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Post by John on Jun 28, 2007 9:29:50 GMT -5
To follow.
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inbye
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Post by inbye on Feb 7, 2009 8:28:43 GMT -5
Does anyone know the full story behind a private drift mine, that was situated in the hamlet of Cliviger, between Todmorden & Burnley.
It was back in the mid 80's, & was almost at the roadside, where the road out of Todmorden climbed up the valley side, before it crossed the railway, from the left to the right hand side of the valley. This was the point where the old "Copy" pit had been (an old *flat rope* pit).
The drift mouth had been driven into the hillside, 40 or 50 yards to the left of the main railway tunnel and, as I used to drive past on a daily basis, there was usually some activity as well as vehicles, smoke from the cabin chimney, etc.
I had always taken an interest in this venture, which proved to be a very short (& no doubt expensive) one.
One day the scene around the pit & railway tunnel mouth changed completely. Several Rail track vehicles, as well as a lot of rail workers. There were clearly no trains running (none ran for many weeks/months).
The story I got from a friend, who's uncle had a farm close by, was that the mine owners had believed they were at a safe enough distance from the rail tunnel to begin using explosives, but, the first time they did they caused a section of the tunnel to collapse. I don't know the accuracy of this but it was obvious that the working had broken into the rail tunnel.
By the time trains started running again, I no longer made this journey & never got the full story. Did anyone hear of this?
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inbye
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Post by inbye on Feb 8, 2009 9:20:49 GMT -5
It's just occured to me, I put this in "Lancashire" but I'm not sure which side of the border Cliviger is on. Ah well......
So, anyone?? Ayle perhaps...........he knows about private pits...
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Post by John on Feb 8, 2009 10:00:23 GMT -5
You might try and send Clive, (Ayle), an email as he's pretty busy and rarely drops by here. You can do that via the members list, make sure it's an email and not a PM though!!
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Mick
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Post by Mick on Feb 8, 2009 15:53:21 GMT -5
Hi inbye,ive got abit of info for you the name of the tunnel is Holme Tunnel and the name of the line is Copy Pit Line.
I got info from a model railway forum i go on alot ,they have a site that they use for the real railways and one of the blokes on there said he rembered the line been closed.
Mick.
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inbye
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Post by inbye on Feb 9, 2009 14:29:01 GMT -5
Hi inbye,ive got abit of info for you the name of the tunnel is Holme Tunnel and the name of the line is Copy Pit Line. I got info from a model railway forum i go on alot ,they have a site that they use for the real railways and one of the blokes on there said he rembered the line been closed. Mick. Cheers for that, Mick. Just thought it must have been the line from Tod to Burnley... Copy pit would have been interesting. I once saw a watercolour of the pit (can't remember where from) but it showed a wooden tandem headgear (the type with a headstock at either end of a common frame) which obviously served two shafts, which must have been sunk quite close together, the ropes were flat & the coal was wound in corves......I'd have loved to have seen that at work... |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 1, 2009 12:31:59 GMT -5
yep I remember it I worked there for a few months  But had left at the time of the incedent. I have a few photos but not had much luck at putting them on here. Basicaly the pit was going in inheavily faulted ground, right at the side of the Thievely leadmine fault, which has a throw of around a thousand feet. It was in the Union coal 4'6" but was unusual as there was asoft dirt band between the 2 coals. In theory the reserves were massive but it never materialised due to financial problems. It took so much money to get the place off the ground with all the legal wrangles that eventualy the brass ran out. Dont know about the use of explosives, we didnt use them whilst I was there as we were so close to the fault. We could have done with them as we hit Gannister and boy was that stuff hard with the windy pick. We wereon 12 hr nights and it was as good as we could do to get 1 ring a night 10x 8 in that stuff. I left to go back to Grimebridge cause I didnt think the pit would last (funny how you get that feeling) and I was about to get wed for the first time. However I went back to see how they were going on a few months later and they were robbing out towards the crop edge. There was some open ground for sure and not much of a rockhead. If you look at thet bankside it is all on the move, you cant see where the backdrift was as that bankside has all moved, even some of the smaller trees have done triffid impressions. When I hered about the tunnel my thoughts were that robbing had or just normal mining activity caused that bankside to shove and the poor old tunnel had a bit more side pressure to deal with than it was used to. The pit was called Royd Wood and it was one of the best I worked at....Never made any money infact we worked all overtime for nowt but I was young and excited at being there at the beggining and we used to have good crack  |
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Post by John on Mar 1, 2009 12:43:33 GMT -5
Quicky on posting photos.
1/open an account with "Photobucket" or one of the other's like "Flycker" or however it's spelled.
2/ Upload your phots to that account, instructions are posted on those sites.
Then below each photo is a menu , move your mouse over "img" menu and click on it, it will show "copied"
Then "paste it" onto the post your making using the right mouse button function.
DON'T, use the image function from the menu bar on here while posting, or the image won't work! What happens is you'll duplicate the tags for images, ie img img appears, photobucket installs the correct "tags" when you "copy"
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Post by John on Mar 1, 2009 12:45:25 GMT -5
A little trick, go to any post with a picture, then do a "quote" as a reply and have a look, you will see clearly how the picture was posted, all the "tags" become visable.
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inbye
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Post by inbye on Mar 1, 2009 13:06:00 GMT -5
Clive, thanks for that, a great reply. It just shows how one can get the wrong story, I was told it was just being opened up, at the time.
Was the drift by the tunnel the only road in, or was there another entrance? Also, how long had it been in go, before the "tunnel" episode?
Thanks again, very interesting...
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 2, 2009 15:49:35 GMT -5
No there were 2 drifts. The one that went paralell to the tunnel, taken down on 10 x 8's that you could see off the road.. Then there was a small cutting in the bankside, but you wouldnt habe seen it from the road, they just dug a trench to bare off the crop edge. A drift was driven down inseam and we proved the fault and location of the coal from here (or so we thought). At first the main drift was driven level as survayor no 1 said that is how we would find the coal...Found nowt. So survayor no 2 said go down at 1 in 6, which we did and found the ganister which is below the Mountain mine coal. By this time brass was running out so we reluctantly put a bend in the drift and headed for the return and the coal came in at the roof after about 20 yards. It must have risen very steeply and sufferd from folding due to the fault. From there we headed back to make a connection with the return. Then as I was leaving they turned back onto the full dip to open the pit out, but the dammage was done realy with now having that bend in the drift, perhaps about 120 degrees. I suppose the plan would be to eventualy extend the main drift in the future but it never happned I have no phots on the computor of it yet but will do it this week and try and upload them. However as I was a young budding folk musicion back then I was inspired to write a song about the place The Ballad of Royd Wood Drift; 1. Some look for the challenge of the stocks and shares whilst for others it is catering or motorway repaires For computers and mathamatics some have got the gift But me, well I got the job of driving the Royd wood drift. Chourus There was just us three and a BJD more muck than your average quarry We was on the run with an Holman gun, a shovel and a pice of tin. We'd a great big hole but we've got no coal just heart and a lot of worry. Just water do drink and no time to think as we danced the night away. 2. It were 12 hour night shift in the middle of a great big freeze, the gaffer worked besides us and he liked a laf and tease. Going through a fault belt, settin 10 by 8's. It were 1 in 4 with a rotten floor and he liked to keep us late. 3. Now some survayors say its up and some say its around, but the money just keeps dwindling and steadily going down. A sharp turn right in the middle of the night and a do with a whirrly drill. It were black all right, shiney and bright and we was over the hill. Now you know why i stuck to coal mining....... |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 2, 2009 15:54:46 GMT -5
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 2, 2009 15:56:09 GMT -5
Ha ha did it John.
All health and saftey followed here. This was setting a pit away in 97.
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 2, 2009 15:57:38 GMT -5
 That was an airway, from the surface and the sun was shining thats why he has no headgear on. This is setting the main way off |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 2, 2009 15:59:03 GMT -5
 This was me winding the first tub up. We only filled 9 then hit an old bord cutting us right off. |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 2, 2009 16:00:49 GMT -5
 This was Grimebridge about 1980. Later on we put concrete pipes in the drift end to stabalise the ground better. That drift ran from 79-96 |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 2, 2009 16:02:47 GMT -5
 'Fa'ther' Bill Clayton, owner, coming out of drift on a tram. We used them for man ridding in Rossendale and Burnley and Accy |
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inbye
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Post by inbye on Mar 3, 2009 15:26:15 GMT -5
Thanks once again for those replies/images. Just the sort of stuff I find most interesting, about pitwork.
Looking at those tubs & angle iron rails, reminded me of a lad from Todmorden area, that I used to work with. He told me his uncle (I think) ran a small drift mine *over the tops* & that they used angle iron rail & home made tubs with car brake discs for the wheels. Dave (can't remember his last name) helped him out, on the odd occasion, & said it was a sh!thole.
Were the wheels in those pics, made from brake discs.......look very thin...
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 3, 2009 16:22:25 GMT -5
It would be the same pit..Grimebridge. Rodney Mitchel was the bloke. Billy Clayton and Rodney ran it then Billy ended up on his own. They also opened a small spot in North Wales for a time. The other lad was that Dave Chadband???
No it wasnt a *** hole it was what it was, old fashioned mining and one of the more sucessfull ones of that period. I think it was a tribute to the men who worked it over the years to make a sucess out of thin seam mining, 20" and less. In a time when coal was dropping in price. I have loads more photosof Grimebridge. The tubs held 4cwt. 20 a day was a good count. We got a quid extra after 17 and you could go home if you wanted when you had achived that score. If we worked 30 hours a week then it was a long week and in the early 80s the money was good. Whilst PLA was about £92, you could get 300 in the headings and about 225 in the odernary warks, not bad for 25-30 hrs graft.
the following are of Royd Wood at last.
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 3, 2009 16:24:53 GMT -5
 Cutting to the Back drift Royd Wood. How do you like our bait time fire? |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 3, 2009 16:25:57 GMT -5
 Brian Greenhalgh drawing a tub out of the back drift |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 3, 2009 16:27:11 GMT -5
 Norman Chadwick (partner) and Collin craig at the face in the back drift. |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 3, 2009 16:29:31 GMT -5
 Driving the main way with Normans chromium plated gun (pick) he saved it from being thrown down Bank hall shaft. 3 men in heading team. 2 on the shovel, a pice of tin on the floor to make it easy, and Norman on the pick. |
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 3, 2009 16:31:51 GMT -5
 First tub of coal out of the main drift. Collin Craig, Brian Greenhalgh. Norman Chad, Andy. Clive Seal. |
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inbye
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Post by inbye on Mar 8, 2009 9:47:42 GMT -5
Great pics there, Clive.
Looking at those rings, they sure look to be re-claimed, where would they have come from?
Also, can you say any more about the surface layout, What did they use for a compressor, etc?
Was this the last "venture" for the owners, or did they mine anywhere else?
Find this all very interesting...........thanks...
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Mar 8, 2009 17:14:40 GMT -5
you got me thinking now. i cant remember much about the compressor, which is unusual as they have a habit of blowing up. Got a photo of the Genny, which was in a wooden shed and at timers I kept baked potoatos luke warm on ther manifold.
All there was biulding wise was the tippler shed at the top of the drift. A belt ran out from the bottom into the lower yard where they had a mobile screen. never got much more than this as the pit never really got going. have an odd pic that shows the yard, will up load during the week.
No Norman and dave didnt go on to own any other mines. i think Norman got into quarries a bit but dont know how far he got. As for Jeffory Cannon and Son, well they had good jobs in the coal board. dave Chad went on to deputy at a few other local private mines from time to time.
Dont know where they got thr rings from niether. In them days I only worried where the next pint was coming from. But thats where a lot of money went on equipment. Dont know niether how lonh the supply of rings would have lasted. We went straight onto props and bars once in the coal, all in seam.
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Post by rachaelh123 on Jun 15, 2015 5:30:37 GMT -5
It's just occured to me, I put this in "Lancashire" but I'm not sure which side of the border Cliviger is on. Ah well...... So, anyone?? Ayle perhaps...........he knows about private pits... this coal mine was my grandad's, he sadly passed away in 2008 leaving the mine to his wife mary clayton, her sons jimmy & billy went on to run the mine but the mine closed in 2014. the picture's you have seen posted bellow are that of my grandad, and uncles billy and jimmy. |
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Post by andyexplorer on Jun 21, 2015 17:29:08 GMT -5
Has the land been reclaimed and the mine sealed ?
They still had mining rights until 2nd august 2018 ?
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Clive
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Post by Clive on Jun 21, 2015 17:35:55 GMT -5
It's just occured to me, I put this in "Lancashire" but I'm not sure which side of the border Cliviger is on. Ah well...... So, anyone?? Ayle perhaps...........he knows about private pits... this coal mine was my grandad's, he sadly passed away in 2008 leaving the mine to his wife mary clayton, her sons jimmy & billy went on to run the mine but the mine closed in 2014. the picture's you have seen posted bellow are that of my grandad, and uncles billy and jimmy. helo Rachel. Who'd daughter are you if you dont mind me asking? Clivager was still Lancs...Just Hill Top used to be run by Grimebridge colliery co. It was Billy's co. They are still running at Hill Top though its nowt to do with the claytons no more...sadly. |
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Post by rachaelh123 on Nov 1, 2016 14:28:38 GMT -5
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But had left at the time of the incedent. I have a few photos but not had much luck at putting them on here.
