B E L O W !

Special NAMHO Conference Edition 14th -17th July 1995, Issue No: 95.3

Welcome The SCMC On behalf of the Caving Partnership (which became The Shropshire Caving and Mining and Mining Club I would like to the Lilleshall Company in 1802). Club was formed in 1959 to serve as a welcome you to Shropshire and the When the present Lilleshall Hall was focus for people interested in caving NAMHO 1995 Conference. built in 1829 for the and other underground explorations (the son of the 2nd. Earl Gower) the 2 in the Shropshire area. The Club has Shropshire as a County is rich in mile long approach road, known as the an active programme of underground mining history and this weekend can ‘Dukes Drive’ cut through the head of trips, there are usually 2-3 per month, only give you a hint of what has the old Donnington Wood Canal (the either to local sites or caves and mines happened in our industrial past. first canal in Shropshire and built by in all parts of Britain, the Isle of Man Hopefully it will ‘wet’ your appetite, his father). and Ireland. and make you want to come back for more. Enjoy yourselves. Parts of the canal can still be found, In addition to trips, the Club actively including the remains of the Hugh’s encourages members to publish their Alan Taylor, SCMC President Bridge Incline plane (SJ739 152). The research, in the form of ‘Accounts’ incline had 3 phases of development. (see page 3), short articles in ‘Below’ Lilleshall Hall First the goods were unloaded from (the Club’s quarterly journal) or as boats at the bottom and carried up the longer articles in the Annual Journal. On the face of it, it seems a little slope by horses, then loaded back into strange to be hosting a National Mining boats. Later a shaft and tunnel system History Conference in a Tudor style, was developed, with boats floated into Projects white stone Mansion in a quiet rural a tunnel so goods could be hauled up a setting. But Lilleshall, and the Hall in The Club has been surveying and vertical shaft). particular have very strong mining recording the remains of the mining connections. industry in Shropshire for over 30 The third development was the laying years, during that time, many surface Lilleshall is on the NE edge of the of rails down the slope in 1796, so remains have disappeared and Coalbrookdale coalfield (Granville boats could be moved from one canal underground sites become inaccessible. Colliery, the last deep mine in to another. Today, the incline slope, Two main projects (the Snailbeach Shropshire was just a couple of miles the tunnel portal, 2 cottages and a and South Shropshire projects) are from here, and closed in 1979), it also stable still survive. The lower canal is currently in-hand, with the aim of has good workable outcrops of still in water, but the upper section, is updating the information on known limestone along with deeper useable dry and very overgrown. sites and helping in the continuing limestone beds. campaign to preserve important In the running of the farms and estate, structures and underground cavities. The parish boasted one of Shropshire’s the Duke used all the latest techniques, earliest charcoal blast furnaces (1562), the cottages built for the workers are As sites inevitably deteriorate in time, but it was not until the 18th Century highly desirable properties today. the Club has, in association with that the main period of industrial I.A.Recordings, produced several video development began, due to the efforts In 1920 the Hall and estate were sold, tapes, to help ‘preserve’ (all be it in a of Granville Leveson-Gower, who for a short period the Hall was a different format) something of the size, became the second Earl Gower in 1754. pleasure park, before it became the scale and importance of Shropshire’s He was one of the founders of the National Sports Centre. underground sites.

“Below” 95.3 1 SCMC & the Web Mining in Shropshire

The SCMC have several World Wide Written by Members of the Shropshire mining areas around Oswestry and Web pages, providing information Caving and Mining Club, Edited by Lilleshall. Each section contains a brief about the Club, it’s activities and Adrian Pearce, published by field guide to remains in that area, members research. If you have access Shropshire Books, 1995. Price £7.95. complete with map references. to the internet and a web browser why (A5, 98 pages.) not visit us. Club ‘background’ and Overall there is a nice balance between research details can be found at:- Aimed at a general audience, the book the amount of ‘dry’ text, photographs sets out to describe the story of mining and the superb illustrations. I http://www.xs4all.nl/~jorbons/ in Shropshire from prehistoric times particularly liked the choice of scmc.html to the closing of the last mine. The photographs used in the book, book is very readable, and allows you providing a good mix of old period These pages are courtesy of Joep to dip into it by ‘browsing’ the pictures, with present-day views, of Orbons, who operates the Souterrains photographs or learn more from the both underground exploration and home page, which you will find at:- text. surface scenes. The book deals briefly with each of the http://www.xs4all.nl/~jorbons/ main mining areas in Shropshire, these A very enjoyable book, and one that I home.html range from the highly productive have found myself constantly referring Coalbrookdale coalfield and South back to. The Club ‘activities’, can be found at: Shropshire metal mines to the small Edwin Thorpe http://metro.turnpike.net/S/salop/ index.html Tankerville Appeal These pages are sponsored by Volant Watson’s Shaft at Tankerville Mine is Even if no funds are available at present Turnpike, http://metro.turnpike.net/ becoming very unstable at the top and to preserve the building, remedial work there is danger that the engine house should be done on the shaft to prevent Mining History Digest will become undermined and collapse the building being undermined and While on the subject of the Internet, is into the shaft. falling down the shaft. Less complete anyone interested in subscribing to/ mining remains in other parts of the participating in a ‘Mining History’ South Shropshire District Council and UK have been preserved by the local mailing list, where topics relating to English Heritage had planned to carry authorities, South Shropshire will not Mining History can be discussed and out emergency treatment to prevent look good if it lets the engine house fall e-mailed in a ‘digest’ format to other this but despite the recommendations down. interested parties? of their officers, the councillors have Steve Holding refused to consider any remedial work If you are interested I am prepared to on the shaft or engine house. try and get it running, (if I can sort out We need as many people as possible to the software!), send an initial e-mail write in to South Shropshire District to:- Council to object to their decision not [email protected] to save Tankerville engine house. They have fenced it off and say that they will Kelvin Lake, Editor ‘Below’ demolish it if it gets unsafe. Could everyone writing a letter include the Iron Age Brass points below and ask anyone else who In a paper ‘Llanymynech Hillfort’ might be interested to write as well. published in “The Montgomeryshire The letter should be addressed to:- Collections” 1989, Vol.77 pp 15-26 C.R.Musson and J.P.Northover discuss Mr. Graham Biggs, Bellpits Found Chief Executive, the possibility of Iron Age brass Shropshire Archaeological Society South Shropshire District Council, production at Llanymynech using local members report that they have Stone House, Corve St, copper and zinc ores. This is based discovered approximately 12 bottle or Ludlow, Shropshire SY8 1DG. mainly on the analysis of excavated bellpits, on Ash Coppice Piece, process residues found there. A copy Triangle and Thisley Leasows/Peartree of this paper could be a useful Points to Make Leasow sites between Lythwood Hall acquisition for the Club Library. Tankerville engine house is one of the and Hookagate, near Shrewsbury. Anyone know where we can get hold most complete in the UK and famous Further work is being carried out by of a copy? throughout the country. It is a listed excavation to confirm this! Ivor Brown building and a local landmark. Ivor Brown

2 “Below” 95.3 Club Publications (Available from the SCMC Stand) The Mines of Llanymynech Hill Snailbeach - Surface Remains Mining Remains in South West Account No.14 - D.R.Adams (1991) Account No.17 - Dr. I.J.Brown (1993) Shropshire (Limited Edition) This unique site on the Shropshire/ The surface remains at Snailbeach are Account No.18 - T.Davies, M.Newton Wales border has been worked considered to provide the most & A.Pearce (1993) intermittently from at least Roman complete lead mining complex of the First published as the “Engine Houses times up to the last century. Known period 1850-1900 that can be found of the Mines of South Shropshire” (in locally as the Ogof the site has often anywhere in Europe. The value of the 1969), it was the first attempt to been mistaken for a cave, but it is in site lies not in the individual buildings, systematically survey the surface fact a very early mine working. The but in the total setting. No fewer than remains of the metal mines in South site is near to Offa’s Dyke (an early 11 of its surviving structures have Shropshire. Terry Davies’ original defensive earth work) and two iron been listed as worthy of retention. surveys have been reproduced and age hill forts. Copper was worked in complemented by Malcom Newton’s the early years, but when this was The Mines of Lilleshall & Church superb sketches of buildings, allowing exhausted, zinc and lead were mined. Aston the reader to quickly grasp what the Account No.16 - David Coxhill (1992) structure was like, forming a unique Snailbeach - Recent Explorations For many years the presence of old study of the local metal mining Account No.15 - S.R.Holding (1992) limestone mines and quarries, on the industry. ONLY 50 COPIES LEFT! Situated in the South of Shropshire in East side of Shropshire, around the the middle of the metal mining area, Village of Lilleshall was virtually Underground Video Techniques Snailbeach was by far the largest metal unknown and few passers-by Account No.19-Peter Eggleston (1994) mine in Shropshire. The extensive appreciated the important role these This Account was originally produced collection of surface remains has made holes played in the Industrial for the 1992 NAMHO field the site very popular with mining Revolution in Shropshire. meet,‘Underground Video Workshop’. historians. Sadly, underground Extensive research by Club Members The increasing use of video equipment exploration has been particularly since the late 1950’s, coupled with underground has given rise to the need difficult since the mine closed in 1911, improved geological information (from for information on how to choose video and it is only in recent years that boreholes sunk in the 1980’s and 90’s) equipment for subterranean use, the considerable progress has been made has effectively brought the mines back, protection of fragile kit, some examples in reaching the upper parts of the from being mere folk memories to of useful procedures and techniques ‘main’ stopes and workings. being fact. and some special problems of lighting and sound below ground. All these Mining Videos points are ably covered in this guide. (available from the Club) Metalliferous Mines of If you are interested in doing a bit of Snailbeach, £14.95 Shropshire, Volume 1 - Gazetteer armchair mine exploration the The rise and fall of Snailbeach, once Account No. 20 - A.J.Pearce (1994) following videos, produced by renowned as the “richest per acre of In 1993, the Club began a I.A.Recordings with help from Club ground in Europe”, is traced in this comprehensive survey of the remaining members, may be of interest to you. production through the use of historic surface features and accessible photographs, animated plans and underground workings in Shropshire. A Tour of Clive Copper Mine sections, and unique underground This Gazetteer is part of the record of £14.95 video footage. the non-ferrous metalliferous mining A comprehensive guided tour of Clive, areas of Shropshire. The study does with Edwin Thorpe acting the Collections from the Archives not include coal, iron, clay or limestone ‘experienced’ expert and Kelvin Lake The following tapes contain almost all mines, of which there were many in the ‘novice’. The tour covers both the the footage recorded at the given mine, the County. It concentrates instead on upper and lower levels, plus the and are intended as a resource base, those mines which worked; Barytes, Northern stope (the access to which is not a finished production: Calcite, Copper, Fluorspar, Lead, now a bit dodgey). Silver and Zinc. C.15:Dudley Tunnel ’88 to ’89, £14.10 Clive Rescue Practice, £9.95 C.18:Donisthorpe Colliery, £11.75 6 Mining Sketches C.20a:Snailbeach - Final Frontier, An action packed ‘head banging’ From the ‘pen’ of Malcom Newton. £9.87 record of a Club rescue practice, These superb drawings need NO C.23: Bagworth Colliery, £11.75 featuring the ‘infamous’ maypole explanation, you CANNOT afford to C.28: Morse’s Level, £9.87 winze traverse! be without them! For more details contact: I.A.Recordings,PO Box 476, , TF8 7RH All publications are available at e-mail: [email protected] the SCMC stand.

“Below” 95.3 3 Club Officers Diary Dates ’95

President: Alan Taylor Tackle & Rescue Officer: For organised Club trips please refer Neal Rushton to Adrian’s Monthly Meets lists. Bank Holiday Sundays: OFD II Columns visits. 10.30am from South Wales C.C.Cottages. Chairman/NAMHO Rep: Steve Holding Training Officer: 22-23 July: Digging Weekend at Wrentnall Mine (Mike Moore). Alan Robinson 30 July: Mining Heritage Walk (6 miles) to Greenside Mine, Glenridding, Cumbria. Organised by Caldbeck Mining Museum, start Vice Chair: Malcolm Newton 10.30am at Tourist Office car park. Boots, waterproofs and packed Conservation Officer: lunch essential. Charge: £2.50 per Nick Southwick person, Bookings: 01228-561883 Secretary: Adrian Pearce 19-25 August: International [email protected] Symposium on Souterrains, Maastricht, The Netherlands. Organised by the ‘Study-Group Bat Officer: Mike Worsfold Subterranean Limestone Quarries’ and based on the Maastrichtien Treasurer: Bob Taylor limestone outcrops, the sympossium covers a range of man made underground structures. Cost ~£130. 19-26 August: Nenthead Mines trip. Membership Services: ‘Below’ Editor: Kelvin Lake Contact Nick Southwick. Mike Moore e-mail: [email protected] 2 September: Snailbeach Project, 10.30am. Contact Adrian Pearce

23-24 September: Rock & Fossile Fair, Dudley. The Joys of Mine Exploration ...

Hey it still moves ! Anything there?

Severe crush injuries, Weil's & Histo .... All because the laddie loves Mine Trips ...! Catch us on the World Wide Web. Club activities & the labyrinth: http://www.shropshirecmc.org.uk/

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