for use. Typically, longer drying times are preferred, but the average is eight to nine days spanning from initial stages to its application in structures. Unfired bricks could be made in the spring months and left to dry over the summer for use in the autumn. Mudbricks are commonly employed in arid environments to allow for adequate air drying. Fired bricks are baked in

5980-494: The sun) until they were strong enough for use. The oldest discovered bricks, originally made from shaped mud and dating before 7500 BC, were found at Tell Aswad , in the upper Tigris region and in southeast Anatolia close to Diyarbakir . Mudbrick construction was used at Çatalhöyük , from c. 7,400 BC. Mudbrick structures, dating to c. 7,200 BC have been located in Jericho , Jordan Valley. These structures were made up of

6072-437: The temperature inside the kiln stayed at a level that caused the clay to shimmer with the colour of molten gold or silver. He also had to know when to quench the kiln with water so as to produce the surface glaze. To anonymous labourers fell the less skilled stages of brick production: mixing clay and water, driving oxen over the mixture to trample it into a thick paste, scooping the paste into standardised wooden frames (to produce

6164-414: The term brick denotes a unit primarily composed of clay , but is now also used informally to denote units made of other materials or other chemically cured construction blocks. Bricks can be joined using mortar , adhesives or by interlocking. Bricks are usually produced at brickworks in numerous classes, types, materials, and sizes which vary with region, and are produced in bulk quantities. Block

6256-560: The third century BC, when baked bricks of regular shape began to be employed for vaulting underground tombs. Hollow brick tomb chambers rose in popularity as builders were forced to adapt due to a lack of readily available wood or stone. The oldest extant brick building above ground is possibly Songyue Pagoda , dated to 523 AD. By the end of the third century BC in China, both hollow and small bricks were available for use in building walls and ceilings. Fired bricks were first mass-produced during

6348-500: The transition to Baroque architecture . In Lübeck , for example, Brick Renaissance is clearly recognisable in buildings equipped with terracotta reliefs by the artist Statius von Düren, who was also active at Schwerin ( Schwerin Castle ) and Wismar (Fürstenhof). Long-distance bulk transport of bricks and other construction equipment remained prohibitively expensive until the development of modern transportation infrastructure, with

6440-625: The trench. The colour of fired clay bricks is influenced by the chemical and mineral content of the raw materials, the firing temperature, and the atmosphere in the kiln. For example, pink bricks are the result of a high iron content, white or yellow bricks have a higher lime content. Most bricks burn to various red hues; as the temperature is increased the colour moves through dark red, purple, and then to brown or grey at around 1,300 °C (2,370 °F). The names of bricks may reflect their origin and colour, such as London stock brick and Cambridgeshire White. Brick tinting may be performed to change

6532-552: The tunnel and the line were opened in to traffic. Once operational, the line provided a strategically important link to Radcliffe via the Clifton Viaduct . During 1901, a length of 272 yards of the tunnel was strengthened via the addition of steel ribs made from reused old rails, spaced at intervals of five feet; similar ribs were installed along another section of the tunnel in 1926; these measures were taken due to concerns of potential subsidence due to coal workings. It

6624-488: The tunnel had a length of 1,298 yards, a width of 24 feet and 9 inches at its widest point, and a height of 22 feet and 3 inches between the top of the arched roof and the invert at its base. It was lined with brick throughout, principally using blue lias mortar ; furthermore, a central drain was laid over the invert. It accommodated a pair of tracks throughout. The completed tunnel was inspected by Captain G. Wynne on 29 October 1849 ahead of entered service. During 1850, both

6716-430: The tunnel via the addition of ribbing were underway, such measures had not been implemented by the date of a more substantial collapse. On 28 April 1953, the Clifton Hall Tunnel partially collapsed. The precise point of the collapse was directly beneath an old brick -lined construction shaft, the contents of which fell into the space below. The surrounding soil , which was a loose mixture of sand and clay , poured into

6808-480: The tunnel was also subject to urbanisation , leading to housing being built directly above it. The tunnel acquired a level of public infamy when it suffered a partial collapse on 28 April 1953, which resulted in the deaths of five occupants of houses in Temple Drive, Swinton , located directly above one of the construction shafts that had been infilled and forgotten about. No danger was posed to rail traffic as

6900-642: The turn of the 20th century led to a much greater use of cast and wrought iron , and later, steel and concrete . The use of brick for skyscraper construction severely limited the size of the building – the Monadnock Building , built in 1896 in Chicago, required exceptionally thick walls to maintain the structural integrity of its 17 storeys. Following pioneering work in the 1950s at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and

6992-644: The two collieries open to improve ventilation. The party moved forward but Crook sent all but one back to assist the Clifton Hall men escaping. Crook reached the pit bottom and met Thomas Worrall (underlooker in the Dow mine) and together put out the furnace to reduce the chance of a second explosion. The winding mechanism had been fixed and the first party down included Horrocks, Hall and two other men from nearby collieries, Mr Barker of Pendleton and Mr Wall of Clifton Moss, along with some other miners. The senior staff (along with Cook) led exploration parties into

7084-429: The use of ceramic pieces for protecting and decorating floors and walls dates back at various cultural sites to 3000-2000 BC and perhaps even before, but these elements should be rather qualified as tiles . For the longest time builders relied on wood, mud and rammed earth, while fired brick and mudbrick played no structural role in architecture. Proper brick construction, for erecting walls and vaults , finally emerges in

7176-484: The various headings, which were hampered by the afterdamp. The men eventually came up at 05:00 Friday morning. Further searches occurred on Friday night and Saturday night. Worrall, 16-year-old George Hindley ( blacksmith ) and George Higson (fireman) were part of the team who descended into the mine immediately after the explosion. They received the Albert Medal in recognition of their heroism. Worrall received

7268-560: The verdict was death by accident. The jury had been asked to rule on the use of naked lights and in their fourth verdict declined to express any opinion, but did recommend an inquiry by "skilful and experienced persons be appointed for the purpose by the Government". During the inquest reference had been made to an anonymous letter sent to the Inspector of Mines. In the fifth verdict the jury found that he had been justified in withholding

7360-474: The vicinity. Railway industry periodical Rail Engineer noted that the tunnel was of an orthodox nature, with no inherently unique factors at play. While detailed drawings and other records relating to it were produced at the time of construction, these were largely destroyed during the 1940s and 1950s. While there were no ventilation shafts in finished structure, a total of eight temporary construction shafts were driven and subsequently in-filled. Upon completion,

7452-498: The void and formed a large cavity underneath the foundations of two houses on Temple Drive. The houses, (numbers 22 and 24) suddenly collapsed into the ground killing five occupants; the end wall of another house fell outwards, though the occupants of this property were rescued. An official inquiry into the incident was conducted. A report compiled in 1954 concluded that timber shoring intended for temporary use during construction may have been left in place and had gradually degraded in

7544-427: The worked section, number 3 east and west and number 4 west in the southern extremity. The large areas to the east and the west of the central roads formed a large area known as the goaf. This space (up to 1,200 yards (1,100 m) across) was in part supported by pack walls and partially filled with waste. It was allowed to gradually subside, crushing the pack walls down. To prevent subsidence beneath Agecroft Hall ,

7636-518: Was a uniformity to the brick sizes throughout the Indus Valley region, conforming to the 1:2:4, thickness, width, and length ratio. As the Indus civilization began its decline at the start of the second millennium BC, Harappans migrated east, spreading their knowledge of brickmaking technology. This led to the rise of cities like Pataliputra , Kausambi , and Ujjain , where there was an enormous demand for kiln-made bricks. By 604 BC, bricks were

7728-750: Was hot, filthy work. Early civilisations around the Mediterranean , including the Ancient Greeks and Romans , adopted the use of fired bricks. By the early first century CE, standardised fired bricks were being heavily produced in Rome. The Roman legions operated mobile kilns , and built large brick structures throughout the Roman Empire , stamping the bricks with the seal of the legion. The Romans used brick for walls, arches, forts, aqueducts, etc. Notable mentions of Roman brick structures are

7820-426: Was in the colliery yard and heard the sound of the explosion. He saw black smoke rising "as if a large balloon was ascending". He sent a man down the pit to find the under-looker and instruct him to go to the communicating tunnel and render what assistance he could. Crook then set off "hurriedly" to Clifton Hall. Crook arrived at Clifton Hall at about 10:00 and discovered that the cages in the shaft were stuck fast. After

7912-831: Was one of two coal mines in Clifton (the other was Wet Earth Colliery ) on the Manchester Coalfield , historically in Lancashire which was incorporated into the City of Salford in Greater Manchester , England in 1974. Clifton Hall was notorious for an explosion in 1885 which killed around 178 men and boys. The colliery, owned by Andrew Knowles and Sons , was located in the Irwell Valley , just off Lumns Lane and had extensive railway sidings on

8004-517: Was only starting in the ninth century CE when buildings were entirely constructed using fired bricks. The carpenter's manual Yingzao Fashi , published in 1103 at the time of the Song dynasty described the brick making process and glazing techniques then in use. Using the 17th-century encyclopaedic text Tiangong Kaiwu , historian Timothy Brook outlined the brick production process of Ming dynasty China: ...the kilnmaster had to make sure that

8096-404: Was patched several times across its first century of use, resulting in irregular brickwork and construction joints throughout, hindering inspection. The land around the tunnel was developed considerably during its operational years; originally being agricultural purposes, it was urbanised and incorporated in the town of Swinton. The northern portal is situated close to Clifton Junction , where

8188-686: Was patented in 1853. Bradley & Craven went on to be a dominant manufacturer of brickmaking machinery. Henry Clayton, employed at the Atlas Works in Middlesex , England, in 1855, patented a brick-making machine that was capable of producing up to 25,000 bricks daily with minimal supervision. His mechanical apparatus soon achieved widespread attention after it was adopted for use by the South Eastern Railway Company for brick-making at their factory near Folkestone . At

8280-535: Was primarily used by freight traffic, although a small number of passenger trains were also operated along the route prior to the Second World War . During the conflict, traffic through the tunnel was temporarily halted. Following the Second World War, the tunnel was never again used by passenger trains. During October 1947, it was reopened for a limited number of freight services. The structure

8372-525: Was replaced in 1886. Production of coal ended 9 November 1929, but a shaft was retained for ventilation at Wheatsheaf Colliery in Pendlebury . The colliery had two shafts only 10 yards (9.1 m) apart. The downcast shaft was used for access and coal extraction. The upcast shaft was provided with ropes and pulleys for use if the downcast was blocked. The shafts passed through four shallower "mines" that were not worked in 1885 before reaching

8464-493: Was worked with candles. Prior to the day shift the firemen tested and marked up those areas free of gas. The men were then allowed to proceed to their various workplaces, but only using safety lamps. The firemen made another round and if all was well would light the men's candles after which naked lights were permitted. Once candles had been lit men were allowed to smoke. Officially no pipe or tobacco were meant to be present when naked lights were prohibited (rule 33), but in practice

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