October brought clouds and rain. It kept volunteer activity on site at bay, at times, but the hardy crew still managed to get some valuable maintenance work done, and even enjoyed an outing at the end of this most changeable of months.
Wet weather rained us off on 4th August, but the Friends picked up the pace during the month which was, traditionally, expected to be somewhat summery…
Continue readingJune. A beautiful time of year. The first steps of summer, without the school holidays. When the sun’s heat brings plants, people, and other wild-life out into the longer light of day.
What a month! Mostly highs, with the odd low; new life on site, beautiful weather, a new monarch, and lots of activity from the Friends of Hemingfield Colliery, as we completed work on our National Lottery Heritage Fund project Hemingfield’s Hidden History. The project has reunited the colliery site – pumping station and pump house cottage, and enabled a transformation of our understanding of the history and importance of the surviving buildings. Working together with others, we have uncovered more of the stories of the communities around the pit, at Elsecar and Hemingfield, and connected with a new generation of young people on the heritage and biodiversity of the former colliery site today .
The restless efforts of the Friends and regular volunteers at Hemingfield Colliery continued in February 2023, with significant progress on small jobs and starts being made on some of the bigger tasks to maintain the site and prepare the way for repairs to take place as the weather improves.
A new year and another chance to make further progress on site, saving and sharing our mining heritage. Weather permitting, of course. The Friends demurred on the 14th as the weather was poor, but by the 21st they were eager to meet up and dive into planning activities for the year ahead.
Continue readingThis blog covers highlights from this year, ranging from achievements on site, community engagement and covering some of the goals we may like to achieve in 2023.
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At 10 o’clock in the morning, on Wednesday 29th August 1792, the Company of Proprietors of the Navigation of the River Dun held a meeting at the Cutler’s Hall in Sheffield.
Continue readingFeeling hot, hot, hot was definitely the defining feature of July 2022, between 16-20th, and especially on Monday 18th and Tuesday 19th as the Met Office issued its first ever Red warning for extreme heat, together with amber warnings indicating danger to life or potential serious illness.
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June 2022 was another busy month of weekend activities on site at Hemingfield Colliery, although the first weekend presented a unique pause – the Platinum Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend from Thursday 2nd June 2022.
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Friends of Hemingfield Colliery 