Robin Hood Iron Mine (Forest of Dean): Difference between revisions

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* [http://eprints.glos.ac.uk/3761/2/Mervyn%20Fox%20LOG.docx Transcript of interview with 88 year old former miner Mervyn Fox, conducted 30 Oct. 2015 by Jonathan Wright, sound Engineer: Jason Griffiths]
* [http://eprints.glos.ac.uk/3761/2/Mervyn%20Fox%20LOG.docx Transcript of interview with 88 year old former miner Mervyn Fox, conducted 30 Oct. 2015 by Jonathan Wright, sound Engineer: Jason Griffiths]
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staunton,_near_Coleford,_Gloucestershire Wikipedia: Staunton, near Coleford, Gloucestershire.]
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staunton,_near_Coleford,_Gloucestershire Wikipedia: Staunton, near Coleford, Gloucestershire.]
<!--== Brief mention ==
== Brief mention ==
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* [http://www.torrens.org/greenbottom/Archeology/archeology.html Green Bottom, Forest of Dean.]
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Revision as of 23:15, 14 October 2018

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Site of Robin Hood Iron Mine (Forest of Dean).

[[File:|thumb|right|500px|Looking roughly SW from Stounton Road (A4136), its a short walk c. 85 m straight ahead to the site of the Robin Hood Iron Pit / Google Earth Street View.]]

By Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2018-09-24. Revised by Henrik Thiil Nielsen, 2018-10-14.

Robin Hood Iron Pit was located in Marian's Inclosure in the Forest of Dean. Said to have started in 1871, it was certainly in operation by 1884.

According to Wikipedia's article on the village of Coleford, the mine began operation in 1871,[1] and this may well be correct though no source is cited. The earliest map source for this place-name known to IRHB is a 6" O.S. map of the area published in 1884, based on surveying carried out 1879-80 (see Maps below). Some revisions of the map label the site "Robinhood Iron Mine", while others have "Robin Hood Iron Pit". The part of the Forest of Dean in which the mine was situated was known as Blake's Wood.

One of 39 active mining operations in the district during the 19th century or later, the Robin Hood Iron Mine was worked mainly for red oxide but also produced ochre for use in the paint industry. It closed in 1832 but was briefly reopened by the Ministry of Supply during WWII.[2] The forest has reclaimed the site to the extent that hardly any traces of the mining operation can be discerned on Google Maps satellite images. However, on the ground several are still visible, including the "[s]ite of a shaft (now sealed with an iron plate)" and the "[s]ite of an air shaft of unknown date, located c.60 metres south-west of Robin Hood Iron Pit, and possibly associated with that site". Among many other remains of mining and quarrying operations in the vicinity are a "[f]lat-topped mound of unknown date located in woodland to the north of the site of Robin Hood Iron Pit, near the A4136". Robin Hood Iron Pit was also worked for ochre.[3] The O.S. maps listed below include details such as buildings, a shaft, an air shaft, ramparts or heaps of waste, a weighing machine, and access roads. With few conspicuous traces of the mine now remaining and hence so little reason for people in the area to have use for a name for it, the place-name is kept alive mainly by local historians and people interested in mining hisory and exploration. There are also a few references in the archaeological literature.[4]

"Marian" occurs as an element in the names of at least five localities in the vicinity, and until we have clear evidence to the contrary, it seems reasonable to believe these place-names may refer to Maid Marian.Template:PnItemQry

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Maps

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Brief mention

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