The practice gallery of the former Ewald-Fortsetzung colliery !

The practice gallery of the former Ewald-Fortsetzung colliery !

Here you can see the area of the former Ewald-Fortsetzung colliery in the city of Oer-Erkenschwick (Germany). Former and active miners have established a community that runs the colliery's practice gallery even after the shutdown. With a lot of work and passion the miners have built a tunnel in which the visitors really have the impression to be in a depth of 1.000 metres or more. Additionally there are tunnel parties in regular intervals. Some photos of them can be found in this gallery, as well. The tunnel is really worth visiting and in my eyes the photos on this page show this very clearly.

Thank you very much for the photos to Heinz Großmann and Rolf Gatberg, the latter is also a member of the community I mentionned above and that can be found on the web under http://www.museum-oe.de. If you discover yourself in one of the pictures and if you do not want the photo to be published here, please send me an e-mail.

Please click on the photos' small versions in order to enlarge them and to get the corresponding background information. ATTENTION: The pictures' explanations can now be found UNDER the large versions.


The former Ewald-Fortsetzung colliery.	The practice gallery and the winding tower.	Inside the practice gallery there is a pub.	A winding tower's wheel on the colliery's area.


Different kinds of safety pillars.	A bicycle for underground use...	...causes a lot of fun for the children.	An underground engine with a mine car.


And once again the same engine.	A windlass e.g. for the hoisting in the shafts.	The choir of the underground fire brigade.	An engine in the practice gallery.


The engine next to a door for the ventilation.	The inside of the practice gallery...	...looks as if it was 1.000 metres under the surface.	Large engines in the practice gallery.


A stretcher for injured or sick miners.	In the practice gallery of the former colliery.	A tracked vehicle can be seen, as well.	A conveyor like in a real colliery.


The onset of a blind shaft.	This is the operator's place of the shaft.	The suspension railway in the practice gallery.	Once again the suspension railway.


The energy train in the roadway.	The operator's place of the mining area.	There are safety pillars in the roadway.	The practice gallery's longwall mining area.


Another view into the longwall mining area.	On the right there are the safety shields.	The steel plow shows the extraction.	At the entrance to the longwall mining area.


The coal comes from the mining area.	Heavy machines for the transportation.	A miner in the practice gallery's mining area.	The steel plow and the hard coal.


This is the steel plow, once again.	A roadway that is built of wood.	Another view into the same roadway.	This is a very steep longwall mining area.


A so called Schwibbogen in the tunnel.	A view into the decorated practice gallery.	Some miners next to the onset.	A group of miners in the practice gallery.


Visitors during one of the "tunnel parties".	The Schwibbogen from much closer.	There was also a forging furnace.	The forging during a "tunnel party".


Some of the visitors in the practice gallery.	Children on the underground bicycle.	Even more visitors of the "tunnel party".	The pub in the practice gallery.


Crowds of visitors came to the "tunnel party".	Some miners' hats on a table.	The symbol of the underground fire brigade.	The equipment of the fire brigade.


The so called "Dahlbusch bomb".	The presentation of the fire brigade.	This is a breathing apparatus...	...or am I wrong ?!


The same "breathing apparatus".	Four members of the underground fire brigade.	In the beautiful practice gallery.	Hubertus Heil visited the "tunnel party".

The members of the underground fire brigade.