Timeline

Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Wendel tile museum, located in Petite-Rosselle (Moselle, Grand Est), occupies two nearby sites: Wendel and Vuillemin tiles. These pits, operated by the Compagnie des coalières de Petite-Rosselle before their nationalization in 1946, formed a major mining complex in the Sarrois-Lorrain coalfield. They operated two separate deposits separated by a geological fault. Today, this site is the most comprehensive preserved in France and an anchor of the European Industrial Heritage Route.

The operation began in 1856 under the leadership of Charles de Wendel and James Georges Tom Hainguerlot, then head of the French steel empire. The Wendel #1 well was dug in 1865, followed by the Wendel #2 well in 1871, while the Vuillemin #1 and #2 wells were dark between 1867 and 1889. A fire in 1876 in the Henri vein of the Wendel well took three years to be controlled. In 1935, the discovery of a deep oily coal deposit led to the excavation of the Wendel No. 3 well, completed in 1952 after an interruption due to World War II.

After the nationalization of 1946, the Wendel tile was modernized as part of the Monnet plan to triple coal production. The wells were equipped with metal and electrical extraction machines (ALSTHOM, Koepe). In 1960, Wendel headquarters employed 5,000 miners for a daily production of 10,000 tonnes. The activity gradually ceased: the Vuillemin wells closed in 1962, the Wendel wells in 1989, and the site finally in 1991.

The conversion started in 1985 with the creation of the CCSTI (Centre for Scientific, Technical and Industrial Culture), leading to the opening of the museum in 2006. It allows you to visit the mining galleries and an immersive route that traces the life of the miners. In 2012, an extension presented the workers' journey from tiles to wells. The site, classified as a Historic Monument in 1998, retains unique equipment in Europe, such as the Wendel 3 washer, capable of treating 5,000 tons of coal daily.

The museum organizes thematic exhibitions, such as From Mineral to Plant (2014), dedicated to the gardens of miners, central elements of their daily lives. These spaces, systematically attached to mining housing, were used for food and recreation. The show Les Enfants du Charbon (2005-2011), combining sound and light with 300 extras, attracted more than 100,000 visitors, highlighting the regional attachment to this cross-border industrial heritage.

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