Ram Hill Colliery

Ram Hill Colliery, (gbmapping|ST679803) Coalpit Heath, Bristol was sunk sometime between 1820 and 1830. It was owned by the Coalpit Heath Company, which included Sir John Smyth as a shareholder. Sir John was one of the main proponents of the Bristol & Gloucestershire Railway, (known locally as the Dramway), and that railway linked the pit (and others owned by the Coalpit Heath Co.) to Cuckolds Pill in Bristol. The railway was built in 1828 and was probably the last railway in England designed to use horses as a means of locomotion (the Rainhill Trials the following year heralded the use of steam). Ram Hill was 558ft deep and was originally worked by a horse gin, the remains of which are still visible. In later years it was worked by a beam engine. The pit was linked underground to Churchlease, New Engine and Rose Oak Pits forming the hub of 19th century coal mining in Westerleigh parish.

Abandonment plans show that the colliery, along with other Coalpit Heath pits at Churchlease and New Engine, closed in the 1860s as the nearby Frog Lane colliery increased production.

In later years the area was purchased by the GWR for the construction of their direct route to South Wales via Badminton and, although their line passed through the area in a deep cutting, the works stopped short just to the north of the pit.

The site was rediscovered by local archaeologist and author John Cornwell in 1981 and has since been excavated, first by workers on a job creation scheme, and latterly by the ‘Friends of Ram Hill Colliery’ who cleared the area of flora and removed two spoil heaps which were formed during earlier excavations. This exposed more of the dramway and the remains of a boiler house for a steam engine. Other remains at the site include the foundations of a horse gin and the uncapped shaft of the pit.

A geophysical survey, using restivity, at Ram Hill Colliery has revealed clear traces of a reservoir in the northern corner of the site. [cite web |url=http://www.southglos.gov.uk/NR/exeres/5f882328-ff29-4497-a904-5671f845f667 |title=Ram Hill archeology project |accessdate=2007-09-28 |format= |work=South Gloucestreshire Council ]

In 2006 the Ram Hill Colliery site was designated by English Heritage as a Scheduled Ancient Monument, recognising the national importance of the site and protects it in the future. [cite web |url=http://www.southglos.gov.uk/NR/exeres/f4f4c68c-87cf-417b-a2ca-912d04d76e31 |title=Ram Hill Colliery - newletter |accessdate=2007-09-28 |format= |work=South Gloucestershire Council ] It is hoped to maintain a balance between archaeology and ecology by maintaining it as a grassed area. and a bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund has been prepared.

References

"Walking the Dramway" by Peter Lawson. "The Bristol Coalfield" by John Cornwell.