'District tftf iries CJlistorical NEWSLETTER No 89 JANUARY 1999 If there is a cross in the adjacent box, then you have not renewed o your membership fof the-ctITTent year. Please-renew nowH! SUMMARY OF DATES FOR YOUR DIARY 23 Jan 27 Feb 5-7 March 15-19 March 20-21 March 18 April Lead Mining introduction - PDMM Barmote Laws introduction - PDMM U/ground meet - Cleveland Conference - Germany Page 6 Page 6 Page 6 Page 11 Page 6 Page 6 Page 7 Page 5 Page 7 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 11 U/ground meet - N Yorks l May U/ground meet - Matlock Bath Social - Nenthead 12-13 June 24-27 Sept September October PDMHS 40th Anniversary - Monyash NAMHO Conference - Forest of Dean U/ground meet - N Wales July 2000 2000 S Coast & Overseas Meet InterNAMHO Conference - Cornwall Conference - Canada PAYMENT OF SUBSCRIPTION BY STANDING ORDER Would those members who paid their subscription by Standing Order on 1st September but who have not altered their mandate for the revised subscription rate, please forward the balance to the Membership Secretary, Mr P Smith, 71 St Norbert Drive, Kirk Hallam, llkeston.. Derbys, DE7 4EF, as soon as possible. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING The Twenty Fourth Annual General Meeting of the Peak District Mines Historical Society was held in the Pump Room at The Peak District Mining Museum, The Pavilion, Matlock Bath, Matlock, Derbyshire, on 21 November 1998 . - The Director's Report and the Accounts for the year ending 30th June 1998 were accepted. Chainnan's Report This last year has been an interesting year for Society meets with venues as diverse as Temple Mine and Gennan gun emplacements in Northern France. Many thanks to Paul Chandler for organising the programme and to the leaders of the meets. More leaders are always needed. If you feel that you can organise a trip , please get in touch with Paul Chandler. Work continues at Magpie Cottage with the refurbishment of the old kitchen. There has been a steady flow of visitors throughout the year and already there are several bookings for 1999. The cottage hosted the 50th Birthday Party for Andy Gillings, Dave Clucas and David Williams. The Barmote Court event was held at Magpie in October. Guests were entertained with a slide show by Harry Parker on " The Recovery of the Wills Founder Engine" and " The North Pennines". Lynn Willies led a tour of the Magpie Mine site. Our thanks to Mavis Luff, the Cottage Warden , and to everyone who lent a hand. Work continues on various Society projects. John Peel and friends at Old Millclose have cleared the sough up to the fall and have now explored and surveyed a further 600ft of passage . Further up the valley, Dave Penney and his group have concentrated their efforts around Weet Sough. They have discovered several enigmatic levels but have been frustrated by water or collapsed shafts. With the work at New Venture finished and the debris cleared away, Jim Rieuwerts and friends have turned their attention to How Grove Mine on Dirtlow Rake . A roofless coe and a shaft have been cleared out, a crushing circle uncovered and a broken crushing wheel erected. Further work is being carried out on another shaft or run in section. A complicated set of buddies with several layers has been discovered and John Barnatt and a group of professional archaeologists are working on this . The team has also erected a crushing wheel at Windy Knoll. We thought we had sorted the problem of the relocation of the fluorspar plant at Ashover with the offer
Would those members who paid their subscription by Standing Order on 1st September but who have not altered their mandate for the revised subscription rate, please forward the balance to the Membership Secretary, Mr P Smith, 71 St Norbert Drive, Kirk Hallam, llkeston.. Derbys, DE7 4EF, as soon as possible.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING The Twenty Fourth Annual General Meeting of the
Peak District Mines Historical Society was held in the Pump Room at The Peak District Mining Museum, The Pavilion, Matlock Bath, Matlock, Derbyshire, on 21 November 1998. -
The Director's Report and the Accounts for the year ending 30th June 1998 were accepted.
Chainnan's Report This last year has been an interesting year for Society
meets with venues as diverse as Temple Mine and Gennan gun emplacements in Northern France. Many thanks to Paul Chandler for organising the programme and to the leaders of the meets. More leaders are always needed. If you feel that you can organise a trip, please get in touch with Paul Chandler.
Work continues at Magpie Cottage with the refurbishment of the old kitchen. There has been a steady flow of visitors throughout the year and already there are
several bookings for 1999. The cottage hosted the 50th Birthday Party for Andy Gillings, Dave Clucas and David Williams.
The Barmote Court event was held at Magpie in October. Guests were entertained with a slide show by Harry Parker on "The Recovery of the Wills Founder Engine" and "The North Pennines". Lynn Willies led a tour of the Magpie Mine site. Our thanks to Mavis Luff, the Cottage Warden, and to everyone who lent a hand.
Work continues on various Society projects. John Peel and friends at Old Millclose have cleared the sough up to the fall and have now explored and surveyed a further 600ft of passage. Further up the valley, Dave Penney and his group have concentrated their efforts around Weet Sough. They have discovered several enigmatic levels but have been frustrated by water or collapsed shafts.
With the work at New Venture finished and the debris cleared away, Jim Rieuwerts and friends have turned their attention to How Grove Mine on Dirtlow Rake. A roofless coe and a shaft have been cleared out, a crushing circle uncovered and a broken crushing wheel erected. Further work is being carried out on another shaft or run in section. A complicated set of buddies with several layers has been discovered and John Barnatt and a group of professional archaeologists are working on this. The team has also erected a crushing wheel at Windy Knoll.
We thought we had sorted the problem of the relocation of the fluorspar plant at Ashover with the offer
of a second building by Laporte' s, the first building offered having been damaged by fire. However, objections have been made to the use of this building as it constitutes a change of use. We then offered to put the existing sheds in order in the hope that the plant could stay in-situ but this solution was not acceptable also. Alan Mutter is trying to solve the problem of re-siting this plant.
Several members have been involved in the recent exploration at Ecton in Staffordshire. You will all have read in Mining History the account of the exploration and
Jim Rieuwerts reports that English Heritage has at last agreed to the scheduling of various sites which he first put forward some l_O years ago.
Lead mining has featured in several TV programmes this year. The first concerned the Barmote Court and was a disgrace as the presenters mocked the Court and what it stood for. The Museum and Temple Mine were featured in a breakfast time "day-out" programme. There was a very good piece with Harry Parker at Magpie Mine in the first of the "Travels with Pevsner" series. "Heart of the Country" has done a piece about the discovery of the
antler tool at Ecton and at the Museum the Chairman was filmed holding the tool and talking about it. It is believed that this feature will be transmitted in the near future .
Work continues at the Museum and Temple Mine. Robin Hall and his band of merry men and women are busy constructing new display panels for the Exploration and Geology sections.
Chairman Evelyn Dixon looks for reaction to her Annual Report, . supported by Hon Sec Keith Gregory.
Following surveys of the storage area, the state of the security of the building and an assessment of the floor loa.ding capacity of the room above the entrance hall of the Museum, we need to have some expensive work done. We are seeking estimates for the cost of the work and will
Photo by H M Parker
the discovery of the antler tool. The antler tool has been conserved by Lincoln City and County Museum and will soon be on display at the Museum.
The Publications Committee met twice during the year. Last year we published two editions of Mining History, a revised edition of the Nenthead Mines publication and Jim Rieuwerts "Glossary of Derbyshire Mining Terms".
I have no doubt that you have noticed the odd mistake in Mining History and the Glossary. This is in spite of the manuscripts being read by the authors, editor, "chief nit picker" and others. We can only apologise and say we do try to eliminate these mistakes.
Trevor Ford has indicated that he would like to retire from the post of Editor. Anyone who has the time and aptitude for this post should contact Trevor.
Sales of our publications are improving now that they are being marketed by Mrs Stella Porter of Landmark Publishing Ltd.
The Newsletter continues to be edited by Wes Taylor and four editions were published during the year. In the future we will ensure that the distribution of the Newsletter is not held whilst waiting for the delivery of other publications as happened last summer. Items of interest are always welcome, please send them to Wes.
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be looking into the possibility of getting grants to finance this essential work.
Rowena Smith retired from the position of Museum manager during the year and Maxine Hall has taken over. Maxine is gradually getting to grips with the job and we wish her well.
At Temple Mine a new concrete path has been laid. The top of the cliff has been cleared and netted to prevent rock falls . It is planned to do a lot of work at the mine in the future.
We expected more visitors to the Museum and Temple Mine than we achieved. We think schools are no longer able to afford annual visits and the casual visitor is unwilling to pay the very high parking charges necessary to give them time to visit the Museum and Mine as well as having their fish and chips.
The re-registration of the Museum is still in abeyance. The County Council has still not released the accounts for 1996/7 and this is preventing preparation of subsequent years accounts. Until all of the accounts to date have been accepted we cannot sever our partnership with the County and District Councils and establish ourselves as an independent museum with a board of trustees. Alan Mutter has consulted with the Charity
Commission about our future status and is doing an enonnous amount of work to resolve the problems.
During the year we held three meetings in the Pump Room. Two lectures on conservation were given by Dr Jim Rieuwerts and Paul Deakin presented a slide show on coal and other mines. All three were well attended. Two more talks by Jim were scheduled for the autumn but had to be cancelled as they clashed with the "lights and fireworks" nights of the Matlock Bath Illuminations. Whilst most members living within 50 milss of Matlock were informed of the cancellation, some members who were missed by the mailing tried to attend. We apologise for the inconvenience caused.
The Society maintains a display at the National Tramway Museum at Crich. Iain Butler and his band of dedicated helpers have developed a splendid display which provides valuable publicity for the Society. Iain is shortly stepping down as leader and organiser of the group. Paul Smith is working with Iain and will be taking over as leader in the New Year. Many thanks to lain and his group for all of their sterling work over the years.
The Treasurers job for PDMHS Ltd is not big but when it is coupled with the Museum and Temple Mine, together with that of the Membership Secretary, it becomes very onerous. Wes Taylor decided that the job was taking up far too much of his time and proffered his resignation. Dave Gough volunteered to do the job, little realising what he was taking on. Dave was co-opted to the Council and it is hoped that he will be confirmed in the post later this evening.
To lighten the workload of the Treasurer, the post of a separate Membership Secretary has been re-created. Paul Smith has accepted this position and was co-opted onto the Council. We are aware that there are arguments against splitting the work but Council has decided to "give it a go". Many thanks to Wes for the work done as Treasurer.
Plans are in hand for a celebration of the 40th Anniversary of the founding of PDMHS. The celebration will be held in June, full details will be published in the Newsletter.
Some of the Society's projects have been ongoing for a number of years and some of the members of these teams have passed the halfway mark of their "three score years and ten". We need new blood to help with the digging, pumping, exploring, surveying etc. Crawling through thick mud can be fun so come and try it. We can also find other less strenuous jobs in which you can get involved.
Election of Directors Following the election to fill the vacant posts, the
JR Thorpe, "The Old Bakehouse", Cobden Rd, MATLOCK Derbys, DE4 3JR Tel: 01269 582521
Any other business Mr A Gillings asked:-
a. for clarification of "Magpie site expenses" as listed in the accounts
b. what was the value of tax reclaimed from the Inland Revenue under the "Covenanted Subscription Scheme"
c. what steps are being taken to ensure that the Society does not continue to incur a deficit.
Mrs Dixon asked the past Treasurer to answer the first two questions.
a . This entry is the lease and insurance costs specific to the Magpie Mine site, ie the annual fixed cost of leasing the site.
Dave Warriner made a special presentation of the completed report of the Old Millclose project to a surprised Trevor Ford. He also presented Trevor with a "Patience Certificate" for waiting eighteen years for the report.
The formal part of the evening was completed by Dr Trevor Ford giving an illuminating presentation of the American Grand Canyon.
b. Nothing. WJT stated "When I was appointed treasurer I found that there had been no action taken to recover moneys from the Inland Revenue for members who had returned covenanted subscription forms. The Society was not registered for the Covenant/Gift Aid Scheme. I registered the Society with the Inland Revenue to recover our dues. However, the workload on a single person carrying out the duties of treasurer, especially that associated with the Museum, and membership secretary made further action on this problem impossible. l hope that
Double surprise for Editor Dr Trevor Ford (left) as he receives both the long awaited Old Millclose Mine Report, and the associated "Patience Award", from Dave Warriner.
now there are three people doing the work that one did before, the recovery of this money will be progressed to a successful conclusion."
c. Mrs Dixon agreed that the recovery of covenanted moneys from the Inland Revenue should help matters. The publishing activities incur large costs at the publishing stage but the recovery of these costs is ongoing.
ANNUAL DINNER The Thirty Eighth Annual Dinner of the Society was
held at Jackson Tor House, Matlock on 21 November 1998.
The Chairman, Mrs Evelyn Dixon, proposed the Toast to The Guests.
Dr Trevor Ford proposed the Toast to the Society The Society Awards for 1998 were presented by Dr
Trevor Ford OBE. They were:-1. The Harold Sarjeant Award for Mines
Conservation was awarded to "The Magpie Cottage Refurbishment Team".
2. The Peak Mines Award was made to Gordon Bowering and Roger Flindall for their paper "Hard Times: A Hi.story of the Derbyshire Chert Industry" which was published in Mining History Vol 13 No 5.
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Photo by H M Parker
CHANGE OF STATUS OF THE PEAK DISTRICT MINING MUSEUM
The Peak District Mining Museum is managed by a tripartite body consisting of Derbyshire County Council, Derbyshire Dales District Council (the owners of the Pavilion at Matlock Bath, the building in which the Museum is located) and Peak District Mines Historical Society Ltd.
The two local authorities have intimated that they wish to withdraw their direct involvement in the Museum. This poses the question of whether the Museum should be administered wholly by PDMHS Ltd or whether it should b~ operated on a "stand alone" basis. A discussion paper will be presented at the next meeting of the directors of PDMHS Ltd (in February 1999) setting out the advantages and disadvantages of any changeover.
Members who are interested in contributing to the debate should contact Alan Mutter, 72 Wolds Rise, Matlock, Derbyshire, DE4 3HJ. Tel:- 01629 584468.
Future editions of the Newsletter will keep members informed of the changes to the management of the Museum. Alan Mutter - Chairman of the Peak District Mining Museum Joint Management Committee
PDMHS COUNCIL REPORT Summary of Council Meeting of 6th November 1998.
Roy Paulson, our Hon Recorder, now has an Internet address at [email protected]
Publications:-1. Mining History 13/6 is almost ready for
printing and will contain the index to Volume 13. 2 . Mining History 14/I is scheduled for "The Limestone Caves of Dudley" and a loan for its publication has been offered by the Curry Fund of the Geologists' Association. Publication 14/2 will be reserved for Old Mill Close.
2. The "Glossary of Derbyshire Lead Mining Terms" by Dr Rieuwerts, published in August, was selling well.
3. The book on "Colliery Ventilation" by Alan Hill has received its final corrections and awaits the addition of photographs.
4. The new edition of the "Red Book" is complete but for two contributions and will be published by Landmark Publishing.
5. The large Magpie booklet still needs some revision.
6 . The reprint of the Mill Close book is not yet settled.
Sales of our publications to retail outlets are now carried out by Mrs. Porter of Landmark Publishing Ltd
Other possible publications are Chatsworth Barmaster's Records, Matlock Mines History, Serpentine Rock, Blue John by Dr T Ford and a revised version of Dr Rieuwerts's sough book.
The new Membership Secretary, Paul Smith, proposes to computerise the records and will include telephone numbers with the agreement of each member. Data protection legislation will involve an official notification.
A recent BBC TV edition of Pevsner's Derbyshire displayed Harry Parker and the Society's name prominently.
In common with other retailers in Matlock Bath, receipts at the Peak District Mining Museum dropped considerably in September. The temporary closure of Temple Mine, following a fall of rock from the cliff top, made matters worse. Various models of machines from Markhams of Chesterfield are currently in the Museum. Some of these models will remain but some will go to Pleasely Colliery. The implementation of two reports on the Mining Museum will lead to an application for a lottery grant next year. It is likely that a cash dispenser will be fitted in the wall of the Pavilion for the benefit of locals, visitors and, we hope, the Museum.
Project leadership of the PDMHS display at the National Tramway Museum at Crich will be taken over by Paul Smith in 1999. Iain Butler, who has led the team for many years, will remain to help. Keith Gregory
OCTOBER 1998 BARMOTE EVENT On 21 October we continued our now established
custom of holding an informal meeting of the Barmote
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Court members. This, the fourth occasion that we have hosted the event, was held at the Magpie Mine Field Centre.
Mrs Rowena Smith, former PDMM Manager, tries her hand at clay pipe smoking. Cough! Cough!
Photo by H M Parker
Most of the Barmote Court members were present plus a number of invited guests, including an ex Master Cutler. Jim Rieuwerts, the principal organiser of the event, and our Chairman, Evelyn Dixon, welcomed the assembly. Clay pipes and tobacco were distributed and after most of them were stoked up Harry Parker presented a fascinating slide show on the North Pennine Mines and on the recovery of the Wills Founder Engine which is now the centrepiece of the Peak District Mining Museum. Lynn Willies took the visitors around the Magpie Mine site and they returned to the cottage instructed, entertained and appreciative.
Refreshments, prepared by the Monday Nighters, were provided by the Museum and the beer was provided by one of the PDMHS Ltd directors. The weather for Magpie was miraculously clement and everybody seemed to think that it was a good do and well worth continuing. Alan Mutter
PDMHS 40th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS Keep the weekend of 12113 June 1999 free for our
40th Anniversary Celebrations. The celebration will be centred on Monyash Village Hall where, on the Saturday, there will be a series of talks on Derbyshire Mining etc
throughout the ages and, in the evening, a pie and pea supper together with a slide presentation showing our activities throughout the years. A bar will be available.
Sunday will be a day of underground and surface trips.
Full details of the events will be sent to members booking places as well as being included in the April edition of the Newsletter.
The capacity of the Monyash Village Hall is restricted so please book early to avoid being disappointed. The cost of the celebration program is £8 .00 per head, including the pie and pea supper.
Postal bookings only to Alan Mutter, 72 Wolds Rise, Matlock, Derbyshire, DE4 3HJ.
SOCIETY MEETS
1. RESEARCHING OLD MINES
SATURDAY 23January1999
Venue:- Peak District.Mining. Museum
Time:- 7.30pm
Speaker:- Dr Jim Rieuwerts
This talk was to have been given last autumn but unfortunately it had to be postponed. It is the third part in the series of talks on "The History of Derbyshire Lead Mining" that Jim is giving. The previous two talks were very well supported and appreciated.
This final talk, will be entitled "The Search for Archival Material, its Interpretation and Publication".
2. DERBYSHIRE LEAD MINING LAWS
SATURDAY 27 February 1999
Venue:- Peak District Mining Museum
Time:- 7.30pm
Speaker:- Dr Jim Rieuwerts
This talk has been arranged at the request of a number of members who wish to gain a basic understanding of the Lead Mining Laws in Derbyshire. It will be assumed that the audience has very limited knowledge of the subject, but the talk will be of interest to all.
3. BOULBY POTASH MINE WEEKEND
FRIDAY 5 March - SUNDAY 7 March 1999
Leader: Neil Rowley
The provisional programme for the weekend is:
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Friday evening: Restricted numbers underground visit to Boulby Potash Mine. This is a chance to visit the deepest mine in Britain.
Saturday: Surface tour of the remains of the ironstone mines in the Staithes, Port Mulgrave and Boulby area. The workings of the Port Mulgrave mine are explored in cliffs east of Staithes and the various mining remains, combined with abundant fossils make this an interesting walk along the shore.
Sunday: Surface visit to the 17th - 19th Century alum workings on Boulby Cliff. This will be another interesting visit with, hopefully, the assistance of an "alum specialist" .
Anyone interested in attending this meet should contact Neil Rowley, tel: 01904 448709.
4. NORTH YORKSHIRE MINES WEEKEND
Saturday 20 - Sunday 21 March 1999
Leader:- Paul Chandler
Both of these visits are "oversuit" trips and at both sites the passages are both mined and natural and are mainly of walkable dimensions. The actual day of the visit to each mine will be confirmed later.
Lunehead Mine Caverns. Teesdale This is a moderate grade mine having the entrance
partially flooded to a depth of 4ft. There are no vertical pitches.
Pikedaw Calamine Caverns. Malham This moderate to difficult trip has an entrance pitch
of 60ft. This pitch will be rigged for ladders and SRT. For further information, please contact Paul
Chandler, tel:- 01246 220773 .
5. GREAT MASSON CA VERN, MATLOCK BA TH
Sunday 18 April 1999
Leader:- Paul Chandler
There are no ladder/SRT pitches in this easy to moderate oversuit trip. There will be an optional moderate section which has a flat out crawl plus a lOft rope assisted climb. Great Masson is an extensive mined/natural cavern.
The passages are both mined and natural and are mainly of walkable dimensions.
For further information, please contact Paul Chandler, tel:- 01246 220773
6. NORTH WALES MINES WEEKEND
September 1999
Organiser:- Paul Chandler
)
Milwr Tunnel This difficult grade oversuit trip involves a 400ft
fixed ladder climb down, and up on the exit. The passages are mainly of walking size and contain many artefacts.
It is planned to have two groups on the trip, one of which will be a photographic group. The total number of PDMHS member places available is 4 only. Access agreement stipulates that ALL persons going underground MUST have BCRA Public Liability Insurance Cover. PDMHS members do NOT have BCRA cover and must make their own arrangements to obtain the specified insurance cover. Paul can give advice on this subject.
Rhosydd Slate Mine. Blaenau Ffestiniog . There are no vertical pitches on this easy/moderate
trip. Walking size passages. no limit to party size. For further information, please contact Paul
Chandler, tel:- 01246 220773
7. NORTHERN FRANCE/KENT/SURREY EXCURSION
Likely to be in October I 999
Organiser:- Paul Chandler
This is a proposed autumn excursion that will last six days. B&B accommodation will be used and Eurotunnel will be used to cross the channel but the ferry wil be available if required.
For further information, please contact Paul Chandler, tel:- 01246 220773
NEW MEMBERS Mr R Scholefield
Mr& Mrs McCarthy-Vincent
Mr SJ Bond
Dr S Natynczuk & family
Mr M Hollingsworth
24 Hamilton Court, Hinderton Rd, Neston, South Wirral, L64 9PE
22 Homestead Court, Welwyn Garden City, Herts, AL 7 4L Y 10 Fauiways Drive, Harrogate, N Yorks, HG2 7ES
SECRETARY'S NOTES 1. Australian Neil Stewart, a new member of our
Society, would like to hear from any reader interested in mining in Britain during the Roman occupation, especially the 3rd and 4th centuries. He is a mature student doing a D Phil at Oxford but he is returning to Australia to write up his notes during our cold bits.
Neil can be contacted at 168 Eastern Rd, W AHROONGA, New South Wales, Australia. Tel: (02) 9489 3307.
2. A member recently has recently experienced a fall of deads near the top of the winze in Dunsley Springs Mine, Via Gellia, Grid Ref SK 268567. Most of the shaft is in solid limestone but one side is stacked deads and a section about 2.5 metres down the shaft fell way as he descended. Fortunately the member was not injured.
Please confirm access arrangements for this mine before entering and treat the shaft with due care.
3. The Hon Secretary of the Society would appreciate all requests for publications being marked "Publications" and sent to the Peak District Mining Museum rather than being addressed to the "Secretary". This procedure will result in the request for publications being acted upon more quickly.
NAMHONOTES 1. The Ghost of NAMHO '98
"Swords, Candles & Old Boots" is an evening of mining related entertainment at the Nenthead Village Hall on 1 May 1999. The event will start at 7pm and refreshments will be provided. The bar will be open.
This FREE extravaganza is a "thank you" to people who attended the NAMHO Field Meet at Nenthead last year. Come as you are in wet suit, jeans or dinner jacket, but anyone wearing Victorian dress would add atmosphere to the evening.
Space is limited so book early. Write to Sheila Barker, The Rise, Alston, Cumbria, CA9 3DB by 12 April 1999.
2. NAMHO '99 Conference The next NAMHO Conference will be held in the
Forest of Dean on 24 September to 27 September 1999. The hosts will be a consortium of member organisations who are based in the Forest of Dean. The Conference will be based at Whitemead Park at Parkend near Lydney. Chalet accommodation, as well as camping and caravaning, will be available.
The theme of the Conference will be "Free Mining and the Mines of the Forest of Dean and Other Traditional British Mining Rights and Areas". There is a request for speakers to talk on "traditional mining" subjects.
For further information please contact John Hine, The Cottage, 2 Cullis Lane, Coleford, Gloucester. Tel:-01594 833217. It is anticipated that booking forms and programmes will be available in mid January 1999.
3. INTERnational NAMHO 2000 It has been confirmed that the 1st International
NAMHO Conference will be held in 2000 and will be hosted by Cam Brea Mining Society and Cambome School of Mines. This will be the 21st NAMHO Annual National Event and will be held on 14-18 July 2000. The conference will be based in Truro and the theme will be "Acquire, Record and Display".
Full details of this conference have yet to be confirmed but anyone requiring further information should contact Lawrence Holmes, Rivergarth, Bar Meadows, Malpas, Truro, Cornwall, TRI 1 SS. Tel:- 01872 278234. E mail:- [email protected]
HELP!! At the recent Barmote Court event at Magpie Mine,
someone gave me £5 subscription for the Friends of St Aidans Dragline. I cannot remember who it was! Please telephone me, 01629 584468, for an apology and confirmation of your membership. Alan Mutter
LETTER TO THE EDITOR " I feel compelled to comment on the letter from
"Disgruntled of Stapleford" (Newsletter No 88). You could not send out the copy of "Mining History" if it was not printed in. time, and you could hardly cause more delay by rewriting the Newsletter, even if you felt so inclined. As to why the "Mining History" was late I can only guess, but having experience of producing technical literature I know only too well the problems that arise and which delay the publication of the literature.
May I point out that our Editors go to a great deal of trouble and freely give of their time on our behalf. They deserve our support and a "thank you", not criticism!
I would also point out that 'lhe gaudy book jacket" mentioned is, to my mind, an historic work of art and the "some book or other" is in fact a book of historical importance, written by a founder member of our Society." John Marfin
BOOK REVIEW "Glossary of Derbyshire Mining Terms" by J H
Rieuwerts. PDMHS Ltd 1998. Available from Peak District Mining Museum, Matlock Bath. Hardback, l 92pp incl 14 tables and 2 illus.
This is an interesting and painstakingly researched piece of work. It is much more than a dictionary or glossary, occasionally becoming a gazetteer pointing to surviving examples of the term described. It would be interesting to compare the definitions with meanings in the other mining areas but, unfortunately, similar glossaries for many of these areas are not available. Perhaps some of our members could do something about these missing glossaries .
Comparing definitions with words employed in areas of the West Midlands that are known to the writer, there are many similarities. For example, "trees and lids" (pg 157) would be well understood by Shropshire coal miners.
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Other words, however, would not be understood. For example ''Twitches" (pg 162) has a completely different meaning in Shropshire to that in Derbyshire.
To add to the usefulness of the book, the various terms have been cross referenced to alternatives and are included in a Thesaurus as a separate section. Many dates of early usage of the terms are given so that the work also becomes a history book. While some of the dates are claimed as "firsts" in Derbyshire, these are not always referenced.
This is not just a reference book , it also provides interesting reading. We are very fortunate that Jim has made these results from his outstanding research work available to us all. PDMHS Ltd is to be congratulated on supporting the venture. I do wonder, however, why a book with such close ties to Derbyshire should have a very German mining scene on the front of its jacket .... ! Dr JJ Brown
NEW PUBLICATIONS "The Slate Quarries of Pembrokeshire" by Alun John
Richards; 200pp; many maps & illustrations; ISBN 0-86381-484-0. Cost £5 .50.
The south west of Wales is not thought of as a slate producing region yet prior to the industry' s great 18th and 19th century expansion, which made Caemarfonshire and Meirionnydd slatemakers to the world, Pembrokeshire' s. output rivalled that of any of the northern Welsh counties.
This book, the first comprehensive study of slate quarrying in south west Wales, sets out to provide a brief account of this once important industry and the railways which served it. It identifies and describes almost one hundred sites in Pembrokeshire, southern Cardiganshire and western Carmarthenshire, with historical accounts of the larger undertakings.
"The Moorfield Pit Disaster" by Harry Tootle. Landy Publishing 1998. 64pp, photos & illustrations, ISBN 187289538-7. Cost £6 .00.
On Wednesday 7 November 1883, an explosion occurred underground in the Moorfield Colliery, Altham near Accrington, Lancashire. The pit was locally known as "Dickie Pit" and "Dickie Brig Pit". The pit's only shaft was located on the road from Clayton-le-Moors to Burnley, close to where the road crosses over the canal. An industrial estate now occupies the former pit top .
The explosion was caused by a flame from a so-called "safety" or "Davy" lamp igniting methane gas (firedamp) and coal dust in the poorly ventilated mine. Sixty-eight men and boys were killed. Fifty-three more were injured. Ninety-five children were made fatherless. It is the biggest disaster ever to hit North East Lancashire.
This is the first book to cover the disaster and Harry Tootle, an ex-collier himself, tells of the pit's situation, the events of the day, the aftermath, the effects on the affected families, the welfare funds and their distribution. He lists the dead and injured and states where the dead are buried.
MOULDRIGE MINE A small group of members attended this rather
different meet at this very interesting old lead mine. Besides it being the "morning after the night before" (the Annual Dinner), it was a nostalgic trip for me because I had not visited Mouldridge since being one of a group of members whose research and exploration of the mine had resulted in a paper being published in the PDMHS Bulletin in 1984.
This meet was different. The first part was a part exploration of the mine using candles for illumination with members dressed accordingly. After sticking candles in clay on headgear (in one case a bowler hat), donning "typical" clothing and lighting up, we went to the forefield of the main level and then down into the last working area of the mine. Each stop became the location for a photo shoot.
After returning to the main chamber we changed to modem equipment and started to explore this small but complex mine. Between us we explored all of the passages, including the "banana slide". Nobody got lost for long and the only person who moaned was the member who had been told at the car park " leave your knee pads here -you won't need them".
Thanks to Paul Chandler for organising yet another very interesting meet. Wes Taylor
BRE-X MINERALS LTD David Walsh, the former chief of
Bre-X died of a brain haemorrhage in June 1998. He and his wife faced many lawsuits over Bre-X's Busang gold property in Indonesia which had been declared to be a fraud.
Busang. A body found four days after his disappearance was reported to be that of de Guzman.
Only John Felderhoff remains of the original three players. He has decalred that he very much regretted that David Walsh will not be standing with him and others from Bre-X as they continue to fight to clear their names and reputations.
So, readers, if you attend any function that auctions of mine share certificates remember the name. BUSANG! (Engineering & Mining Journal) Afan Mutter
THE ROBEY GAS ENGINE I have been asked by PDMHS members to write an
update about the gas engine that was discovered several years ago at the Milltown Quarry, Ashover. This engine was subsequently moved to the entrance hall of the Peak District Mining Museum by members of the Monday Night Group .
The Walsh's, after declaring personal bankruptcy in 1992 and escaping debts of $C200K, launched Bre-X in 1993 with the help of John Felderhoff, an unemployed Canadian
The Robey Engine on display at the Anson Museum Photo by Steve Gould
geologist. Bre-X acquired the Busang property in Borneo and drilling showed promising results. Within a year Bu sang was being reported as one of the largest gold finds yet.
The company' s shares soared and the former Indonesian President Suharto became involved. By 1996 Bre-X was valued at C$6B. In 1997 the company collapsed when an investigation disclosed that no significant amounts of gold could be found, despite twinning holes that had been drilled by Bre-X. An independent audit later showed a massive fraud.
Private investigators hired by the company concluded that the fraud was committed by staff at Busang who were led by former geologist Michael de Guzman. Unfortunately de Guzman allegegedly commited suicide in March 1997 by jumping from a helicopter en route to
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I consider that the engine, which turned out to have been manufactured by Robey and Co of Lincoln in 1895, was a very rare find. It had been used to drive electric generators for the mine and quarry at Milltown. The retaining wall of the slimes pond at Milltown had broken and the slimes had covered an extensive area, including the engine house, with slurry which had preserved the engine for over 50 years until it was discovered in the 1980's.
The Peak District Mining Museum entrance was never the place for the display of this unique piece of equipment and, after protracted negotiations with the specialist Anson Museum in Cheshire, with which I am associated, the Robey Gas Engine was moved to the museum for restoration and safe keeping. This Museum
specialises in the historical aspects and preservation of early gas, oil and diesel engines. It also offered better facilities for the continuing restoration of the engine than was available at the Peak District Mining Museum.The restoration of the engine has been slow, mainly due to the large number of parts that were missing, namely the governor, 95% of the control gear and the gas valve assembly. The ignition system had only clues to the fact that it had originally been battery coil with igniter which had been later modified to high tension with a modern insulated spark plug. The air valve assembly had been totally removed and the pipe work, oilers, gas bag, exhaust pipe, valve stems and gas taps were all conspicuous by their absence. The remaining parts were badly corroded by rusting and 40 years of accumulated water and dusty environment at Milltown Quarry before the engine had been buried.
The engine will now run with certain problems manifesting themselves, namely badly worn main and little end bearings. The main bearings will have to be white-metalled to make them serviceable. The governor has been made as close to the original as possible given that no other governor of the Richardson design for internal combustion engines has been found .
This part took three years of research and development to get right and was used as part of my final design project. The rest of the parts have all been made and fabricated rather than cast due to the absolutely extortionate cost of pattern making and core-box manufacture. The gas valve has been fabricated and works well considering the volume of gas usage was not known when it was designed.
The ignition system has been set up as it was run at Milltown, namely with a high tension battery coil with wipe contact breaker. The late Mr Towndrow, who worked the engine for most of its working life at Milltown, confirn1ed that this was the ignition system fitted .
The air start valve has been returned to working order although no timing valve exists and the engine has to be started manually by operating this valve. Efforts to start the engine by pulling the flywheel round worked only when sufficient people, with enough energy to do the job, could be found .
The engine has been concreted in place and water, gas and exhaust services have been connected to enable it to run in a fixed position and in an environment conducive to keeping it in as good a condition as possible without it deteriorating any further
Although a great deal of work on the restoration of the engine has been done, there is still a lot to do. The main bearings have to be machined and white-metalled, the exhaust silencer has to be fabricated and the engine has to be painted.
When the engine was recovered there was no vestige of paint at all. It was painted at the Mining Museum and this has only been touched up since receipt at Anson . As the cast iron is of a very porous quality it has bubbled and pitted badly due to its many years in the slurry. However,
10
it is deemed impossible to finish the painting until all of the mechanical renovation is complete.
Although this has been a long project, and has had its fair share of detractors as to its relevance to the mining industry, the engine deserves preserving and restoring in its own right. The cost of restoration to PDMHS has been negligible with most of the cost being covered by myself, assisted by the Anson Museum. lt is hoped to have an open day at the Anson Museum for PDMHS members to view the Milltown Robey Engine, and the many other engines at the Anson Museum, when further work has been done on the engine and it can be safely run for a period of time without there being any danger of damaging the engine.
Early indications are that the engine is temperamental when starting and the fuel consumption (propane) is prodigious . With a cylinder capacity of 28 litres, it is not altogether surprising that it has a thirst for fuel.
Any member wishing to visit the engine should contact me, tel: (01773) 829266. Steve Gould
DOG SAVED AFTER FALL DOWN MINESHAFT A collie-cross dog has survived a fall down a
mineshaft at Carris Bay, Cornwall. The local mine rescue group searched a mine shaft near the home of the owner but could not find the dog. The mine rescue group declined to search another nearby shaft because they considered it to be unstable.
Seven days after the disappearance of the dog, its owner heard faint howling coming from the second shaft. The local fire brigade's mine rescue unit attended and recovered the dog from about l 00 feet down the shaft. (Daily Telegraph) JJ Brown
OP MOLE MINES RESEARCH AND EXPLORATION GROUP'S SOth ANNIVERSARY REUNION
OP Mole will celebrate the 50th Anniversary of it' s founding and first meet that took place on 3 June 1949, with a "get together" in Derbyshire of present and past members on the weekend of 5/6 June 1999.
Over such a long time contact has been lost with many past members and their present whereabouts are unknown. If this applies to you, or you know the whereabouts of any past member who might be interested in the celebration reunion, it would be greatly appreciated if you could please bring this date to their attention.
Please contact either Doug Nash (Tel:- 01433 631732) or Margaret Howard (Oakley) (Tel:- 01629 56467) so that the details of the reunion can be forwarded to them.
AUSTRIAN MINE TRAGEDY Ten rescue men died whilst trying to rescue a trapped
miner in a talc mine at Lassing in Austria . The miner was trapped by an inundation of mud in a gallery about 60m below the surface.
The trapped man was uninjured and was in contact with the surface. As the rescue team was getting organised underground there was a second, more serious, inundation and all men were trapped.
Attempts to rescue all of the trapped miners has involved pumping out the mine. It is believed the subsequent lowering of the water table caused the formation of a 1 OOm diameter crater at the surface into which two houses have fallen .
The mine has been working since 1901 and employed about 30 men. It produces about 30,000 tonnes annually. (Mining Journal) IJBrown
SYMPOSIUM ON "ECOLOGY OF POST-MINING LANDSCAPES"
An international symposium entitled "Ecology of Post-Mining Landscapes" is to be held on 15-19 March 1999 at Cottbus, Germany. It is sponsored by the National Science Foundation and hosted by Brandenburg Technical University of Cottbus.
Further information from Prof Dr RF Hutti, Chair of Soil Protection and Recultivation, Brandenburg Technical University of Cottbus, PO Box 10 13 44, D-03013 Cottbus, Federal Republic of Germany. Email: [email protected]
SYMPOSIUM 2000 The 5th meeting of the International Affiliation of
Land RecJamationists wiJl celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Canadian Land Reclamation Association.
The event will be held in Alberta, Canada in 2000. There will be a "call for papers" next year.
Further details from Ms Linda Jones, Secretary-Treasurer, Canadian Land Reclamation association, Box 61047, Kensington PO, Calgary, Alberta T2N 4S6, Canada. Email : [email protected]
CLOSURE OF APEDALE MINE Apedale Mine at Chesterton in North Staffordshire,
and owned by Aurora Mining Ltd, has been forced to close due to the imminent closure of the nearby Silverdale Colliery. The two mines are connected underground and when water pumping ceases at Silverdale, the smaller Apedale Mine will flood. Despite the fact that there is up to 15 years worth of accessible coal left in the Apedale Mine, the cost of continued pumping is too expensive for a small mine. NSGGA
GRANT TO SA VE THE NATIONAL COAL MINING MUSEUM OF ENGLAND
Mr Alan Howard, the Arts Minister, has recently pledged £770,000 funding to the National Coal Mining Museum at Caphouse Colliery, Wakefield, for next year with the promise of more to come. Announcing the grant on a visit to the Museum last October, he said that it was important that the coal mining history and legacy should be preserved. The museum had stated that it would have
11
to start running down by the end of the year due to a financial crisis.
Changes to the operation of the museum which are a condition of the funding are:
a . The Museum will be administered by the National Museums for Science and Industry who will assume ownership of the collection and lease it back to the Caphouse Trustees.
b. The Museum will be managed locally and will receive the grant of £770,000 in the first year. Future grants will be subject to negotiation .
FRIENDS OF St AIDAN'S DRAGLINE PDMHS members who are also members of the
Friends of St Aidan 's Dragline recently attended the AGM at the St Aidan's Opencast Coal Site near Leeds .
Before the AGM the members toured the site and saw the RRW 2000 working in a flourishing coal extraction operation in what was a desolate flooded lake on the last visit by the Friends two years ago. When the dragline stopped work for the week, the Friends had access to the "innards" and a number of them went to the top of the massive jib.
At the AGM the existing officers were re-elected. Dr Ivor Brown (Secretary) presented a report on the years activities included the successful negotiation to finance the preservation of the other dragline on site, the American manufactured BEl 150. As 1998 was the 50th Anniversary of the manufacture of the BEl 150 the meeting ended with a small birthday party for this dragline.
Membership of the Friends is open to all interested persons. Subscription rates for individual members in £5 .00 per year and £6.00 per year for families . Family members are advised that there may be minimum age restrictions on some of the site visits that are being arranged for the future.
For further information contact Dr I J Brown, 95 Manyygates Lane, Sandal, Wakefield, WF2 7DL. Tel: 01924 257137 or A Mutter, 72 Wolds Rise, Matlock, Derbys, DE4 3HJ. Tel: 01629 584468.
ANIMAL CARCASSES IN MINE SHAFT AND CAVES
Over recent years there have been an increasing number of reports of animal carcasses being dumped into mine shafts and cave entrances . Due to changes in the arrangements for the disposal of carcasses, the knackers yards no longer pay farmers for animal carcasses. They now charge the farmer for taking carcasses away. This may be why more animals are now being dumped in mine shafts and cave entrances.
Dumping of carcasses in mine shafts and caves can lead to pollution of ground water, 'drinking water and water courses As well as making caving and mine exploration particularly unpleasant, it poses significant health risks to cavers and mine explorers.
Farmers of land on SSSI's should not dump anything in mine shafts or cave entrances without first
I,
consulting English Nature. Causing or allowing pollution of streams and underground water can lead to prosecution under the Water Resources Act 1991.
In the majority of cases, the Environmental Agency don't know that dumping is happening and, unless they are informed, little can be done to try and stamp it out. Incidents of dumping animal carcasses should be reported, in strict confidence, to either the Environmental Agency, (tel: 0800 807060) or Tony Gibbs, DCA Conservation & Access Officer (tel: 01709 559858 ). Even if you do not wish an incident to be reported to the Environmental Agency, at least inform Tony Gibbs so that it can be logged on his pollution database ..
The best way to eradicate this revolting practice is for incidents to be reported. Environmental Agency can stop this happening - but only if you help!
If you have any queries about the disposal of animal carcasses, please contact the Environmental Agency. Clare Trinder English Nature
MEMBERS' TELEPHONE NUMBERS I am bringing the PDMHS Ltd membership records
into the computer age. I would like to include members telephone numbers in the file. However, I believe that the inclusion of these telephone numbers should be on a voluntary basis. Would any member who wishes to have his/her telephone number placed on file please contact me. Paul Smith, Membership Secretary, 7 1 St Norbert Drive, Kirk Hallam, Ilkeston, Derbyshire, DE7 4EF. Tel:- 0115 9301169.
CRICH MINING DISPLAY After many years as project leader of the PDMHS
display at the National Tramway Museum at Crich, lain Butler has decided to give up the reins. I am sure that you will join me in thanking him for the outstanding work that he has put into the project over many years. This does not mean that lain is giving up altogether; he is staying within our merry band of enthusiasts but he wants someone to "field the flack", attend meetings and generally take the load of organising the project off his back.
We have a forward looking team at Crich and believe that no display should standstill and stagnate. We have, therefore, a number of ideas for new projects in the pipeline.
We have the enthusiasm to build these new displays but the one thing that is missing is "new blood". It seems that every project has this problem of finding new volunteers to help with the work and we are not the exception. We need help at Crich to bring our ideas to fruition . If anyone is interested in joining our team, please contact me. We meet on site at Crich on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month so come and see us and if you like what you see then join us.
Paul Smith, Crich Project Leader, 71 St Norbert Drive, Kirk Hallam, Ilkeston, Derbyshire, DE7 4EF. Tel :- 0115 9301169.
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CLEAN UP OF SHAFT AT DOUNREA Y Approval has been given to remove nuclear waste
from a shaft at Dounreay in which there was an explosion in 1977 and from a nearby silo.
The shaft is 200ft deep and 14ft wide and was dug during the 1950's in a fractured rock cliff some 50ft from the Pentland Firth. From 1959 to 1977 the tunnel was used as a licensed site for the disposal of nuclear waste. The Wet Silo replaced the waste disposal shaft after the explosion.
It is proposed to remove the waste material from the shaft by using a robotic platform. Grabs will recover the waste and deposit it in a container which will then be raised to the surface. (Daily Telegraph) I J Brown
MEDIA MINING REPORTS a. RJB is facing the prospect of the first miners strike
for 15 years unless it withdraws a threat to impose a five-year pay deal on 7,000 deep mine workers. (Fin Times)
b. RJB suffered blow when the Government introduced tighter curbs on opencast mining development in England. (D Telegraph)
c. RJB slashed it's interim dividend by 70%, sending it's share price to a new low. (Fin Times)
d. Chinese government has given go-ahead for a few modest UK joint venture projects. At a signing ceremony in Beijing National Power agreed to invest £120m in a £440m contract for a 700MW coal-fired power station in Hunan Province. (Fin Times)
e. Trade and Industry Secretary announced plans aimed at saving 5,000 miners ' jobs when unveiling the Governments energy review. (D Mail & Guardian) Roger Gosling
COPY FOR THE APRIL 1999 EDITION OF THE NEWSLETTER
The deadline for material for the next edition of the Newsletter is 1st Marh 1999. Copy, articles,
photographs, letters etc should be sent to:Wes Taylor, 18 Station Lane, Walton on Trent,
PEAK DISTRICT MINES HISTORICAL SOCIETY LTD Limited by Guarantee Registered Charity No 504662
Registered Office: Peak District Mining Musewn, The Pavilion,
South Parade, Matlock Bath, Matlock, Derbyshire, DE4 3NR.
Tel:- (01629) 583834 .
Web-Site:-http://info.excter.ac.uk/-RBurt/MinHistNet The contents of this Ne\vsletter are in the Public Domain and may be reproduced without permission provided due acknowledgement is made of the source. Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Society. Copy submitted for publication is not checked by the Editor for accuracy.
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