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Whilst the detail is quite indistinct at this magnification, I have derived from the detail within the map above, the certification by the then Mine Agent and Manager George Christopher Headlam.
The mine ceased production around December 1923 and by that time 2,623,724 tons of Ironstone had been extracted or 'Won' from the workings of Upleatham Ironstone Mine...
In 1853, the mine was really no more than an extended quarry, with the exposed ironstone outcrop clearly visible, by removing the 'overburden' (the topsoil etc.) initially and then drilling and blowing the rock down with black powder.
This 1908 photograph, shows the quarry at the East end of Errington Hill.
This seems to be where the outcrop was first mined, before the ironstone seam eventually disappeared underground
By the time the mine closed in 1923, the village of New Marske and three drifts, had developed along the full Northern face of the by then bare hillside.
A large collection of buildings had also been erected at the top of a 'Self Acting Incline', including several workshops, steam haulers, fan buildings and several miles of small guage railway.
The map of the mine workings shows which areas were totally mined out, or 'Goafed out' in local parlance, that is all the stone was removed by 'bord and pillar' working.
As the Ironstone seam proceeded deeper underground so the drifts followed it, initially galleries were dug out across the mine east to west and then stalls were dug, moving the workings forward until another cross gallery was started, in this way a series of intersecting galleries were opened out with the roof supported by broad pillars of stone.
Once the boundary of the leased area had been reached then the next phase could begin. This entailed working back towards the driftentrance, as they worked, the rock pillars were reduced to 'stooks' or narrower pillars.
The roof would then be supported with timber posts before the 'stooks' were then mined away. Finally the most dangerous part would be carried out and the wooden roof supports would be withdrawn.
The roof of this 'Judd' as it was known, would then be allowed to fall in. Sometimes this took a matter of days or weeks and the area around the 'Judd' would heave and move, called 'the Creep' locally. Roadways would buckle up and side falls were common until finally the roof collapsed or 'Came In'.
If you study the map carefully the dates at which each section was completed was also added, all in different colours for each year of removal.
The remaining grey areas are those that had the stone removed but narrow pillars were left to support the land above and prevent complete subsidence above the mine workings.
As the drifts proceeded further below the surface, the atmosphere within the workings became unbreathable. So an 'Updraft' shaft would be sunk from the surface and a chimney erected, at the base of the shaft there would be a fire tray arrangement (as seen above).
As the drifts proceeded further below the surface, the atmosphere within the workings became unbreathable.
An 'Updraft' shaft would be sunk from the surface and a chimney erected, at the base of the shaft there would be a fire tray arrangement (as seen above).
The heat and smoke from this fire would rise up the shaft and chimney, drawing fresh air into the workings and clearing the fumes produced by successive explosions of black powder and the resultant dust of exploding rock.
It is thought there were around four of these furnaces working 24/7 at Upleatham until eventually the depth of the mine required a mechanical device to push fresh air into the mine and a series of 'shutter doors' were installed directing the air around the workings more efficiently.
As you can see from these photos, lads (sic) of around 12-14 years of age were employed to open and close these 'trap doors'.
These 'Trapper Lads' would be sat, for up to 12 hours, in the dark with only a small stub of candle in his 'midge' lamp, usually fashioned from a jam tin.
The only company would be the rats drawn by his 'bait' or midday meal wrapped in newspaper or if he was lucky in a small tin. Probably consisting of a slice of bread, with maybe a little cheese or dripping spread over it and a can of cold tea if he was thirsty.
There he sat, alone on one side of the door, listening for the approach of a horse and it's tub.
Surrounded by the noises of the earth moving with the removal of rock, the groans and cracks of 'The Creep' was common in the local Cleveland District Ironstone mines.
Initially it is thought ventilation was achieved by the use of a 'Cooke's Ventilating Apparatus' patented in 1868, it was essentially two drums with a smaller one fixed inside, the smaller two drums are driven, concentrically pushing a fixed volume of air through the exhaust opening, which has a shutter attached to seal the drum as it rotates. (see above).
The apparatus was introduced by Cooke to Cockburn the then Mine Manager and according to a paper delivered to the 'NORTH OF ENGLAND INSTITUTE OF MINING AND MECHANICAL ENGINEERS' in 1877, by William Cockburn who broadly explained that there were three methods of ventilating mine workings; the 'Steam Blast'; the 'Centrifugal Machine' and the Apparatus which 'Exhausts air by means of chambers of varying capacity'.
The latter of which is the means to look at firstly, Cooke reported that the principles of his 'Apparatus' of varying capacities, was both 'economical and efficient'. Messrs. Fowler and Co., of Leeds, were contracted to produce this machine and 'nothing has been left to desire on this head, the fans now at work are steadily doing good duty and continue working economically without requiring any repairs.' The drawings show the ventilator (see above) that was erected at the Lofthouse (Loftus) Ironstone Mines; the casings are 22 feet diameter by 11 feet 6 inches wide, and the drums are 15 feet diameter, theoretically capable of drawing 4,530 cubic feet out of the pit at each revolution.
It will be seen that the machine consists of a circular case, A, made of cast-iron, bolted together. This casing is made very exact, so that the eccentric cylinders or drums, B, may, as they rotate, pass as closely as possibly to the inside of the casing without touching.
Upon this accuracy depends, in a great measure, the success of the machine. The eccentric rotating drum is made of wrought-iron plates, rivetted together flush on the outside, and supported from within by cast-iron centre pieces, keyed firmly on the shafts, and by means of stay-rods and angle-irons, firmly secured to the metal centre pieces and the wrought iron outside casing; the object being to combine lightness with perfect rigidity and accuracy.
These drums are perfectly smooth when finished and revolve about thirty times a minute within 3/32 of an inch from the casing. A shutter, C, likewise made of sheet iron, and strengthened and supported by angle-irons and metal bosses, is suspended at D, in such a way that its curved end is kept close to the cylinder B, by means of the crank I, connecting rods F, and the lever G, which is keyed on the shaft carrying the shutter.
The upper curve H of the shutter has the same radius as that of the inside of the metal casing, and the lower curve E has the same radius as the amount of eccentricity of the drum B. The cranks I are keyed on the shafts which carry the drums, but are outside the casing, and they have also the same length between centres as the amount of eccentricity given to B. It will be seen by this arrangement that the end E of the shutter C is always kept at one uniform distance from the drum B, as this latter revolves.
The air is drawn from the mine at K, and delivered at L, and the pressure being greater in that portion of the ventilator towards L than it is inside in the portion marked K, there will always be a tendency for air to escape from the former to the latter side, hence the necessity of having the whole apparatus very stiff, strong, and accurate.
In practice, however, when the machine is well made, this leakage is found to be very trifling; in fact, when it is considered that the pressure equal to two inches of water is only 10 lbs. per square foot, or on such a shutter as shown in the drawing, about 1,000 lbs., half of which only is effective at the extremity E, there is no very great strain tending to separate it from the drum B, and the minimum space allowed is always preserved.
It will be seen that, like all machines of varying capacity, there are times when no air is passing in or out, and this necessitates the use of two separate cases and drums. These were formerly placed on separate shafts, and each was counterbalanced by metal weights, keyed on these shafts, which arrangement gave much trouble; now, it will be seen by reference to the plan, Plate 17 Above, that both the drums are keyed on one shaft, and that in consequence they counterbalance each other.
The cases A A are, of course, placed side by side, the cranks I I and the connecting rods F are placed outside the cases, and the engine is placed at X, and drives the shaft by means of the crank F.
The ventilator at Upleatham, has been at work over thirty-one months, and ventilator at Lofthouse, over twenty-two months, and taking the consumption of fuel over nine months, it is found to be close upon 3.9 lbs. per indicated horse-power per hour, and 6.07 lbs. per effective horse-power per hour, with an average discharge of 108,000 cubic feet of air per minute from Upleatham, and 106,000 cubic feet per minute from Lofthouse.
The useful effect obtained from Upleatham ventilator is 60.6 per cent., and from Lofthouse 62 per cent. The consumption of fuel at Crag's Hall with a Guibal fan, over a period of thirteen months, was 8.2 lbs. per effective horse-power per hour. At Upleatham, for the same period, it is 6.07 lbs. per effective horsepower per hour, showing a clear gain of over 35 per cent. by the latter in fuel.
The total consumption of fuel at Upleatham was, for the thirteen months, 709 tons. Now, had a Guibal fan been placed at Upleatham instead of the Cooke, the consumption of fuel, taking Crag's Hall as the basis, would have been 958 tons. The average of two experiments at Crag's Hall gave the percentage of useful effect at 45.6. At Upleatham, the average of a number of experiments is 60.19 per cent. of useful effect, showing a clear gain of 33 per cent. in favour of the Cooke ventilator.
In conclusion, an abstract of the percentages of useful effect obtained from fans upon which Mr. Daniel and the author have made experiments is given, in order to place the matter fairly before the members, and the author concludes that it may justly be stated that Cooke's ventilator has an advantage of 24 per cent. over Guibal's fan, and that the superiority of the varying capacity type, compared with the centrifugal class, is fairly established...
Whilst it would appear that Cooke's Ventilator was more efficient than most, it seems to have broken down frequently. Probably due to the concentric drums and issues with the balance of the driving shafts.
The 'Apparatus' was eventually changed, and it is speculated that a 'Guibal Fan' arrangement was installed at the West End Drift of the mine.
As shown above the 'Fan' has a series of wooden and metal 'Sails' for want of a better discription, driven by single cylinder steam engine the rotating vanes pull air from within the mine workings and exhaust them to the outside atmosphere.
In another report 'ON MECHANICAL VENTILATORS FOR MINES' BY MR. WILLIAM DANIEL, OF LEEDS, he wrote: 'At Lofthouse (Loftus) the variations in nine measurements of the air current were 25 per cent. above the mean and 20 per cent. below ; and had the former been assumed in place of the mean velocity, the volume of air would have been increased from 101,308 to 126,635 cub. ft., and the useful effect from 64 to 80 per cent.
The drifts, were divided by cross wires as nearly as possible into squares of equal area, and the anemometer was held in each division for one minute.'
He concluded that:
'The consumption of fuel in most cases could not be accurately ascertained; for, according to the usual practice, steam was taken from boilers used for other purposes than that of ventilation. But the writer wishes to direct attention to the fact, that, in the majority of ventilators now working, low pressures, very little expaneion, and consequently wasteful types of engines, are usually employed, where, owing to the almost constant work, a more economical type of engine might be advantageously adopted. The Lofthouse ventilator, driven by a semi-portable engine as described during 30 days' continuos working at an average speed of 26 revolutions per minute (obtained from a counter) required 354 tons of coal, or 3.9 lb. per indicated H. P., or 6.07 lb. per effective H. P. per hour.'...
The tables above, were created by experiments carried out at various Mines in the UK.
Which were used to evaluate the best and worst features of each method of ventilation. The cost of the Upleatham and Lofthouse ventilators, including in each case the pair of drums and casings with engine and boiler complete, had been about £4500 each ; whilst to do the same work as either of these ventilators the cost of a Guibal fan, including the brickwork, would be from £7000 to £8000.
The Cooke's seems to be the most efficient and of the least cost but it seems that the Concentric Drum apparatus was prone to mechanical problems and so, in the cases of Lofthouse and Upleatham, replaced .
In fact Upleatham Mine removed the Cookes Apparatus and installed first a Guibal fan and then as the mine developed a 'Waddle Fan' was brought from Loftus mine, when the one there had been replaced with a larger diameter disc.
The 'Waddle Fan' seen above at Upleatham mine, was essentially a large disc with internal vanes and an opening in the centre, as it rotated it pulled the air from the mine through the centre opening and exhausted it from the rim to the upcast chimney.
Below is a diagram of the 'Waddle Fan system, which was used at 'Lumpsey Mine' also in the Cleveland district.
Why there were two different fans in use at Upleatham Mine is uncertain but the use of two fans was forced upon the mine owners because of two huge faults in the local rock formation.
This created an 'Upcast' of the ironstone seam at the West end of the mine and a 'Downcast' at the East end of the mine. These faults created problems at both ends where the presence of water was a great problem, but the largest area in the centre remained dry because of this phenomena.
In the next installment, we'll look at how the stone was 'won' and how it was removed...
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