This museum is sited on a former coalmine.  The modern “Cutter Building”, houses the exhibitions but is surrounded by many 19th C heritage buildings.

There were too many exhibitions to complete over one visit but highlights were:

• Exhibition of the Pitman Painters by the Ashington Group Gallery.
• Coal Town - A fascinating walk-through time from 1918 to the 90’s
• The Dig Deep guided tour, around the heritage buildings, including the two winding houses with 6 feet thick walls to support the heavy winding machinery. 

We spent a brilliant 5 hours here and gained a fascinating insight into the dangers the pitmen faced, their close community, as well as the mechanics of the machinery used to keep everything working.