Red Rose Cave and
Pothole Club - Newsletter Vol 2 No 4 - Winter 1964
LITTLDALE COAL MINE.
By
Andrew Walsh
Situated at map reference SD 563.623 on the road from Crossgill to Littledale, about four
miles from Lancaster. The mine is f about four foot from the top of the quarry on the roadside. It was first explored by three Red Rose
members who were out fossil hunting in the area. It starts with a three foot
drop into a small chamber followed by about a two and a half foot high passage from the area where the roof is supported by a stone built wall. After about 30 feet a branch passage is met, the right hand fork going up a steep gradient for a few yards to a roof fall. ( This passage most likely
connects to a small ten feet long crawl on the surface. ). Round the junction is a ‘seam’
‘of good household coal. This band of
coal was all of one and a half feet, a similar seam of coal is also to be found
in the Quernmore Coal Mine ( See Volume 2. No.2, ) The lower passage to the left
is supported all the way down by hundreds of one foot high pit-props which
follow the coal seam which is compressed between boulder clay on the bottom and
millstone grit above. After about 60ft, the
crawl lowered to about eighteen inches with evidence of truck wheels on the
floor. An excellent fossil was found on the return journey. Another
interesting point noticed on the return journey was the abundance of several
5feet long passages on one side of the mine.