The Calder Wood Caverns
Shale workings beside the Linhouse water in Calder Wood
F19029, first published 26th July 2019
The Linhouse Water carves a deep channel as it passes through Calder Wood, exposing seams of oil shale in the steep cliffs on either side. This was one of the first places where shale was mined. Perhaps as early as 1862, a small oilworks was in operation at Oakbank, probably supplied from riverside workings.
By 1869, when our estate plan was drawn, a larger oilworks had been constructed close to the Caledonian Railway at Oakbank and a new pit sunk a mile to the north, close to Midcalder bridge. The riverside mines seem still to have been in operation at that time; the plan suggesting that shale was taken across the river on a bridge, then loaded into wagons that were hauled up an incline on the east side of the river. This incline seems to have been linked to the standard gauge mineral railway leading to Oakbank oil works. The route of the incline is still clearly evident, and a few larger stones in the river bed suggest the location of the bridge.
The riverside mine workings do not appear to have have extended a great distance and probably had a short operating life. They are marked as “old levels” and there is no trace of a bridge across the river on the 1890’s ordnance survey map.
In about 1990, when I first visited the site, there were no barriers across the entrances, and it was easy to explore the criss-cross network of stoop and room workings, entering one entry and popping out of another. In some areas, the tops of timber pit props projected a foot or so above the floor of the tunnel. Initial puzzlement turned to caution when you realised that most of the original tunnel lay beneath you and that you were walking through the void created following collapse of the original mine roof.
Walls were later built across the entrances, which have now been partly broken down by the curious. The mines lie within Almondell and Calderwood Country Park, and one would image that the safety-conscious authorities would not encourage visits to the site. Part of the route to the mines involves scrambles along 45 degree slopes of loose material that are particularly perilous when wet, and other parts are totally submerged and impassible when there are significant volumes of water flowing down the Linhouse Water.
Beneath Calder WoodThe Linhouse Water carves a deep channel as it passes through Calder Wood, exposing seams of oil shale in the steep cliffs on either side. This was one of the first places where shale was mined. Perhaps as early as 1862, a small oilworks was in operation at Oakbank, probably supplied from riverside workings. By 1869, when our estate plan was drawn, a larger oilworks had been constructed close to the Caledonian Railway at Oakbank and a new pit sunk a mile to the north, close to Midcalder bridge. The riverside mines seem still to have been in operation at that time; the plan suggesting that shale was taken across the river on a bridge, then loaded into wagons that were hauled up an incline on the east side of the river. This incline seems to have been linked to the standard gauge mineral railway leading to Oakbank oil works. The route of the incline is still clearly evident, and a few larger stones in the river bed suggest the location of the bridge. The riverside mine workings do not appear to have have extended a great distance and probably had a short operating life. They are marked as “old levels” and there is no trace of a bridge across the river on the 1890’s ordnance survey map. In about 1990, when I first visited the site, there were no barriers across the entrances, and it was easy to explore the criss-cross network of stoop and room workings, entering one entry and popping out of another. In some areas, the tops of timber pit props projected a foot or so above the floor of the tunnel. Initial puzzlement turned to caution when you realised that most of the original tunnel lay beneath you and that you were walking through the void created following collapse of the original mine roof. Walls were later built across the entrances, which have now been partly broken down by the curious. The mines lie within Almondell and Calderwood Country Park, and one would image that the safety-conscious authorities would not encourage visits to the site. Part of the route to the mines involves scrambles along 45 degree slopes of loose material that are particularly perilous when wet, and other parts are totally submerged and impassible when there are significant volumes of water flowing down the Linhouse Water. The music is a Scottish two step, played by harmonica genius P.C. Hopkinson, who died in 1931
Posted by West Lothian Heritage on Friday, 26 July 2019