Aerial view of Markham Colliery in Derbyshire

This aerial photograph shows Pit No. 1 at Markham Colliery in the foreground, and the village of Duckmanton, where many of the mine workers lived, in the background.

Markham Colliery was originally owned by the Staveley Coal and Iron Company, who sunk the first shafts on the site in 1882. In 1947 it became part of the National Coal Board, when the coal industry was nationalised. After merging with the Ireland Colliery in Staveley it became the largest colliery in North Derbyshire. It closed in 1994.