Groverake Mine

Machinery In Bishop Auckland, County Durham

The ruins of an old lead and fluorspar mine in the Pennines with the headframe and some buildings still visible.

Mining in the North East was a booming industry in the 19th and 20th centuries and the remains you see here are from Groverake Mine.

The Beaumont Company mined for lead ore here until the 1880s and drilled two major shafts down to the Great Limestone in addition also created adits (horizontal mine entrance you walk into). The headframe you can see is from one of these shafts with the other being removed by scrap thieves.

The mine had a few owners including the Weardale Lead Company (mid-1880s), Blanchland Fluor Mines (1940s), the British Steel Corporation (who extended the shafts) and then the Weardale Minerals and Processing Company (1991). The mine stayed in operation until 1999.

During these times, in addition to lead, they also mined for fluorspar (Fluorite) with a number of veins in the area producing different colours.

Although you can see a headframe and a number of buildings, there were many more here to see during its operation. The mine was saved from demolition in 2017.

The mine remains are on private land and the land has caved in around some areas. Best to just admire from the road.

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How To Find Groverake Mine

Where Is Groverake Mine?

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Lat / Long

54.792084, -2.163928

What three words

fronted.bright.valued

Where To Park For Groverake Mine?

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Lat / Long

54.79257, 54.79257

What three words

reference.shoebox.outwards

There is a layby on the road overlooking the mine.

Contributed by Simon Hawkins

Thanks for checking out this place on the Fabulous North! I do enjoy a wander out in to the countryside trying to find hidden gems that not many people know about. You can't beat a rogue Pele tower up a remote hill or a mysterious stone circle or a stunning waterfall secluded in a forest.

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