On Saturday 14th February, our volunteers returned to site – after the longest, wettest, dullest January that anyone can remember; the country being lashed by Storms Goretti, Ingrid and Chandra, but the light had returned! It was still a bit nippy though as the Friends arrived at Hemingfield – with no water for the birds in Pump House Cottage garden, only ice – despite the brighter skies!
In this special Anniversary post, Chair of the Friends of Hemingfield Colliery, Steve Grudgings shares the first selection of reflections on a decade of challenges, progress and change at Hemingfield.
An unshiny, steady, sticking-at-it kind of month, with the Friends getting into a regular pattern of activity on site.
Continue readingNovember, the awkward month; no longer light, no proper time of day. The harbinger of winter gloom and colder comforts, but with festive frolics to follow. And yet, through it all, the volunteers’ job is never done. The Friends of Hemingfield Colliery are friends for all seasons!
Continue readingOctober 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.
This 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.
Continue readingNovember slipped away, quite literally, into December with a cold turn following Storm Arwen, bringing, wet and wintry weather in its wake. And a touch of snow. Starting belatedly to feel a little festive.
Taking the meteorological hint, the Friends and volunteers stayed indoors for a couple of weekends. Switching from shovels and spades to books and browsing the internet for research and future plans. So during the intermission, we bring you a little glimpse into the industrial past, sharing some further research from our Hemingfield’s Hidden History project work; of Elsecar 150 years ago…
Continue readingThis weekend the group continued work on the renewal of the garden of Pump House Cottage, and improving accessibility to the site to suport our National Lottery Heritage Fund project – Hemingfield’s Hidden History. All the while basking in the presence of a summer-like sun!
“It was a beautiful autumn morning. Such days come seldom at this season of the year in Yorkshire. When they do come one enjoys them all the more.”
Mexborough & Swinton Times, 3rd November 1906, p.11
And so it was on Saturday 13th November 2021, 115 years later; another beautiful autumn morning. The Friends and volunteers arrived early for another productive day’s activities at Hemingfield Colliery.
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Saturday was initially ruled out as a washout, with uninviting prospects of rain throughout the night and during the morning. The wet stuff was certainly in evidence when folks first arrived…
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