Mining the moors

Coal mining on the Beard and Ollersett Moors was extensive during the eighteenth century. This inhospitable land lies at around 1300ft above sea level commanding fine views towards Kinder and over Manchester on days of good weather, In 1702 John Shalcross (leaseholder from the Duchy of Lancaster as landowner) sublet the coal here to three partners, John Mottram, William Carrington, and William Bennett. The account book for this venture has survived for the years 1711-57 and shows that over this period at least 120,000 tons of coal was mined here from the Yard Seam.

There are extensive remains of shafts across the moors, this one being on Ollersett Moor at the end of a long roadway that served several shafts below the current bridleway. The collapsed shaft has created a deep hole and the back of the gin circle is marked by the rushes on the right. The next shaft up the hill still showed evidence of having been stone lined and rectangular in shape rather than circular.