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Birkhill No.1 Mine

NW of Linlithgow, River Avon, Birkhill, West Lothian.

Fire Clay Mine.

Relatively small-scale workings on NE side of burn, extending E under line of railway (see abandonment plan in refs for detailed layout).

"Situated in the Avon Gorge beside Birkhill Station within the steep sided gorge of the river Avon, 1.5 miles southeast of the Grangemouth Refinery and 2.5 miles southwest of Bo'ness, Fireclay deposits had been exploited since the 18th century. The oldest shaft was situated on the east of the river, just north of Tod's Hill in the 19th century and mining here continued until the beginning of the 20th century". [srpsbirkhillgroup]

The second series of workings are further north, and were started by P&M Hurll in 1913

The third and largest shaft was opened in 1951 at a cost of £25000. It was situated to the west of the river Avon and was approximately 2250ft across & 200ft deep.

A system of interconnecting galleries, roughly to square plan, i.e. (grid). Galleries approximately average 5 m wide, 7 metres high. Rough going underfoot and a great many potentially lethal rotting timbers overhead. But in compensation a surprising amount of very interesting ground stal as well as stalactites up to 36 inches in isolated instances. [Jim Salvona, 1986]

"Birkhill No. 1 Mine. Note: Do not venture into this adit for the walls are in poor condition and the sandstone roof is fissured. Re-cross the River Avon, noting the sealed main entrance to No. 1 Mine on the north bank and walk up the tramway to the second entrance. On no account venture into this adit for the walls are in poor condition and the sandstone roof is fissured and some falls have taken place. The mine was worked between 1916 and 1928." [McArthur, 1996]

Alternate Names: Kinneil No.1 Firclay Mine

Notes: Fire-Clay was minded by the "Stoup and Room" method. The "stoup" was a wide pillar of fire-clay left in place to support the roof while the "Room" was the chamber left between the pillars, in the intersecting galleries or "roads", after mineral extraction. Little timber or pit props were needed to further support the gallery roofs.

Although the geological maps of the area record the geology as Passage Formation - Sedimentary Rock Cycles, Clackmannan Group Type this overlies Roman Cement Limestone - Limestone.