They said: “The majority of chalk mines in Norwich are blocked up and the remainder are inaccessible as they are on private land. The Coal Authority works to resolve the impacts of mining. This was an explore in Norwich itself, following a tip off that an old factory had been demolished exposing the entrance to these Chalk mines for a short period of time. I have more but most are rubbish but I’ll try and sort through them. Norwich City Councils website has some good information about Norwich’s mining history http://www.norwich.gov.uk/services/Pages/ChalkWorkings.aspx. The chalk was used for liming in agriculture and in building mortar. Post-medieval chalk mines comprising abandoned tunnels with an extant lime kiln on the site (NHER 9613). The Harford mine was the last to close. Enter the Chalk Mines of Pinner. Chalk Mines and Lime Kilns Norwich was mined for chalk and flint from the middle ages until the start of World War 2. Ive been looking for some of the infamous Norwich chalk mines for several years and managed to track down an entrance to my first one a few months ago! The grid reference given for the location on the Defence of Britain website is more than one kilometre off the mark. Rosary Road in this area was once known as Chalk Hill and near the Chalk Hill works on the rise of the hill some older excavations were found. They built a whole line of bases from Bristol to Norwich with eight people in each and if there was an invasion they would go underground. List of chalk mines in the United Kingdom . share. Rosary Road Chalk Mine. 24 comments. The oldest mines are located closest to the centre of Norwich and more mines were dug further out as the city grew. There are two entrances to the mine within a few yards of each other. About a hundred years ago extensive tunnels of chalk were discovered under the hill by the Rev. Engineering Geology, 36 (1993) 67-78 67 Elsevier Science Publishers B.V., Amsterdam Recent underground investigations of abandoned chalk mine workings beneath Norwich City, Norfolk G.J. Urban exploration at an abandoned chalk mine in Norwich. Rosenbaum Centre for Geological Engineering, Royal School of Mines, Imperial College, Prince Consort Road, London SW7 2BP, UK (Received August 20, 1992; revised version accepted June … The principal collapse mechanism is identified as localised void migration, following roof collapse, with a possible secondary contribution from pillar over-stressing. The Plantation Garden is a restored Victorian town garden, maintained by volunteers, located in a former chalk mine in Norwich. Harford Hills, which is to the south of the city, was the last working mine in the area, and was still being worked into the 1930s. The chalk was used for liming in agriculture and in building mortar. ︎ Subscribe for more weekly uploads every Thursday at 4pm. There is some interesting information on the geology of Norwich here: http://www.heritagecity.org/research-centre/subterranean-norwich/geological-norwich.htm. Mine name 'Sounds like search' Only with content Country. The oldest mines are located closest to the centre of Norwich and more mines were dug further out as the city grew. Norwich City Councils website was the source of some of my information, it goes into more depth about Norwich’s mining history http://www.norwich.gov.uk/services/Pages/ChalkWorkings.aspx, There is some interesting information on the geology of Norwich here: http://www.heritagecity.org/research-centre/subterranean-norwich/geological-norwich.htm, Norfolk Uncovered made a good video about the mine, they even created a map of the tunnels. Norwich City Council also advise that the public refrain from seeking out the mines. (Image source: Peter Brett Associates) (d) Chalkangles. The source of the photograph circulated across the globe via various internet humour websites and email circulars is not known; the image shown is from a different source. The easiest to enter is simply a doorless doorway in the side of a hill. 2. The map was copied from Joseph Papineau's fascinating and heavily en-colon-ed book, The Norwich Mine: An Historical Journey Across Time, Or, A Dream of Copper Riches Lost: 150 Years, West of the Ontonagon, 1841-1991: A Timeless History of One Copper Mine in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Early workings took the form of surface pits and quarries, with later working of underground mines. The main tunnel is about 50m long. The chalk here is of the same which makes up our famous southern cliffs, with the chalk going deep underground after Dover, resurfacing next in the Northwood Hills area. Chalk mining methods have evolved throughout history as extraction techniques have improved, but they are also regionally variable, reflecting local conditions, available resources and demand. Sources: 1. A disused chalk mine in Norwich: Norfolk is well-known for its miles of disused chalk mines, reservoirs, Grimes Graves and a nuclear bunker - all underground. The disused pit further along Rosary Road on the higher level was to be excavated and laid out as a football ground in 1908 (The Nest – Norwich City F.C.). ... lime burning, and chalk mining. The mining tunnels, which can be found between 12 and 90 feet under the surface, are known to exist all around medieval Norwich and its outskirts. Sign Up Here are a few photos. Morant, the City Surveyor in 1873. Norwich was mined for chalk and flints from the Middle Ages until the beginning of WWII and the last mine to close was at Harford Hills, to the south of Norwich. Below is a really bad video I made of my first venture into the mine. ... You could smell it coming out of the entrance but once you were inside there was none at all. Where is the entrance located? The entrance is deep within Danby Wood. The Harford mine was the last to close. 9. The flints that can be seen embedded in layers in the chalk were used to build the city’s walls and some of Norwich’s finest buildings such as the Guildhall. Norfolk Uncovered is a series of short documentaries about the less-known and less-obvious relics and ruins of the county of Norfolk, in the United Kingdom. From the middle ages, through to the beginning of Second World War, Norwich was mined for chalk and flint and today many of the mines, believed to have been dug between the 12th and 18th centuries, still remain underneath the city. The mine entrance is being kept sealed by Norwich City Council. This map also indicated another tunnel leading from the old football ground chalk pit to a second landing stage along the river. Norwich was mined for chalk and flint from the middle ages until the start of World War 2. Engineering Geologists | Planners & Developers | Finance & Insurance | Member of the Public : Fault Reactivation Hazard This mine was actually used as an air raid shelter during the war. Norwich has been mined for chalk and flints since at least the 12th century for building and agricultural purposes. In the early 19th century the lime-kilns and chalk workings around this area were fully exploited but by the end of the century housing and industrial development had made access to the pits and tunnels difficult and they eventually were abandoned. Chalk mines. The extensive chalk mines to the west of Wickham Lane, Plumstead were dug in the 19 th and early 20 th centuries to support brick and tile making operations. Mine entry shaft, South Oxhey, Hertfordshire. In this case (Bennett 1887, Money 1906) a shaft about 1.5m in diameter is dug through the cover of superficial deposits down into the unweathered chalk at depth. Chalk Mines and Lime Kilns. from the 12th century. You can combine all inputs, e.g. Sep 24, 2018 - High quality images of abandoned things and places. The chalk was used for liming in agriculture and in building mortar. Mine treatment This paper has been mainly concerned with the circumstances surrounding the instability of old chalk mine workings in Norwich, and it is not proposed to discuss mine treatment here in detail. Posted by 1 month ago. Enter the Chalk Mines of Pinner. Earlham Road chalk mine: example of fracture propaga- tion in sidewall. Fig. The entrance is deep within Danby Wood. The grid reference given for the location on the Defence of Britain website is more than one kilometre off the mark. This old tunnel entrance with its level at Riverside Road leading up the slope to the site of the Chalk Hill Works depicted on a map of the city of Norwich prepared by Mr. A.W. W. B. Gerish: 'Norfolk Folklore Collections', Vol.4 (unpublished, 1916-18, compiled by William de Castre), p.13. Initially brick lined, the tunnels are left unsupported the further in they go. 2 comments . The garden. Chalkangles date from the 1800s and represent a localised variant of the chalkwell. Norwich was mined for chalk and flints from the Middle Ages until the beginning of WWII but some of the chalk mines are much older, the earliest are believed to date from the 12th century. Close. From these earlier tunnels some 20,000 yards of chalk had been taken, probably to be used as lime in the building of the cathedral. Norwich Chalk Mine belongs to the Norfolk region. See more: All chalk mines in United Kingdom (TG) All chalk mines in United Kingdom. This old tunnel entrance with its level at Riverside Road leading up the slope to the site of the Chalk Hill Works depicted on a map of the city of Norwich prepared by Mr. A.W. The entrance is on Rosary road, it was until recently visible from the road but now behind some new flats. I've looked online and havnt seen anything about Hartford Hills for a few years so I'm wondering wether it's still accessible, and whereabouts the entrance is in Danby Woods. Hayes, from which about 25,000 yards of material had been taken for lime burning. Here two main tunnels had been driven into the side of the hill to a distance of about 133 feet. http://www.norwich.gov.uk/services/Pages/ChalkWorkings.aspx, http://www.heritagecity.org/research-centre/subterranean-norwich/geological-norwich.htm. The entrance is on Rosary road, it was until recently visible from the road but now behind some new flats. ︎ We explored the old Harford Hills chalk mines in Norwich. It was located at the castle entrance, on the route leading thence to the market. In 2003, the mine had coal reserves amounting to 823 million tonnes of coking coal.The mine had an annual production capacity of 4 million tonnes of coal. I'm looking for anything information on the locations and entrances of the many chalk mines in Norwich. Sign Up With Email. Norwich City Council also advise that the public refrain from seeking out the mines. It used to be easy to find. The chalk excavated from these workings was transported away by water and another tunnel existed under Rosary Road to a tip by the side of the river. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hneVwuDdu-E. Its seems to have been a bit of a tourist attraction recently, though last I heard the entrance had been buried. save hide report. Norwich was mined for chalk and flints from the Middle Ages until the beginning of WWII and the last mine to close was at Harford Hills, to the south of Norwich. J.W. Hello Everyone This is my first post here :) I actually did this in january and have posted on another site. The oldest mines are located closest to the centre of Norwich and more mines were dug further out as the city grew. The flints that can be seen embedded in layers in the chalk were used to build the city's walls and some of Norwich's finest buildings such as the Guildhall. However, they continued to be used as places for storage. The entrance to the tunnels can be found in the bottom of a small quarry north of the group of buildings. The leather industry was particularly important in Norwich in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, first with the skinners and later the tanners. They are arranged in a grid-like fashion. Can’t find it anywhere! Chalk mine labyrinth was once a hive of industry. The chalk was used for liming in agriculture and in building mortar. The tunnels were 10 feet high and 8-10 feet wide. The Norwich Park Coal Mine was an open cut coal mine located 25 kilometres (16 mi) south-east of Dysart, in Central Queensland, Australia.In 2012, the mine closed for economic reasons not because it was exhausted. Here is some history by Geoffrey Goreham, who I believe was a Norwich historian taken from a website about Thorpe Hamlet. You can toggle your results between list view and map view. This mine was actually used as an air raid shelter during the war. The story of these mines is a long and, indeed, a highly visible one. Disclaimer: Mine exploring can be quite dangerous, but then again it can be alright, it all depends on the weather. Norwich Chalk Mines. 10 . It includes a gothic fountain, flower beds, lawns, woodland walkways, rustic bridge, Italianate terrace, ‘Medieval’ terrace wall; and hundreds of architectural details fashionable in the mid 19th century. The mine entrance is being kept sealed by Norwich City Council. The chalk here is of the same which makes up our famous southern cliffs, with the chalk going deep underground after Dover, resurfacing next in the Northwood Hills area. Smith and M.S. The ancient workings vary in size from six to 16 feet in height and six to 12 feet in width. This thread is archived. Coal Authority is an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy . I don’t think it’s accessible any longer. Some 20-30 feet from the entrance of one of these tunnels, other small tunnels (about eleven in. all) branched off at right angles, each 50-60 feet long, one being 20 feet in length and about 10 feet wide. The entrance is on Rosary road, it was until recently visible from the road but now behind some new flats. There are new houses in front of it. Use the tools below to search for mines, quarries & sites. The oldest mines are located closest to the centre of Norwich and more mines were dug further out as the city grew. What remains are a labyrinth of tunnels, some intersecting at different levels but typically with the same upturned flower pot profile. The latter, often several hundred years old, are liable to collapse, and may reach the ground surface. The first 20ft or so inside are a bricks & mortar tunnel, beyond which lie the raw hewn chalk tunnels. Norwich was mined for chalk and flint from the middle ages until the start of World War 2. Norwich Jan 11 The city of Norwich is underlain at shallow depth by abandoned mineworkings made for the extraction of chalk and flints. http://www.thorpehamlet.free-online.co.uk/sub_goreham_3.htm. This map also indicated another tunnel leading from the old football ground chalk pit to a second landing stage along the river. Eventually the land was built over and in the 1940s and 1950s began to show signs of great instability resulting in many collapses and one death. just searching by name, or by combining with other search parameters. 6. Norwich was mined for chalk and flint from the middle ages until the start of World War 2. Solid information isn't required, we're happy to investigate even the slightest rumours. Thompson & Sons, for instance, used the caves and tunnels when they occupied the Chalk Hill Works site as a natural storehouse for iron, zinc and tin, erecting two stout doors at the entrances to the main tunnels. City engineers undertake regular … This mine was actually used as an air raid shelter during the war. The chalk workings around the site -from which Lollards’ Pit was formed led to the chalk tunnels, it is said, have been worked since the 11th century. Chalk mines. In the 19th century Coleman’s Brewery Company occupied the site and used the tunnels for extensive storage. ... A new entrance shaft was created and the leaders were taught how to safely take groups in and out. The last chalk mine to close was at … I'm trying to find the location of some of the old chalk mikes in and around Norwich, mainly Harford Hills and Rosary Road. On 3 March 1988, Earlham Road was the scene of the bizarre sinking of a double-decker bus.The cause of the event was found to be the collapse of a Medieval chalk mine discovered under the road. But thought i'd post it here in a more organised manner. Norwich was mined for chalk and flint from the middle ages until the start of World War 2. Tunnels created during mining for flint and chalk, at least as far back as the 13th century, certainly exist under Norwich, but mostly around the outskirts of the medieval city. 85% Upvoted. Please read the proper disclaimer. The flints that can be seen embedded in layers in the chalk were used to build the city’s walls and some of Norwich’s finest buildings such as the Guildhall. 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