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Margarets Mine (Engine Shaft)

Mennock Hass, Wanlockhead, Dumfriesshire.

Mine (Lead & Zinc).

A (probably) capped shaft at the NW margin of the Lead Mining Museum's overflow car park. Off of this primary shaft were a series of drift levels, one of which (Beatties Drift) was a continuation of the Adit Level (aka Low Level) that extended NW to the Cocks & Waygate shafts, & onwards to the Straitsteps Mine area. The largely-linear Margarets Mine level workings essentially extend under the hillslope on the W side of the car park, under the S end of the car park, & below the B797 road at the mouth of the Mennock Hass (pass). The Mennockhass Water Tunnel [site #9535] passes between these levels. See AP & mine plans (in refs) for layout.

"at Margaret's Shaft the ore held down solid for a distance of 500 ft. from the surface, and about 50 fms. below adit. The dumps show the vein to have carried blende as well as galena. This part of the mine was abandoned many years ago, but work was carried on at the Bay Shaft till about 1900." [Wilson, 1921]

"Margaret's Vein, so called in honour of the late Countess of Dumfries, was particularly rich in mineral substances; and contained, besides the common galena, or sulphuret of lead, sulphate of lead, carbonate of lead, sulphuret of zinc, carbonate of zinc, sulphate of barytes, carbonate of lime, ochry, red ironstone, and red hematite. None of these, however, with the exception of galena, were of any consequence ; but in so far as the latter was concerned, it was one of the most productive mines that had till then been wrought, and yielded a very large quantity of lead ore, eight men having been known to raise 70 or 80 tons in the course of three months, and this was found principally to the south of the Engine Pit, and was entirely taken out. The forehead, formerly mentioned as having been carried on by Mr VVeightman, was also driven to some extent by the present Company. It stands under the road near to the top of Menock-hass, and, according to the testimony of one of the most respectable of the miners who was employed in it at the time when it was given up, it had not only become a little wetter than it had been for some time previous, but likewise a little softer and more easily cut; so much so, indeed, that the miners were under the necessity of using timber to support the roof. This account is rather encouraging to future speculators; and, when taken in conjunction with the appearance of the ground further south, leads us to infer that Margaret's Vein is likely to prove as productive in the Menock side of the hill as it has been in other parts of its course. The quantity of ore raised during the prosecution of Margaret's Vein, and the north end of Beltongrain Vein, amounted, for several years, to from 20 to 24,000 bars." [History of Sanquhar]

Alternative Names: Margaret's Mine, Margaret's Shaft, Engine Shaft

Notes: Shown as 'Old Shaft' on 1st & 2nd Ed. OS maps.

The Margaret's Vein is the SE continuation of the Straitstep Vein.