Metals and mines: Hopton
It is impossible to traverse the limestone plateau of Derbyshire without seeing signs of lead mining. Some of these mines date back to Roman times, although most are of seventeenth and eighteenth century age. The Matlock-Wirksworth area was particularly important for the mining of lead and zine, and the surviving traces form part of our scenic heritage. The main minerals worked were the lead and zinc sulphide ores known as 'galena' and 'sphalerite'. These lie in a matrix of fluorspar (calcium fluoride), baryte (barium sulphate) and calcite (calcium carbonate).
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The metallic ores of lead and zinc form generally less than 10 per cent of the mineral content of the veins. The ores occure in vertical veins in the limestone, known locally as 'rakes', or as irregular replacement bodies, known as 'pipes' or 'flats'. The rake veins trend roughly east-west and are often delineated by lines of hollows, or by irregular mounds, marking the sites of small spoil heaps which may support lead-tolerant species of plants. The replacement deposits are again marked by mounds and hollows, although these tend to occur in irregular clusters. There are thousands of abandoned mine shafts in the Peak District, most are filled-in but some are still open and my be hidden in the long grass! |
Whilst lead and zinc are no longer mined in Derbyshire, fluorspar, barytes and calcite are worked in adjacent areas of the Peak District, particularly around Castleton and Stoney Middleton. |
