Details of Mining
Wood Mine was excavated during the period 1860-1877 by the Alderley Edge Mining Company
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Figure 1: The entrance to Wood Mine which was rebuilt by the DCC |
and is located in Windmill Wood (fig. 1). The mine worked
the Wood Mine Conglomerates chiefly for copper but also for lead and cobalt in
smaller quantities. Two WNW-ESE trending faults mark
the extent of the mine to the north and south and are named the North Boundary
(an extention of the Engine Vein Fault) and South Boundary Faults respectively.
The rock in between these two faults has suffered minor faulting which resulted
in the mine taking the form of four levels [2].
The Wood Mine Conglomerates are impregnated with malachite, galena and cerussite with copper being redeposited in its secondary form (fig. 2). The mine was illuminated using candles with miners blasting the ore before digging it out using picks and shovels [13]. Wooden tubs were used to transport the ore around the mine and it was then taken up a haulage level to the surface [2]. The ore from Wood Mine was transported to the West Mine treatment works via a tramway and processed with the West Mine material.
In 1877 Wood Mine was closed when the Alderley Edge Mining Company went into liquidation. The mine was worked on a small scale during the period 1911-1914 before it was abandoned. The entrances remained open which attracted irresponsible explorers and there were several accidents as a result. In 1964 Wood Mine was sealed but six years later the Derbyshire Caving Club were given permission to reopen the mine. The mine is accessed today via a level at the end of the old tramway as shown in figure 1.
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Figure 2: The second Green Waterfall in Wood Mine which is created by the redeposition of malachite (image courtesy of the DCC) |
The Layout of Wood Mine
Wood Mine is entered via a straight adit which, after a short distance, leads to a T-junction. The passage leading north will take you to the North End Chambers where the North Boundary Fault can be seen. Alternatively the southern tunnel leads to the Sand Cavern, negotiating a bridge on route [13]. To the south of Sand Cavern a complex series of lower passages can be reached via Junction Shaft [13]. By following a level in a south westerly direction from Sand Cavern you reach the Rabbit Caverns and from here you can travel northwest to a flooded stope called Blue Lake [13]. It is in the proximity of Blue Lake where the Hough Level joins Wood Mine which can be followed all the way to the Edge below Stormy Point. By leaving Blue Lake through the north passage you enter a series of passages on two levels which form the deepest part of the mine (about 30 metres below the surface). Figure 3 is a plan of the mine highlighting the features described above.
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| Figure 3: A plan of Wood Mine adapted from Carlon [2] |