The 2011 NAMHO (National Association of Mining History Organisations - Britain and Ireland) conference (http://www.namhoconference.org.uk/) will be held from 29th July-1st August at Preston Montford Field Centre, Montford Bridge, Shrewsbury. Activities will continue around Shropshire through the following week. (http://www.field-studies-council.org/prestonmontford/)
This delightful Queen Anne country house lies by the river Severn to the west of Shrewsbury and is set in 12 hectares of grassland and woodland. It is close to the A5 and the Welsh and Shropshire Hills. Ironbridge, 'Birthplace of the Industrial Revolution', is a short distance away.
On-site, there is accommodation for 120 with two drying rooms, dining facilities, plus camping and bar. Space will be available for those staying on during the following week.
The conference lecture programme will run on the Saturday and Sunday with a series of surface and underground trips from the Friday lunchtime until at least the Wednesday of the following week, for those wishing to extend their stay. Some of the field trips will be re-run in the week to allow attendance at lectures without missing underground trips. It is intended that there will be a set of conference proceedings.
A conference dinner will be held on the Saturday evening and a special event on the Sunday evening is to be hosted by the Shropshire Caving and Mining Club in celebration of its 50th anniversary; the evening meal is free to delegates.
The theme of the conference is '50 Years of Mine Exploration'. Fifty years ago, there was little interest in industrial archaeology and many important mine sites were lost to neglect or the bulldozer. Many more would have been permanently lost but for the efforts of mine explorers.
Following the welcome evening on Friday, a full programme of lectures is planned on Saturday and Sunday with parallel threads in separate rooms. Particular emphasis will be given to practical mine exploration over the years and subjects range from local to international. Speakers include George Hall, who reminisces about his early explorations with David Bick, Rob Vernon on Mines of Spain, Dave Linton, Ivor Brown and many more.
There will be facilities for posters, club stands and trade stands, including Starless River's mobile showroom.
There will be an extensive programme of complementary surface and underground trips to lesser-known parts of Shropshire's mining history as well as some longer trips further afield. Underground trips will include a winch trip at Snailbeach and range from simple walk-in mines to some serious through or round trips with SRT.
http://www.namhoconference.org.uk/ Mike