Seven sisters limestone mine-Dudley

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Barney
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

18 years ago

There is a rumour flying around that work has begun to open this once secure and fenced mine as a visitor attraction. It is not known wether underground tours are going to be run for the paying public.

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Dudleyminer
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

Yep that would be a rumour and Im afraid at the moment its wrong !!!!

The mine is currently filled totally to stabilise the roof and hold it in once piece until.......

Dudley Council is currently pushing for funding to open it up again one day as a visitor attraction. There has been a big splash in the media in recent weeks as this bid gets promoted and underway but at the moment its early days and I gues undergoing feasibility studies. the chap who sorted out the leaning Tower of pizza has been drafted in as a consultant.

Fingers crossed it comes off to give an insight into how impressive the Dudley mines once were. Alas the council has done its best to destroy Dudleys mining heritage elsewhere to date !!!!!

Barney
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

18 years ago

Nice one! that clears it all up then.
I know the council are very twitchy about open mines and have done their best to ****** everything up. In the last 20 years or so they have sealed quite a bit havn't they?

Dudleyminer
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

Yep not alot left. Only accessible galleries now are little Tess and the Singing Cavern as part of the tourist boat trip run by Dudley Canal trust.Definately worth doing to gain a small appreciation of what has been consigned to history and memories !!! 😞

Barney
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

18 years ago

would that be the boat trip from the black country museum?

Dudleyminer
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

Yes it is. Bear in mind however the Canal Trust now have their own access seperate from the Black Country Museum so you can do the boat trip without the expense of the Museum if you so wish !

Barney
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

18 years ago

Where do they start their trips from then?

Dudleyminer
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

Just around the corner from the museum entrance on the main Birmingham New Road dual carriageway.

See attached link.

http://dudleycanaltrust.org.uk

[tweak]Made clickable :)[/tweak]

:thumbup:

Barney
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

18 years ago

Excellent, Thanks for the info Dudleyminer :thumbup:

Cat_Bones
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

#10

I wish I'd started going underground earlier - I was gutted when I found out about the Seven Sisters and then straight away found that there was very little accesible. I went to have a look a couple of years ago and could barely see anything - I've never seen a mine so secure (apart from those which have been filled in!).

Here's hoping they manage to open it again one day - that mine looks amazing.

simonrl
51% (Neutral)
Administration

18 years ago

#11

Really know what you mean; when I look at archive pictures of (particularly) the slate mines and at what is now lost to flooding, untopping of decay; really wish I could have seen them in person.

my orders are to sit here and watch the world go by

Cat_Bones
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

#12

DOes anyone know of anything comparable in the UK? I really want to see inside a limestone mine - there used to be a fairly big one near me in Ironbridge but unfortunately, it's been filled. There is an adit blocked by a collapsed airshaft near me which I want to dig into - I'm hoping it will lead to some pillar and stall working but there's no way it'll be anywhere near as impressive as the Dudley mines!

Wyn
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

#13

"DOes anyone know of anything comparable in the UK?"

The Box Mines are in (Jurassic)Limestone.
There's the Beer Stone Mines in Devon (Beer Quarry Caves Ltd) which are open to the public in the summer.
Also the Milwr tunnel, ie the last workings.

Cat_Bones
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

#14

Yeah box looks intersting.

Anything with open caverns like at Seven Sisters?

simonrl
51% (Neutral)
Administration

18 years ago

#15

There are some thundering great big caverns at Milwr, for example:

[img]http://www.aditnow.co.uk/showimage?f=/community/Milwr-Tunnel-Mixed-Mine-17-12-2006-Image-012/[/img]

I've only been to one Wiltshire stone quarry, very impressive but being a slate bod it's always disappointing not to find dozens of levels and inclines.

my orders are to sit here and watch the world go by

LAP
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

18 years ago

#16

what is different about milwr tunnel, almost all other limestone mines in britain are worked with the flat and pillar method...

Kein geneis kanaf - Cain gnais canaf
Byt vndyd mwyhaf - byth onddyth moyav
Lliaws a bwyllaf - Líows o boylav
Ac a bryderaf - ac o boryddarav
Kyfarchaf y veird byt - covarcav yr vairth
Pryt nam dyweid - poryth na'm dowaith
Py gynheil y byt - Pa gonail y byth
Na syrch yn eissywyt - na soroc yn eishoyth
Neur byt bei syrchei - nour byth bai sorochai

Barney
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie Topic Starter

17 years ago

#17

It would appear that Dudley council may have been given funding to open up a tunnel under Wrens nest hill to provide a tourist route where folks would be taken into the limestone mine on a barge to a huge underground marina then transfered to an underground railway to continue the tour.
Access is blocked by 3 collapses in the 700m tunnel so theres a lot to be done.
Info is a bit sketchy at the moment, depending on which scource.

royfellows
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

17 years ago

#18

The Lincoln Hill mines at Ironbridge have also been infilled, digging the fall in the adit will lead nowhere.

My avatar is a poor likeness.

Cat_Bones
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

17 years ago

#19

"royfellows" wrote:
The Lincoln Hill mines at Ironbridge have also been infilled, digging the fall in the adit will lead nowhere.

Yeah, I know 🙂. The adit I was on about is at Steeraway, rather than Ironbridge. The chances are though it's flooded beyond the collapse as it was apparently quite wet when it was working and other workings nearby on a similar level were reported as flooded when they were still accessible.

royfellows
50.2% (Neutral)
Newbie

17 years ago

#20

Shropshire Caving and Mining Club have done a lot of exploration in the area, including the Lincoln Hill workings before being infilled. As a member I have their journals, which include a lot of articles by Ivor Brown who is quite an expert in the area.
If there is anything of particular interest that you would like, please let me know, and I will see what I can do.

My avatar is a poor likeness.