Lochnell Mine Tour
Lochnell Mine is the only lead mine open to the public in Scotland. The mine was active between 1710 and 1860.
The guided tour of the mine gives the visitor a vivid sense of what lead mining was all about – a job which separated the miner physically and, to a large extent, socially from the wider world in which he lived. It concentrated his attention on winning a basic living for himself and his family in conditions, which were always physically dangerous and also hazardous to health.
It taught him, when at work, to be dependent on the trustworthiness and comradeship of his fellow miners and this special relationship coloured his leisure time activities too.
Visiting Lochnell Mine
The entrance to Lochnell mine is at the south end of Williamson’s Drift. After passing through a timbered passage, the drift opens out and has an average height of 2.2m/7 feet and a width of 1.2m/4 feet. You are guided through the mine for approximately 350m/ 380yards. At the deepest accessible point you arrive at the first stope – a chamber left when the lead ore has been removed. You can see the remaining lead vein 14 m above you and look down 21 m to the next level below.
Visitor Information
Mine trips last around 40 to 45 minutes, helmets are provided. The mine is generally dry underfoot although parts can be a little muddy and occasionally a bit drippy in places. We recommend that you wear walking shoes and bring some warm clothing as the temperature underground is quite cool, normaly about 8 degrees C.
For health and safety reasons we are unable to allow children under the age of five to take part in the underground tour.
The principal ore of lead is galena which contains lead sulphide. Silver is also contained within the galena and can be separated from the lead metal.
Near to the mine entrance you will see the first evidence of the lead ore in the South Cove vein. The miners used to touch this ore as they entered the mine and it has become smooth over the years. The miners thought that touching this ore this would bring them luck in their search for galena.
Unlike coal miners, lead miners were free men and therefore were able to move from mine to mine. Men came from different parts of Britain and some from different European countries. Women were not employed in the mines. In the early days boys as young as 8 years old were expected to start work. They would work in the streams outside the mine washing the lead ore in all weather conditions. At the age of 12 boys could work in the mine, hauling out the galena in small wooden sledges. The work undertaken by children stopped when the local school was opened in the early 1800s.
Unlike coal miners, lead miners were free men and therefore were able to move from mine to mine. Men came from different parts of Britain and some from different European countries. Women were not employed in the mines. In the early days boys as young as 8 years old were expected to start work. They would work in the streams outside the mine washing the lead ore in all weather conditions. At the age of 12 boys could work in the mine, hauling out the galena in small wooden sledges. The work undertaken by children stopped when the local school was opened in the early 1800s.
The miners started working in the mines at a young age and safety became second nature to them. Accidents happened less frequently than in coal mines. This was because the surrounding ‘country rock’ is stronger and more stable than that around a seam of coal. There is little risk of the explosive methane being found in lead mines, compared with coal mines.
The miners started working in the mines at a young age and safety became second nature to them. Accidents happened less frequently than in coal mines. This was because the surrounding ‘country rock’ is stronger and more stable than that around a seam of coal. There is little risk of the explosive methane being found in lead mines, compared with coal mines.
Between 2017 and 2020 a small team of volunteers worked at weekends when the mine was closed to clear backfilled rock from Lochnell Mine. Some of the dedicated team travelled a round trip of 200 miles each time. Eighty tonnes of rock debris was removed to the surface using picks, shovels and wheelbarrows. This work doubled the mine tour experience from 150m/490 feet 300m/980 feet. The tour now stops at the first stope (a chamber formed by the removal of valuable lead ore), where you can look up, some 14m above to observe the vein in the roof, and peer down into space approximately 21m to the next level below.
Take a look inside Lochnell Mine
