John King Mining Museum

THE MUSEUM IS NOW CLOSED.

Dedicated to the industrial, social & family history of Pinxton and South Normanton, and particularly John King & his invention of the mines cage safety detaching hook. The museum keeps records of any historic event, news papers, old photos and mining memorabilia.

The museum are always looking for new items and anything you might think of as rubbish or scrap could be a great find for the museum.

Coal Mining in Pinxton

Pinxton was once a very import coalmining area. The Pinxton Coal Company was established in the 17th century and the link with deep coalmining continued until the closure of Annesley-Bentinck Colliery in January 2000.

The villages claim to fame in terms of mining is John King. He invented the detaching hook on the cage which prevented overwinding the cage at the top of the shaft.  

The museum was the brainchild of the late Frank Smith -Mr Pinxton  – and is now operated by the Pinxton and South Normanton Local History Society.  Although the museum is small and is situated in a former workshop, there is a wealth of information inside, much of it with connections to the local coal industry. Among the exhibits is a pair of British Coal Wellingtons once belonging to the MuBu miner.  Although they now come under the banner of mining memorabillia, the wellingtons saw no use in the coal industry but had plenty of use on the side of the River Trent!

The museum is well worth a visit for anyone interested in industry and transport in general.