Rampgill and Scaleburn Mines, Nenthead, Cumbria, OS Ref: NY782435.
Rampgill
Horse Level we believed was started by the Greenwich Hospital in 1736 following
the Scaleburn Moss Vein until it reached Fairhill Vein, this then followed into
Rampgill Vein. Rampgill Vein may have been worked as early as 1690. There are
references to other veins being worked from much earlier on which join into
Rampgill Mine. In 1745 the lease was sold to the London Lead Company who
developed the mine at an impressive rate and found the Rampgill Vein and others
to be incredibly rich in ore. Altogether Rampgill with all its veins yielded
140,000 tons of lead ore between 1703 and 1886.
By the
end of the 19th century most of Rampgill Vein above the water table had been
worked out. Between 1899 and 1921 the Vieille Montagne Zinc Company reworked
some of the veins in Rampgill Mine and Coalcleugh Mine for zinc ore, with
Rampgill Horse Level being used for access to Coalcleugh Mine. The Rampgill
Horse Level was also used as a haulage way via the Hanginshaw Branch Level for
the eastern workings of the Middlecleugh and Longcleugh Veins in Smallcleugh
Mine.
One of
major veins in Rampgill Mine, Scaleburn Vein is generally referred to as being
part of Rampgill Mine, it is however a sperate mine in its own right and it
only used the Rampgill portal as its access point.
Rampgill
Mine is very extensive and we have only really been on a few recon trips. It
does connect to many other mines in the Nent Valley, one of which being
Smallcleugh. Click on each link below for full details and pictures of each
trip.
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Horse Gin Wheel - Trip to see the Horse
Gin in Rampgill.
(Charlie, Karl, Mike, Pete), January
2004. |
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Rampgill Level to bottom of Proud's
Sump
(Eleanor, Karli, Mark), 30th December 2004. |
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Scaleburn and Brownley Hill
Link - More exploration on the Scaleburn Vein and Top Sills.
(Charlie,
Karli, Mark, Mike), 26th February 2005. |
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Hangingshaw
Branch Level via Proud's Sump - Is the way to the bottom of the Hydraulic
Shaft open?
(Karli and Mike), 24th March 2006. |
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Rampgill
and Hardshins Veins - At last, a long overdue visit down Rampgill.
(Karli, Mike and Peter), 17th July 2006. |
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Along
the Rampgill Vein to the Final Fall - Trip to see the final fall on the
Rampgill Vein and some of the stopes above.
(Mike and Peter), 22nd July
2008. |
 |
Rampgill
Vein and one of the Boundary Stopes - A tour of Rampgill mine for some of
Peter's friends from Sub Brit.
(Bob, Gavin, Mike, Richard, Peter and
Steve), 10th August 2008. |
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