Well Foundation 1 1858 (≈ 1858)
Start of boreholes and initial digging.
1860
Start of extraction
Start of extraction 1860 (≈ 1860)
First coal production, low yield.
1867
Rail connection
Rail connection 1867 (≈ 1867)
Liaison to Lens station.
1874
Draught of well 1 bis
Draught of well 1 bis 1874 (≈ 1874)
Improvement of ventilation and safety.
1901
Addition of well 1 ter
Addition of well 1 ter 1901 (≈ 1901)
Additional ventilation wells.
1922
Post-war reconstruction
Post-war reconstruction 1922 (≈ 1922)
New straddling for well 1 bis.
1946
Nationalization
Nationalization 1946 (≈ 1946)
Integration into the Lievin Group.
1955
End of extraction
End of extraction 1955 (≈ 1955)
Concentration on pit #6.
2009
Historical Monument
Historical Monument 2009 (≈ 2009)
Protection of well straddling 1 bis.
2012
UNESCO classification
UNESCO classification 2012 (≈ 2012)
World Heritage of Mining Basins.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The complete straddling (case AL 335): registration by order of 25 November 2009
Key figures
M. Defernez - Founder and entrepreneur
Initiator of the first polls in 1858.
Alfred Soubeiran - Geologist
Analysis of the geological layers encountered.
Origin and history
The Liévin Mine Company pit 1 - 1 bis - 1 ter, founded in 1858, marks the beginning of industrial coal mining in Lievin. Well 1, dug in December 1858, meets the coalfield at 136 meters depth. Despite difficult beginnings (production limited to 20 000 tonnes/year until 1866), the deepening of the well and the railway connection to Lens in 1867 boosted the extraction, reaching 350 000 tonnes in 1880. A fatal accident in 1885 (28 miners killed by a blow of fire) recalls the dangers of the fire, ubiquitous in these galleries.
In 1874, well No. 1 bis (initially No. 5) was added to improve ventilation and safety, followed in 1875 or 1901 by well No. 1 ter, dedicated to ventilation. Destroyed during the First World War, the pit was rebuilt in the 1920s, with an iconic chivalry for well 1 bis (built in 1922). Nationalized in 1946, it ceased its activity in 1955 after concentration on pit no. The wells were filled between 1966 and 1979, leaving only the straddling of the No. 1 bis, inscribed in the Historical Monuments in 2009 and classified at UNESCO in 2012.
The site illustrates the regional mining architecture, with its corons and workers' towns built by the Lievin Company. After the closure, a shopping centre replaces the facilities, while the wellheads are materialized by Charbonnages de France. The straddling of No 1a, a symbol of industrial heritage, was renovated from December 2023. The archives also mention 45 workers' houses built in 1858, reflecting the social organization around coal mining.
Initial boreholes (1858), such as No. 54 abandoned at 124 metres or No. 55 discovering coal at 134.70 metres, reveal the complex geology of the basin (Devonian schists, chalk). The 1st pit, which is made of oak and equipped with steam engines (20 and 120 horsepower), embodies the technical progress of the period. Its decline was part of the restructuring of the Houillères after 1946, with the merger of the Lievin and Lens groups in 1952.
Today, well No. 1 bis, the last major vestige, dominates a redesigned urban space. Its heritage inscription underscores the historic importance of the site, a witness to the golden age and the decline of the coal industry in the Hauts-de-France. The annual inspections of the BRGM and the materialization of wellheads perpetuate the memory of the 1,770 metres of galleries and generations of miners.
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