Introduction

The first documented evidence of mining in the Northern Pennines dates from the 12th century, and records the presence of silver mines in the areas of what are now Alston Moor, just west of Weardale, and Northumberland. Weardale was, at this time a forested area, and belonged to the Bishops of Durham, who used it as a hunting preserve. The villages of Eastgate and Westgate mark the former entrances to this forest preserve (King, 1982).

Lead mining in Weardale reached its greatest levels during the 18th and 19th centuries, when the London Lead and Beaumont Companies dominated mining throughout the region. During the 1880’s the declining prices for lead forced both companies to give up their leases in the area, though the Weardale Lead Company continued lead mining and smelting until 1931. According to Dunham (1990), 28 separate lead smelting operations were active in the region during the height of mining in the 19th century, but by 1919 the last one had closed.

Oxidized, near surface deposits of siderite and ankerite provided economic deposits of iron ore in some mines, and were exploited by the Weardale Iron Company from 1842 until around 1920, though most activity occurred prior to 1880. The mining of non-metallic ores - fluospar, witherite, and barytes (commercial barite ore) in the northern Pennines began about the time lead and iron mining were in decline. Fluorspar, previously a waste product from the mines had become a commercial commodity because of its use in modern steel-making processes. Fluorspar mining in Weardale continued through most of the 20th century, but by the early 1990’s was in serious decline, largely due to competition from overseas sources. During the summer of 1999 the last ore-producing mine in Weardale -- Groverake -- had closed.

Total production values for lead and fluorspar from the Weardale district over the years are impressive. According to Dunham (1990) almost 1 million tons of lead was produced during the period 1666 through 1985. Almost 2 million tons of fluorspar was produced between 1850 and 1984.

The Rogerley Mine

The Rogerley Mine is located within an abandoned quarry of the same name, just east of the town of Stanhope. The quarry was originally operated during the mid-19th century as a source of limestone as flux for nearby iron foundries. Though several mineralized veins are present in the quarry, they do not contain ore minerals in sufficient quantities to have justified commercial extraction. As these veins were considered contaminants in the limestone by quarry operators, they were left as promintories in the quarry, and are now fairly easy to locate.

Cumbria Mining and Mineral Company

The Cumbria Mining and Mineral Company was formed in 1972 by Lindsay and Patricia Greenbank, and Michael and Brenda Sutcliffe with the intention of mining mineral specimens on a commercial basis. The concept of operating a mine solely for specimens was quite novel in the UK at the time, and was not taken seriously by many mineral agents. After several unsuccessful attempts to obtain mining leases, the partnership obtained permission to explore a previously unworked fluorite-containing vein in the Rogerley Quarry.

The fluorite occurred at a spot high up on the north face of the quarry, and initially, specimens were collected by roping down from the top. A ledge was soon carved into the quarry wall, and the mine was operated on weekends for specimens over the course of the next 25 years. The source of the fluorite specimens were cavities in a N-S trending vein exposed on the quarry wall, named the Greenbank vein by Sir Kingsley Dunham. Work initially focused on cavities which occur along a level, known as the "High Flats" near the top of the Great Limestone, a rock unit which supports the wall of the quarry. Mining during the early to mid 1970’s created a bench cut into the quarry face approximately 20 meters above the floor.

A second E-W trending series of veins, known as the Sutcliffe vein (Fisher and Greenbank, 2000) is exposed in a western extension of the quarry. A limited amount of surface work was done here during 1976 and some good quality specimens of green and purple fluorite were found. Access to this outcrop was difficult to control, and highgraders were a constant problem, so work was soon shifted back to the original location.

During the late 1970’s a tunnel was constructed directly below the previously cut bench level. One cavity of exceptional bright green fluorite was discovered near the tunnel entrance, but the tunnel proved barren for the rest of its length and no work has been done there since.

During the 1980’s a tunnel was driven northward into the quarry wall on the upper level. Though operation was only part-time, a series of cavities were found which produced a high volume of material, resulting in a steady cash flow for the company. By the early 1990’s the tunnel had been extended to near its current length of around 35 meters, but during the winter of 1992-93 the area around the portal collapsed, requiring the better part of the next year to reopen.

UK Mining Ventures

Not long after reopening the upper tunnel Lindsay contracted a serious illness. While he has since recovered, he was forced to conclude that the rigors of hard rock mining were a thing of the past. He was in the process of closing the mine when the situation came to the attention of the current operators. After successfully renegociating several lease agreements and rehabilitating the mine, full time mining for specimens began in June of 1999.

Using pressurized water to clean the tunnel walls revealed two areas of mineralization. In the vein at the north end of the tunnel several pockets had been previously opened, but not completely extracted. One, named the "Weasel Pocket" after a former inhabitant (actually a stoat) who was forced to vacate on very short notice, contained large clusters of partially opaque purple cubic fluorite crystals, coated with druzy quartz.

Half way between the mine entrance and the end of the tunnel, was an area previously worked by the Cumbria Mining and Mineral Company. On June 12, as the crew washed away mud and removed a few slabs of rock from the face, a series of large fluorite-lined cavities were found, extending eastward from the vein into the flats.

Over the course of the next few days, the pocket, now named the "Black Sheep" pocket in honor of a very good local ale, was opened up to approximately 1x1.5 meters. Much of the pocket was intact, and large plates of crystals, many with fluorite-coated, stalactite-like fingers of matrix were recovered using a diamond chain saw. The pocket proved to be an interconnected series of solution cavities, and extraction lasted through the summer. By the end of August the cavity had been opened up to approximately 1 meter high by 1.3 meters wide by 5 meters deep, and had yielded hundreds of specimens of green fluorite.

The crew returned for a second successful season of mining during the summer of 2000. While the previous year's find had been largely a matter of "dumb luck", this year's strategy was to drive a new tunnel, branching from the vein eastward in order to intersect the mineralized flats in back of the previous year's workings. After driving approximately 15 meters of new tunnel, the flats were encountered on July 2. The mineralized area opened up into a series of mud filled, interconnected cavities heading west, back toward the 1999 work area. Work continued through the summer, and at the end of August the far end of the previous year's cavity was encountered. Fluorite from the 2000 workings was similar the previous year's, but in general, the size and quality of the crystals was much greater.

Fluorite from the Rogerley mine flats, Summer, 2002.

During the summer of 2001 mining proceeded on several fronts. The eastern tunnel was extended, encountering three productive areas, named the "Breccia", "Dragon's Tooth", and "Birthday" pockets. In the main (western) tunnel, a productive area known as the "Solstice" pocket was found. The original opening to the Black Sheep pocket was enlarged and collecting was resumed in that area. Late in the season an exploratory drift was driven to the west, opposite the original opening to the Black Sheep pocket. This area proved to be productive as well and is known as the "West Cross-Cut". During the summer of 2002 production centered on both the east tunnel and the area of the West Cross Cut. The east tunnel was driven forward and by the end of the season had intersected the rear of the Solstice Pocket, creating a loop back to the main tunnel. Some excellent quality specimens were produced from a side pocket along the east tunnel, known as "The Dipper". A second tunnel was driven westward, near the original West Cross Cut. During the course of the season this drift was joined up with the first first cross cut, creating a loop from which some very good specimens emerged.

This text was adapted from an article by Jesse Fisher and Lindsay Greenbank, which appeared in the January/February 2000 issue of Rocks & Minerals. All photographs by Jesse Fisher, unless otherwise noted.