Exploration of the mine-head of the “Hasard de Cheratte”.
An abandoned industrial site located in the Meuse river valley, this coal mine impresses by the variety of its architecture – an older part called medieval, and a modern part in concrete post-WWII. At its peak of activity the mine employed close to 1500 miners.
In 1848 the Saroléa family and the Corbesier brothers bought the concession of Housse and founded the company “Société Charbonnière de Housse” which drilled at the present location two pits, one going down to a depth of 170m and the other to 250m. At the summit of the hill dominating the site, an air shaft was built, as coal mines always have an unbreathable atmosphere due to the dust and various gases.
In 1877 a flood in the mine killed several miners and due to a lack of technical and financial means the company was liquidated.
In 1905 the liquidators sold the concession of Cheratte to the company “S.A. des charbonnages du Hasard” in Micheroux which under the impulsion of the d’Andrimont family and its young director R. Henry had become one of the most dynamic companies in the region. A geological study showed that this mine-head had the potential to become the most productive of the Liege basin with 1000t of low-grade coal per day.
The medieval style tower was built in 1907. It is 30m high and 12m wide so that its top can support two powerful direct currant motors of 135Kw at 150V. The control post of the frame and the elevators is installed at the top of this tower.
The annex buildings were built and housed the stores, the repair workshops, the lamp room and its rows of chargers, the ironworks, and the personnel department with its timekeepers….
The modern part was built after the Second World War between 1947 and 1950.
