Hi Group

As part of Heritage Open Days 99, the Shropshire Mines Trust is opening
Snailbeach Mine over the weekend 11-12th September. With surface and
underground tours.

Although mainly aimed at the general public, if you are nearby you may
be interested. Details below.

WHERE?
Snailbeach Mine is in the village of Snailbeach in Shropshire. This is
2 miles south of Minsterley off the A488 road from Shrewsbury - Bishops
Castle. Look for the signs and park at the Village Hall.

WHEN?
The weekend of 11-12th September 1999, 10.30am - 5pm each day.

WHY?
This event is being organised by Shropshire Mines Trust as part of
Heritage Open Days 99 across England. All events are free apart from
underground tours for which there will be a small charge as a donation
to the artefact fund.

WHAT'S ON?
Surface tours of the mine
Underground tours of the mine
Surface walk of surrounding mining remains
Displays, souvenirs and refreshments in the Village Hall.

VILLAGE HALL
Everybody should go to the Village Hall first for information on the
activities. There will be a reception desk where you can find out what
is going on and book for underground trips, etc. There will be displays
and sales of souvenirs and refreshments.

SURFACE TOURS
Guided walks around the surface remains and buildings of the mine will
take place every half hour from 10.30am to 4pm each day. The walk will
start from the Village Hall entrance and will take about 1 hour.

WALK
On each day at 10am prompt from the Village Hall there will be a guided
walk of about 6 miles which will give you the chance to find out about
the mining history and wildlife of the surrounding area. The walk will
return to the Village Hall at about 1pm.

UNDERGROUND TOURS
There will be guided underground trips into a part of the mine that is
easy flat walking. Helmets will be provided but it is essential that
you bring a torch, warm clothing and either boots or wellies. This is
an additional option and will only be available on payment of a donation
to the Shropshire Mines Trust Preservation Fund (this is used to acquire
and preserve mining machinery and equipment). The donation will be £5
for adults but no charge for children under 16. The donation will also
entitle you to several offers which will be detailed on the ticket.
 
FURTHER INFORMATION
More details can be obtained from Adrian Pearce
72 Hopkins Heath, Shawbirch, Telford TF5 0LZ Tel. 01952-405369
or the Internet website :-
http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~lizcolin/smther.htm

PRELIMINARY TRIPS
Journalists from newspapers, radio or television may wish to visit the
mine sometime before the weekend to take pictures, etc or to do live
coverage. We are quite happy to organise this but please give us a few
days advance warning to make arrangements as most of us are at work
during midweek and we will have to take time off. For this, contact one
of the following :-

Adrian Pearce T. 01952-405369
Stuart Tomlins T. 01743-884433
Nick Southwick T. 01743-790189.

BACKGROUND
Heritage Open Days 99 across England is co-ordinated by the Civic Trust
with funding from the Department of Culture, Media & Sport. The event
is also supported by Warner Holidays Ltd and the Guardian newspaper. A
number of the buildings taking part, including Snailbeach Mine, have
received grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The weekend is part of England's contribution to European Heritage Days,
a Council of Europe initiative which sees similar events taking place in
44 countries.

Copies of a Directory listing all the openings and events are available
from Tourist Information Centres from mid-August and reference copies
will also be available then at libraries. You can also obtain a copy of
the Directory by writing to the Civic Trust at 17 Carlton House Terrace,
London SW1Y 5AW, enclosing six second class stamps and stating in which
area of the country you are interested. Details are available on the
internet at http://www.civictrust.org.uk. The telephone number for
information about the national event is 0891-800603 (calls cost 50p a
minute).



Adrian

--

Visit the British Mining Database for references to all kinds of mining
subjects.

"http://wkweb4.cableinet.co.uk/adrian.pearce/BMD.HTM"



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