The museum advertises free general admission during its opening sessions. Check its website before travelling and look for a running day if you want to see the engine move. Visits do not include going down the mine or climbing the headgear.
Check the official visitor information ↗ · checked 2026-09-13
Use public paths and visitor areas. Do not enter unstaffed tunnels, shafts, railway land or restricted property.
Advice before you visitInformation checked 2026-09-13. We checked published records and visitor information. No site visit or direct confirmation from the operator.
How the mine worked
Astley Green began in 1908 and started producing coal in 1912. Its winding engine, built by Yates and Thom of Blackburn, hauled coal to the surface and lowered miners and supplies into the pit. Ropes ran from the engine’s drum over wheels on the tower above the shaft. That tower is known as the headgear.
The wet, unstable ground made sinking the shaft difficult. Engineers used hydraulic jacks to push iron lining rings down through it. The mine closed in 1970, and most of its other buildings have been demolished.
- Historic England — Astley Green Colliery: engine house and headgear ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-13
What you can see today
The engine and headgear survive as part of Lancashire Mining Museum. The museum says the restored engine now runs on compressed air during demonstrations. Check its events programme for a running day; the engine is not guaranteed to move during every opening session.
Some displays are recreations, including a miner’s cottage in the former manager’s office. A proposed display of coal extraction at ground level is still described as work in progress. The museum visit does not include going down the mine or climbing the headgear.
- Lancashire Mining Museum — colliery history ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-13
- Lancashire Mining Museum — what to see ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-13
- Lancashire Mining Museum — events ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-13
What we still need to check
We have not visited the site. Opening arrangements can change, so check the linked operator before travelling.
Sources for the visiting information
- Lancashire Mining Museum — visitor information ↗ · reviewed 2026-09-13
About the original record
This place is recorded by Historic England / Planning Data. The details below include the original description of its building or site type.
Place details
- Category
- Industrial relics
- Building or site type (original wording)
- Astley Green Colliery: engine house and headgear
- Period or date
- 1908–1970 colliery; engine and headgear completed by 1912
- Current condition
- Not checked in person
- Heritage protection
- Scheduled monument
- Date protection was granted
- 1999-12-14
- Nearby town
- Bolton (approximate)
- County named in the original record
- Not supplied
- Current county or council area
- Wigan
- Nation
- England
- Original record number
- 1017061
- Coordinates
- 53.495566, -2.446751 (reference point, not an entrance)
- Heritage data checked
- 2026-09-13
- Source last updated
- 2026-08-28
- Visitor information checked
- 2026-09-13
We checked the downloaded heritage record on 2026-09-13. We have not visited or inspected the site. The map point may refer to a whole site, one structure or a location where little remains.