Description and History of Site:-
Boosbeck Ironstone Mine, Worked 1872-1882 by Stevenson, Jacques & Co. and then by Clay Lane Iron Co. until 1887 when it was closed as a result of inrush of water, preceded by extensive subsidence of the nearby housing in 1882-3. The workings were later taken over by the South Skelton Mine under Bolckow Vaughan & Co. The two 288ft (88m) deep shafts are no longer traceable having been filled in. It is now a play area.

Boosbeck Ironstone mine subsidence 1881-3 (Summary by Bob Barker)

There are various articles on the subsidence of this mine in the British Newspaper Archive https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/
Search terms - Boosebeck Mine Subsidence

They were found by the Cleveland Mining Heritage Society and shown to Jane Ellis of YAHS, IHS section.

These can be summarised as: In 1881 subsidence made some houses in London Terrace uninhabitable. Further subsidence occurred in early 1882 but it was not regarded as significant enough for action to be taken. However at the end of July 1883 subsidence suddenly occurred again and 18 houses in Albion and Gerrie streets were left unfit for habitation. The tenants had managed to get their furniture out. On 20th August 1883 further subsidence occurred in the same street and also in Fenton and Carney Streets. All these streets were near the railway station and on elevated ground. Again furniture had been removed during the event. In total these events damaged nearly 60 houses and it was spreading through the village, including damaging the Post Office on the High Street. By the time of the court case in February 1884 200 houses had been damaged. A test case was brought concerning some of these houses and after a 2-day trial Mr Jackson (mine owner) and Stevenson, Jacques and Co (who leased the mine from Mr Jackson) were found guilty of causing the subsidence by 'improper working of a mine', including removal of pillars and completely working out sections of the mine, which led to the ground above becoming unstable. As a result of all the cases by end of March 1884 Mr Jackson had given up property across Yorkshire, neighbouring counties, and other places in the UK to Stevenson, Jacques and Co so they could pay compensation to the house owners, either buying them out or repairing the house and compensating the owner for loss of rent for 5 year.

Original references:
Boosbeck mine subsidence report, Daily Gazette for Middlesbrough 1.8.1883
Boosbeck mine subsidence report from the Northern Echo 21.8.1883.
Boosbeck mine subsidence report (continued) from Northern Echo 21.8.1883
Boosbeck mine subsidence report from Daily Gazette for Middlesbrough 21.8.83
Boosbeck mine subsidence report from The Yorkshire Gazette 23.2.1884
Boosbeck mine subsidence report from Daily Gazette for Middlesbrough 19.3.1884
Boosbeck mine subsidence report from Daily Gazette for Middlesbrough 25.3.1884

Further Reading and References:-
Tuffs, P. 1996. Catalogue of Cleveland Ironstone Mines. P. Tuffs.

Help us improve this entry

The compilers welcome corrections or additional information on all sites.
Any information provided will be verified before appearing on the web site.

Email comments

Key Words :- ironstone mine

Address :- Boosbeck, Skelton, North Yorkshire, TS12 3AE
Grid Ref :- NZ 65750 16910
Co-ordinates :- Lat 54.543190 , Long -0.985191
Local Authority :- Redcar and Cleveland District Council
Pre 1974 County :- Yorkshire - North Riding
Site Status :- Site demolished or no longer extant
Site Condition :- Site cleared - no above ground remains visible
Record Date :- 24 June 2015

Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © Charles Morris