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Florence Iron Mine, Cumbria |
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South of Whitehaven is the town of Egremont and Florence Haematite mine (NGR: NY 0170 1025) - the last working haematite mine in Europe. Sunk in 1914, it was worked with the Ullcoats mine from 1917, until it finally closed on 13th September 1968, following nationalisation. Bekermet Mines (part of the British Steel Corporation) took it over in 1969, pumped out the water and linked it to Beckermet Mine. They drew ore up Beckermet shaft for Workington steel works. However as part of a rationalisation process, the British Steel Corporation closed the mine on October 3rd 1980. A number of redundant workers from the mine, invested their redundancy payments in the pit and re-opened part of the underground workings - as the Egremont Mining Co. to make the pit the last deep working iron ore mine in Europe. Although the demand for iron ore continues to fall, it still has an important part to play in the manufacture of pigments for paints and cosmetics. Along side the mining operation is a Heritage Centre run by volunteers from the West Cumbria Mines Research Group (WCMRG). They take visitors to the Centre on both surface and underground tours. Due to weird rules over funding, because they take trips into a still working mine they can’t get any grants to help with the preservation work! |
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The Tour The Health and Safety people have banned the use of the electric winder on the No.2 shaft, due to problems with the winder gear box, so all materials and visitors now enter via a surface drift down to the 300ft. level. (Right: View to shaft from top of drift) The tour takes you along the main roadway at this level, with battery operated locos used to move ore from the workings to the drift bottom (where they are then hauled to surface). The mine has effectively been worked on the ‘Pillar and Stall’ method, although a lot of pillar robbing has occurred in places, but they do appear to be working a stope at the moment. |
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It is a relatively ‘easy’ tour, and you don’t get too mucky, so not much chance of imitating the “Red Men of Cumbria” - the name given to the local iron miners due to the colouring effect of the iron ore. |
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On the way round you get to see the rescue station, a landing on the No.1 shaft with a nearby ore chute (still used), plus some nice speckled haematite and kidney ore samples. You have to pay a nominal fee for any samples that you want - which is only fair. Occassional samples of Kidney ore can be found but the bulk of the ore in the mine is speckled haematite. |
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The present working area is about 30ft. above the main roadway near to the old Shaft No.1. Ore is loaded with an Atlas CopCo machine into the ore chute on the level below. Descending a short incline from near to the working area brings you down to an underground fan house, complete with fan and a couple of tubs. The fan house is actually at the top of another incline to deeper workings, but this is flooded at the moment - the water level was near the top of this incline. The mine is currently dewatered by Sellafield Nuclear Power plant, they need millions of gallons of water a day for cooling purposes. So if they eventually close Sellafield it could mean the end of Florence ! |
| If you are interested in a visit, the Heritage centre (musuem, shop & surface tour) is open daily Easter to October. For underground tours (mainly weekends) you need to check availability. For more details contact: Florence Mine Heritage Centre, Tel: 01946-820683 |
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| Credits - thanks to
Report and Other pictures: Kelvin Lake - I.A.Recordings. |
This site is on Private Property and is a working mine as well as a mining musuem, there is no public access outside normal opening times. If you want to visit the site, they are more than willing to arrange visits for interested parties. |
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