Having attended the open day at Oldwood Pits/Rangeworthy Colliery it was suggested that I ought to report on the event.
The open day comprised an exhibition on mining in South Gloucestershire, particularly around Yate, and guided tours around the remains to be
seen at Oldwood. Our guide was David Hardwick who made the whole site come to life and answered our questions most professionally.
When one considers that the colliery closed in 1888 it is quite remarkable that anything survives at all, although this was long before coal mining
sites were completely cleared on closure and the site had quietly subsided into dereliction and re-use for farming. Still to be seen was the mine
office and weigh house, now in use as a private dwelling. Around the heapstead were walls and tramway remains, a steeply sloping, water-filled
adit to one side of the heapstead is though to date from the final working in the 1880's.
A walk along the spoil heaps and comparison with map evidence showed how they had extended over different ownership of the colliery. Close
by a row of pigsties showed further evidence of the colliery in that their gates comprised the old screening plates. A short step across the area
once occupied by the winding engine revealed the engine pond, now a garden feature.
The final stop on the tour is a look into the main shaft through a convenient hatchway that has been made in the side of the tunnel that carried
services into the pit.
Being of an inquisitive nature we set out on a walk around the district in the form of a double loop centred on Oldwood. There are still plenty of
other reminders of colliery working across the Engine Common and surrounding parishes. We found heapsteads, spoil heaps, a pumping
enginehouse, brick kiln, limekilns and tramway routes. There was even a large piece of Celestine which served as a reminder of another mineral
that was extracted in the area. I understand that at one time around 70% of the world production of Celestine came from the Yate area of
Gloucestershire.
All-in-all a most enjoyable day. Thanks are due to Mrs Humphris who owns the Oldwood site and also to the Hades Caving Club members who
guided groups around and who had undertaken so much research and preparation of the exhibition. I must particularly thank David Hardwick for
his patience in answering my long list of questions so accurately and for making the day so interesting.
If there are to be more open days at Oldwood I thoroughly recommend it to anyone with an interest in mining history. The home made cakes were
very good too!
Cheers,
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fearrmeox adlaž bręgen
)| David Kitching _____|______|_ ____
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