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INTRODUCTION
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The Alderley Edge mines in Cheshire, UK, were mined from the Bronze Age (c. 4000 years ago) until the early 20th century. Most of the mines are still accessible although many surface features have been obscured by vegetation over the years. Many of the mines are owned by
the National Trust and have been leased by them to the
Derbyshire Caving Club which maintains access and continues
to explore the network for areas of mining that have been
closed for centuries.
In recent years, a fairly comprehensive study has been made of the mines by a project team lead by the Manchester Museum and the National Trust. This study is due to be published soon. |
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About the website : Latest news : Recent changes to the website : Website page map
| Open Weekends | Visiting the mines | Joining the DCC | Club pages |
THIS WEBSITE
In this website, you will find information about the mines, their history and their current state. There is also information about the Derbyshire Caving Club and its activities and links to other sites of related interest.
Please feel free to comment on the site or send me any information that may add to the value of the site or knowledge about Alderley Edge and its mines.
My e-mail address is Webmaster@derbyscc.org.uk
All information is © Copyright Nigel Dibben 2000-2008 except where otherwise noted.
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LATEST NEWS
18 01/05/07 To bring things up to date: (a) West Mine now has a couple of interesting traverses to test people's caving skills; (b) the Flight Deck rope has been replaced with a rope ladder; (c) the entrance passage to Engine Vein has been dried out a bit by putting in a membrane and drain pipes.
17 29/10/05 Pictures added of the work at Plank Shaft - check the new West Mine Photogallery
16 18/09/05 Some investigation has been begun at the bottom of Plank Shaft by Malcolm and others.
15 05/05/05 New bridge (the "Bailey" Bridge) now installed in Wood Mine at the end of the adit. Along with the ladders at Junction Shaft and Sand Cavern, the work has been done by Malcolm and his loyal team to a very high standard.
14 01/01/05 Timber Shaft dig still going.
13 12/05/04 Dumper up and running! 2004 April and September Open Days were quieter than usual but just as enjoyable for club members and visitors alike. Digging underway in West Mine at the end of the Main Chamber.
12 28/4/03 A brief round-up:
- The dumper has been refurbished and is nearly ready for use again. It should not jump out of gear now. Before it goes back into service, it will have an anti-roll bar fitted.
- The September 2002 Open Weekend was very popular but huge queues developed on the Sunday. As a result, timed tickets were issued on the April 2003 Open Weekend at Church Quarry.
- The Church Quarry weekend involved demonstrations of a working forge making tools, casting copper, smelting with a bole furnace, cave radio and cave rescue.
- The dig at Engine Vein has been completed and is currently being recorded.
11 1/4/02 Consent has been gained for limited excavation to be resumed on the scheduled sites. The dig at Engine Vein has resumed subject to records being kept and furnished to the Cheshire archivist at the end of the dig. Emergency work has been carried out on a shaft at Engine Vein which subsided slightly in February and which has now been sealed and topped back up to surface level with DCMS consent.
10. 1/11/01 The sites around the 1860s treatment works and Engine Vein have been scheduled. See the new page concerning legal constraints.
9. 10/10/01 The water and mud above Engine Vein has been removed by the National Trust with help from the DCC. The mud has built up over twenty years and reached 8 feet deep at the lowest point. In future, it will be cleared at regular intervals now that access has been improved and a workable digging technique has been developed.
8. 3/9/01 Scheduling remains imminent. This will make digging of certain mines very difficult although the terms of agreement with English Heritage have yet to be agreed. The Open Day on 1/2 September was deemed a success.
7. 6/7/01 It has been decided that the Open Days will go ahead on 1 and 2 September 2001 with a demonstration of Club activities in Wood Mine. For more details, go to the webpage on Open Days.
6. 7/6/01 Scheduling of parts of the Edge as ancient monuments is now imminent. Watch this space as we will insert a new page when this is complete to explain the implications to members and visitors alike.
5. 3/6/01 Clearing of the "pond" above Engine Vein has been started by the National Trust as part of a volunteer programme. The water disappeared mysteriously before the work started. Was this work of the wizard???
4. FOOT AND MOUTH Some of the restrictions on access imposed because of the foot and mouth epidemic have been lifted. For further information, please contact the Club by e-mailing AlderleyMines@derbyscc.org.uk.
3. OPEN WEEKEND IN SEPTEMBER 2001: The next Open Weekend is scheduled for 1 and 2 September 2001. This is likely to be in Wood Mine. For further details, look at the page on Open Days.
2. Extension at Engine Vein towards Beacon Lodge. This was found by a combined effort pushing a crawl at the western end of Engine Vein. Evidence suggests that it may have been 18th century work following the lead vein at Engine Vein but could also have been re-entered in the early 19th century.
1. Digging is well underway at Timber Shaft on Wood Mine to restore the field level and remove the blockage which slumped in 1999. The shaft is now being built up to surface level and digging has started in earnest.
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WEBSITE UPDATES
43. 22/06/08 New page headers with better site-wide navigation and new pictures. Corrected HTML errors in footers.
42. 17/01/08 New host. Site moved.
41. 22/06/07 New front page with quicker links to commonly used areas.
40. 04/05/07 Moved pictures around to make life easier for the webmaster (should not affect users) and sorted problems with menus and headings under Netscape due to differences between browsers.
39. 03/11/06 Major revamp of site to separate the Club pages and to bring pages into a common standard. "Go to home" taken off bottom of pages as redundant. All menus now have different colours for links to other parts of the DCC site.
38. 05/09/06 Rationalised pages that link to photographs (other than the galleries) to enable a single click to take the reader back to the point in the original page where the thumbnail is located. Also, took the opportunity to add some more pictures to support the larger images.
37. 03/09/06 Added page for Open Days to indicate that the Open Day is current. This is to try to meet user requirements to know not just that one is due or has passed but that it is actually ON!
36. 01/09/06 Changed: "Work on the Edge" to "What's on now". Page names changed to start "current".
35. 11/04/06 Recent work on the website has seen revised descriptions of all the mines (except Brynlow: still to be done) and new photo galleries for all the mines finishing the work started in September 2005. A table has been added to the geology showing the approved names of the rock units.
34. 04/02/06 New links to safety page in caving section.
33 20/09/05 New gallery of photographs added.
32. 07/06/05 New pages on ore processing in the Bronze Age and using conventional smelting techniques.
31. 22/01/05 Revamped geology and history pages with better illustrations. Updated early history. Added on-line booking for Open Days.
30. 15/07/04 New map at 1:25000 on mines pages.
29. 12/05/04 Response pages sorted.
28. 18/11/03 We are having problems with the response pages. Please e-mail to webmaster@derbyscc.org.uk rather than use the enquiry forms.
27. 07/10/03 Open Weekend pages updated.
26. 21/01/03 AELP page updated with help from The Manchester Museum.
25. 18/08/02 Starting to scan and include early newsletters in the website. Click HERE for the new page.
24. 07/03/02 New page on the Alderley Edge Landscape Project
23. 26/02/02 Increased information on archaeology and added caveat regarding the 'gold bars' finds.
22. 26/11/01 Added page on legal constraints.
21. 08/11/01 Added map to visitor page.
20. 04/09/01 Updated Open Days and Digging pages. New page on the archaeological work of the DCC.
19. 30/7/01 New page on lectures and exhibitions.
18. 7/6/01 New enquiry system using CGI to e-mail club and return a reply to the caller. Added page for National Trust.
17. 21/5/01 Updated and expanded page on Open Days.
16. 11/5/01 New page for history of the surrounding area.
15. 2/5/01 Search page implemented.
14. 30/3/01 Revised the virtual tour as the thumbnails did not always work as planned. Split underground tour into two pages.
13. 15/3/01 Added virtual tour of Engine Vein.
12. 21/02/01 Lot of changes to improve compatibility with Netscape, e.g. changing BMPs to GIFs and revising opening heading.
11. 07/02/01 Added fuller list of names of mines
10. 31/01/01 Updated Open Days and latest news. Added mineralisation article. New links to related articles.
9. 28/12/00 Added December newsletter.
8. 17/11/00 Merged with DCC site and set up connection from www.derbyscc.org.uk.
7. 16/11/00 Added Rogues Gallery to DCC pages. This will change over time.
6. 06/11/00 Amended text on mine description pages and brought the HTML of these pages into line with the remainder. Added Hough Level and Other Mines. Added more information on recent naming of entrances.
5. 03/11/00 New e-mail address used throughout to pick up spammers.
4. 02/11/00 Added pictures and text for Brynlow Mine
3. 30/10/00 Added details about Wizard legend and Club resources
2. 26/10/00 Added this section! New picture in "digging", corrected spelling error and updated information on EV dig. Added link to Parys Mountain.
1. 25/10/00 Added access details
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