Site record MDR8711 - Goyt Moss Colliery, Goyt's Moss, Hartington Upper Quarter
Type and Period (6)
- COLLIERY (Elizabethan to Victorian - 1600 AD to 1900 AD)
- HORSE WHIM (Elizabethan to Victorian - 1600 AD to 1900 AD)
- MINE (Elizabethan to Victorian - 1600 AD to 1900 AD)
- MINE SHAFT (Elizabethan to Victorian - 1600 AD to 1900 AD)
- COAL WORKINGS (Elizabethan to Victorian - 1600 AD to 1900 AD)
- DRAINAGE LEVEL (Elizabethan to Victorian - 1600 AD to 1900 AD)
Protected Status/Designation
- None recorded
Full Description
Area of coal mining, principally by bell pitting, but with some later deep mining. There exists a series, or network, of access tracks to bell pits which form a dendritic pattern in the landscape. Some of the bell pits have remains of associated gin circles, but most of the bell pits are infilled and some contain water. A small area west and north of the Derbyshire Bridge carpark is now a scheduled ancient monument [SMR 31602] (1997: 21663), the area is crossed by two turnpike routes, parts of which are now tracks. The association of the colliery access routes with the bell-pit trackways demonstrates that the turnpikes post-date the bell pits, although the location of gateways in the turnpike boundary walls shows that some bell-pitting took place after the construction of the turnpikes. Photographic record. (1-2)
The colliery exploited the Goyt or Yard Seam. The majority of the output was used at limekilns at Grin Low just south of Buxton. Surface remains of the colliery include over 50 opencast pits, 163-172 shafts of various types, many with adjacent gin engine mounds, the majority with access causeways. There is also a drainage sough tail and turnpike roads. The shafts date from the 18th to early 19th centuries, although one is a drawing shaft from the late 19th century. Surface working probably started in the 17th or early 18th century with shaft sinking probably beginning by the 1730s. Access to the pits was originally from hollow way but this improve with the building of the Buxton to Macclesfield turnpike in 1759. The majority of shafts have suffered major collapse, although some are completely intact. Likewise the gin mounds range in preservation. The mine was in use for 120 to 150 years. (3).
Site monitoring has been carried out. See record for details. (4)
The Goyt's Moss Colliery is of national importance because of the exceptional preservation of its surface remains which have survived because they lie mostly on high moorland. There are over 200 pits and shafts, with associated access causeways and a drainage sough, sunk from the 17th or early 18th to the 19th centuries primarily to provide coal for lime burning. The chronology of the surface remains has been better developed and understood due to a recent site survey. Mining migrated across Goyt's Moss, exploiting the outcropping seam first, then deeper reserves were worked with increasing use of more sophisticated mining techniques. At any one time only a handful of shafts at most were in use. Newly analysed historical sources allow re-assessment of aspects of the colliery, including a re-appraisal of the late 18th and 19th century major underground access levels from Burbage. We know now that there were three of these, not two as previously thought. (5)
Sources/Archives (5)
- <1> SDR18971 Photograph: Peak District National Park Authority (PDNPA). Slide Collection. 7187.1-5.
- <2> SDR18970 Photograph: Peak District National Park Authority (PDNPA). Black and white photograph collection. 498.0A-1A, 7-9.
- <3> SDR600 Unpublished document: Barnatt, J (PDNPA). 1994. The Goyt Valley, Hartington Upper Quarter, Derbyshire, archaeological survey, 1994. 148. Feature 203, pp 46-51.
- <4> SDR22202 Unpublished document: Wood, E (PDNPA). 2014. Scheduled Monument Monitoring Form: Part of Goyt's Moss Colliery, centred 220m SW of Derbyshire Bridge.
- <5> SDR23617 Article in serial: Barnatt, J (PDNPA) & Leach, J. 1997. 'The Goyt's Moss Colliery, Buxton', Derbyshire Archaeological Journal.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred SK 0172 7174 (1056m by 1276m) (Approximate) |
|---|---|
| Civil Parish | HARTINGTON UPPER QUARTER, HIGH PEAK, DERBYSHIRE |
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Events/Activities (3)
- EDR3609
- EDR3759
- EDR3179
Please contact the HER for details.
External Links (0)
Record last edited
Jan 16 2020 11:39AM