I've got a coipy of 'East kent Regional Planning Scheme' 1925 by patrick Abercrombie (no less!) this gives some historical background and other information.
I could photocopy some pages - they are not really scanning shape - if anyone wanted
Mary Mills
> At 07:54 05/10/2003, you wrote:
>
>Does anyone how they found this concealed coalfield and why it was there.
>The geology I can do it is the historical/social aspects that I am
>interested in.
>cheers
>Rob Ixer
>
>
>Rob
>
>Just found this
>
><a Target='_new' Href='http://talk21.btopenworld.com/redirect.html?http://www.beer-genealogy.freeserve.co.uk/mining/shakespeare_colliery.htm'>http://www.beer-genealogy.freeserve.co.uk/mining/shakespeare_colliery.htm</a>
>
>which says
>
>Shakespeare Colliery was located at the base of Shakespeare Cliff between
>Dover and Folkestone, on the site of the original Channel Tunnel
>workings. The Kent Coal Fields Syndicate Ltd took over the Channel Tunnel
>workings in 1886. After much speculation (the first suggestion that there
>might be coal in the area was made in the 1840s), a 2 foot deep seam of
>coal was discovered on Saturday 15th February 1890 at a depth of 300 metres
>during boring operations at Shakespeare Cliff. The first shaft was begun
>in on 21st August 1891 and in 1897 three companies were formed to search
>for coal in the area. All three companies were left in financial
>difficulty when boreholes to the west of Dover proved unsuccessful. The
>Consolidated Kent Collieries Corporation was formed in July 1899 and took
>over the assets of the ailing companies. By 3rd February 1905, just 12
>tons of coal had been brought to the surface. Efforts to work the seam
>were plagued by difficulties, including flooding. So much so that, by
>1912, only 1,000 tons of coal had been raised. The colliery finally closed
>just before Christmas 1915.
>
>A number of bores were sunk between 1905 and 1910, under the direction of
>Arthur Burr, to delineate the extent of the coalfield. By 1914, 40
>boreholes had been dug at considerable expense to locate workable seams,
>the best of which were found at deep levels and averaged only just over a
>metre in thickness.
>
>There's more links from
><a Target='_new' Href='http://talk21.btopenworld.com/redirect.html?http://www.beer-genealogy.freeserve.co.uk/mining/index.htm'>http://www.beer-genealogy.freeserve.co.uk/mining/index.htm</a> - links to
>individual collieries bit near the bottom of the page.
>
>HTH
>
>John
>
>
>John Colby
>[log in to unmask]
>Lecturer, School of Computing, Faculty of Computing, Information and English
>F328a Feeney Building, University of Central England, Franchise Street
>Perry Barr, Birmingham B42 2SU phone +44 (0)121 331 6937
>
>[log in to unmask]
> website <a Target='_new' Href='http://talk21.btopenworld.com/redirect.html?http://www.colbyweb.co.uk'>http://www.colbyweb.co.uk</a>
--------------------
talk21 your FREE portable and private address on the net at http://www.talk21.com
|