Subterranea Britannica: Sites: Cambokeels Mine

In about May 1971 the mine was in the hands of Star Aluminium and was sold again in August 1982 to Weardale Minerals Ltd. Weardale Minerals had built a fluorspar washing, crushing and drying plant at Blackdene Mine near Ireshopeburn and had several mines in the 70's or 80's including Grove Rake, Wolfs Cleugh, Redburn and Frazers Hush in the Rookhope Valley, East & West Blackdene, Cambokeels, a bagging plant in Broadwood Quarry and Stanhopeburn all in Weardale and White Heaps at Hunstanworth.

Weardale Minerals in turn were taken over by The Minworth Group who were based on Tyneside and who were also responsible for mining barytes in the Strontium area of West Scotland which was supplied as a grinding paste to the oil drilling industry in the North Sea. Further levels were established at 280 and 320 meters and production had reached the 340 level by the time the mine closed in 1989.

One Friday in 1991 The Minworth Group went bankrupt and all their sites were abandoned. Two or three years later Sherburn Stone which is a quarrying company based at Sherburn Hill near Durham took over the mining rights but only operated the Grove Rake/Frazers Hush complex for a short period. Sherburn Stone cannibalised Cambokeels to keep Grove Rake running.

All mining has now stopped and sites are gradually either being cleared or allowed to fall into decay.

Currently, the incline is flooded up to the surface and the Beaumont Horse Level has collapsed just inside the entrance. Actually as with most mines in Weardale/Teesdale, the roofs are purposely brought down to stop people getting lost in the labyrinth of interconnecting tunnels. The Horse Level was grilled about 1997.