The Wendel mine - The epic of coal mining

2001 marks the end of coal mining at the Wendel Mine in Lorraine near Forbach. (Three years later, the last French coal mine closed in 2004 at La Houve).
Upon arriving at the Petite-Rosselle mine site, a vast park welcomes the visitor. The conversion is only in its infancy. But a perfectly renovated building, the former administrative headquarters of Wendel, invites you to enter this universe so special as that of underground miners. A monumental block of charcoal immediately indicates the theme of this museum.

Objects and models, audiovisual documents, photos and documents retrace the history of coal in Lorraine, the daily life of the miner and his family. Former miners give their testimonies via sound terminals. During the visit, we discover the boiler room of the shower baths, the lamp load banks, the infirmary, the surveyors' room, the lamp workshop, the foremen's locker room and the showers.

After this “theoretical” discovery, head for the bowels of the mine. A curious red construction resembling a huge open book attracts the eyes and footsteps of visitors. Going down a few steps, the greeting of the miners is written above the door: Glück auf. Like generations of miners before them, they enter a cage to descend to the bottom of the mine where Saint Barbara, the patron saint of miners, welcomes them.

Good luck for !

The illusion is perfect (because in reality the cage hasn't gone underground): when you come out into the galleries, you'd think you were there! Except that everything is clean, the air is dry and does not resound with the infernal noise of the machines. The circuit is perfectly laid out.

But the guides, mostly former miners, know how to retrace the daily life of the black mouths, their painful working and living conditions... Some know how to tell so well, because they have lived it, that we forget the museum environment so perfect! The impressive machinery – digging machines, felling machines, shearers – are impeccably maintained and in working order. If part of the equipment was sold when the mining activity ceased, others are so huge that they will remain at the bottom.

Some machines come from other sites so that all the different coal mining techniques used until the closing of the last French mine are illustrated at the Wendel mine.

1,500 tons of material

Many tools complete this universe underground. Digging machine, electro-hydraulic loader, shearer and batteries.

The coal mining agents in France have installed the equivalent of 1,500 tons of machinery in order to faithfully reproduce the work in the mine. Between the different galleries, a specific space allows you to better understand the different techniques used. A 3D film allows you to dive definitively into the working day of a miner underground.

"Parc Explor" Wendel

The transformation of the site is still in its infancy. After the opening to the public of the “Les Mineurs Wendel” museum, projects are underway to save the buildings and open up the site to other activities. In the meantime, the exterior of the pithead is accessible free of charge.

A route that goes from the forecourt of the museum to the mine, explains the history and evolution of the site, the function of the various buildings, the raising of the coal and its treatment in the washhouse. From time to time, unusual visits and other events are offered.

Charles Wendel

It was in 1853 that Charles de Wendel founded a steelworks in Stiring, near Forbach. He had a large workers' city built (which would become the life of Stiring-Wendel in 1857). It was he who had surveys carried out in Petite-Rosselle in order to locate the coal. The first block of Lorraine's black gold was extracted in June 1856. The coal was primarily intended to supply the Wendel steelworks. After the Second World War, it was the battle for coal and Lorraine's production had to be tripled in less than 10 years. In 1946, it was attached to the Houillères du Bassin de Lorraine as part of the nationalization of French coal mines.

Despite the coal recession that set in after 1960, investments were made until 1986, when the Wendel head office was sold. Part of the site infrastructure is still used for other wells before the closing of the last Wendel well in 2001.