Talk: ‘The Importance of Seaham in the creation of The Mining Institute’ at Seaham Town Hall

Join The Common Room and The North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers (NEIMME) for a free public talk at Seaham Town Hall, exploring the role of Seaham in the creation of The North of England Institute of Mining Engineers, that aimed to increase safety and reduce the fatalities in the “Great Northern Coal Field.”

The talk will explore how a disaster at Seaton Colliery ultimately lead to a fateful meeting of interested parties at The Mill Inn pub in Seaham (which once stood metres from the current site of Seaham Town Hall), which would become the first informal meeting of The North of England Institute of Mining Engineers.

This free public talk will be delivered by Stuart Porthouse, past president of the Institute, and will be held 170 years to the day of this first meeting.

Timings and Venue

Venue: Seaham Town Hall, Stockton Road, Seaham, SR7 0HP

Arrival: from 6:30pm

Talk commences: 7:00pm

Event close: approx. 8:30pm

About The Common Room

The Common Room is a charity formed in 2017 to restore the Grade II* listed Neville Hall in Newcastle upon Tyne (home to The Mining Institute since 1872), and its significant archive and collections documenting centuries of engineering, mining and wider scientific innovation.

Thanks to National Lottery players, an £8.9m grant has enabled us to spend over £7 million restoring the building, and around £2m to support our running costs, preserve our collections, and to drive our mission: to use our unique heritage to inspire the next generation of innovators and engineers.

Complete with its own cafe bar, The Common Room is also available for hire for private events, including conferences and lectures, to weddings and gigs.

About The North Of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers (NEIMME)

The Mining Institute is a membership organisation dedicated to the professions of mining engineering, mechanical engineering, mining electrical engineering and related professions. It is the world’s oldest professional mining organisation, established in 1852. NEIMME have been based in the building now known as The Common Room, since it was built in 1872.

NEIMME still encourages the study of mining and involves both practicing mining engineers and laymen amongst its members. Many of their members are experts in their field and we encourage people to work together and learn from each other. As an increasingly active Institute, it is once again growing with more members joining every year.