# Rosary Road Chalk Mine. Norwich Jan 11



## Black Shuck (Jan 3, 2011)

The city of Norwich is underlain at shallow depth by abandoned mineworkings made for the extraction of chalk and flints. Early workings took the form of surface pits and quarries, with later working of underground mines. The latter, often several hundred years old, are liable to collapse, and may reach the ground surface. Most of the mines are now inaccessible, although the recent investigation of two such mines has included the use of direct mining techniques to gain access to the old workings. Stability at Harford mine has been found to be adequate, due to adequate rock cover, moderate age and a rural setting. Collapses at Earlham Road mine have been found to be well developed, due to inadequate rock cover, great age, poor rock quality and disturbance due to the urban location. The principal collapse mechanism is identified as localised void migration, following roof collapse, with a possible secondary contribution from pillar over-stressing. This was an explore in Norwich itself, following a tip off that an old factory had been demolished exposing the entrance to these Chalk mines for a short period of time. I must say I was very nervous about what we might find.


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## UrbanX (Jan 3, 2011)

Trust you to find a mine in Norfolk! 

Cracking find, this is what explorings all about! Well done.


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## Black Shuck (Jan 3, 2011)

Thanks mate, it was on a bit of a whim to be honest!! I couldn't quite believe our luck!!!


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## gingrove (Jan 3, 2011)

Are those bunk beds and a strecher in the last but one pic ? was it used as a shelter during the war?
Fantastic find!


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## Black Shuck (Jan 3, 2011)

Yes Gingrove, you are right. This was definetly used as a WW2 Air Raid shelter. A Chalk Mine before that though. A lot of the mines under Norwich date back to the 13th and 14th century.


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## nelly (Jan 3, 2011)

You are a braver man than me!!! Great photos!!!


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## Black Shuck (Jan 3, 2011)

nelly1967 said:


> You are a braver man than me!!! Great photos!!!



Thanks Nellie, it was quite nerve wracking as it was the first Mine I had been in.


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## Munchh (Jan 3, 2011)

Nice find and bloody hell Shucky I do believe you're branching out. I don't know what you told the others but they look decidedly more anxious about the explore than you do. 

Maybe this was as a result of your pre-explore briefing? I've heard you're a man of few words


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## Black Shuck (Jan 3, 2011)

Munchh said:


> Nice find and bloody hell Shucky I do believe you're branching out. I don't know what you told the others but they look decidedly more anxious about the explore than you do.
> 
> Maybe this was as a result of your pre-explore briefing? I've heard you're a man of few words



You're a cheeky bleeder Munchhie!!


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## Foxylady (Jan 3, 2011)

UrbanX said:


> Trust you to find a mine in Norfolk!




That's an excellent find. Good stuff, Shucky. 

Lol @ the LOLJesus, Munchh.


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## Black Shuck (Jan 3, 2011)

Foxylady said:


> That's an excellent find. Good stuff, Shucky.
> 
> Lol @ the LOLJesus, Munchh.



Ta Foxy, there's more of that to come yet!!!


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## Munchh (Jan 3, 2011)

Black Shuck said:


> You're a cheeky bleeder Munchhie!!



And you're a damn fine explorer Shucky. Truth.


Foxy, that's a great little website. Lets you add and edit your own captions etc. lol


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## Black Shuck (Jan 4, 2011)

Munchh said:


> And you're a damn fine explorer Shucky. Truth.
> 
> 
> Foxy, that's a great little website. Lets you add and edit your own captions etc. lol



Why thank you Munchh!!!


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## Derek (Jan 4, 2011)

Fascinating report Black Shuck, thanks



Black Shuck said:


> Collapses at Earlham Road mine have been found to be well developed, due to inadequate rock cover, great age, poor rock quality and disturbance due to the urban location.



For example, this one 






Derek


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## Mole Man (Jan 4, 2011)

Looks like a great explore, sounds like you were in the right place at the right time.

Thanks for posting.


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## HypoBoy (Jan 4, 2011)

Black Shuck said:


> I must say I was very nervous about what we might find



I take it this is the gasometer end of Rosary Road, rather than under the Rosary cemetery?


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## Black Shuck (Jan 4, 2011)

HypoBoy said:


> I take it this is the gasometer end of Rosary Road, rather than under the Rosary cemetery?


Indeed it is Hypo, you know the area well.


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## Speed (Jan 4, 2011)

keep up at the back! found this years ago when Thompsons was still blocking it from view


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## smiler (Jan 4, 2011)

Thanks BS

Loved it, good pics,,
*Smiler *


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## Black Shuck (Jan 4, 2011)

Speed said:


> keep up at the back! found this years ago when Thompsons was still blocking it from view


I know, that's where I got the inspiration from Speed!! It's bloody brilliant. Mate at the back of the shelter there is a small tunnel that goes down and to the left, is it passable?


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## Speed (Jan 5, 2011)

it just goes to a dead end, someones tryed diging through the backfill and given up..


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## Black Shuck (Jan 5, 2011)

Right thanks for that. Did you ever find Rosary B?


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## DJ-Jamster (Jan 5, 2011)

So it was you that caused the collapse of that house in Norwich! and that's why the street sunk.. Nah seriously did you go anywhere near there? They said it was probably an old chalk mine.


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## Black Shuck (Jan 6, 2011)

No not really, the City is riddled with mines.


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## Em_Ux (Jan 6, 2011)

Nice find!
Great shots too


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## Speed (Jan 6, 2011)

Never found a 'B'.. i never found any others attually! There are supposedly a few welded shut doors to some of them but i never managed to find one. The only solid lead i never checked out was the one on Ipswich Road but i had a shead load of cordinates for other ones of which i could find no sign of an entrance at any of the ones i checked...


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## Black Shuck (Jan 6, 2011)

Speed said:


> Never found a 'B'.. i never found any others attually! There are supposedly a few welded shut doors to some of them but i never managed to find one. The only solid lead i never checked out was the one on Ipswich Road but i had a shead load of cordinates for other ones of which i could find no sign of an entrance at any of the ones i checked...



Bugger it!! Never mind. It was a cool explore anyway.


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## dis36 (Jan 13, 2011)

rosary road B! was a tunnel from somewhere around the factory gates to the river. but there should be two others around this area but god knows where?
ipswich road is well welded up
newmarked road is very very long found one gate but it does not open yet.
there are up to another 28 in the city and 3 others ( not including Grimes Graves) elsewhere in norfolk but now gone i think 1


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## Black Shuck (Jan 14, 2011)

Blimey Dis, you know your stuff there. we did have a scramble up the hill at the back to try and find something but the Undergrowth was like the Amazon.


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## dis36 (Jan 14, 2011)

Im sure there was once one the other side of gas hill , spent a long time seaching ketts heights top to bottom , found nothing but brambles! also a little further along on or under ketts hill there was one or more as sometime ago the back of a house went into one , it was reported in EDP etc at time but cant seem to find the paper cutting. if you seach the EDP (maybe at library as i dont seem to get no joy on web) over the years their has been various reports on the mines , loads around the time the bus went in the earlham one i think may 1984 ( Guess?)


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## Black Shuck (Jan 14, 2011)

dis36 said:


> Im sure there was once one the other side of gas hill , spent a long time seaching ketts heights top to bottom , found nothing but brambles! also a little further along on or under ketts hill there was one or more as sometime ago the back of a house went into one , it was reported in EDP etc at time but cant seem to find the paper cutting. if you seach the EDP (maybe at library as i dont seem to get no joy on web) over the years their has been various reports on the mines , loads around the time the bus went in the earlham one i think may 1984 ( Guess?)



I remember that one well!!, Earlham Road definetly. The backside of the Bus under the road and the top half sticking out skywards.


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## dis36 (Jan 15, 2011)

after lots of searching found one of my basic starting points you need Eastern Daily Press Feb10th 1988 on here is a rough map of 24 known tunnel areas...


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## Black Shuck (Jan 15, 2011)

Thanks mate.


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## topcat (Jan 19, 2011)

*tunnels*

About 20 years ago we were building the office block just before Bertram books.While we were digging the footings we found an old tunnel,very close to the road quite far down.Dont know if that is the one you were in!


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## Black Shuck (Jan 19, 2011)

Not sure, I will have to look Topcat, but thanks for that.


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## topcat (Jan 19, 2011)

It was defo a chalk tunnel because we had to contact council and they got some people to map it and go down there before we filled it in


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## Black Shuck (Jan 19, 2011)

Mate I'm not sure where this place you were on about is? Whereabouts is Betram Books.?


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## topcat (Jan 19, 2011)

Sorry not being much help here.Dont know where your tunnel was but im pretty sure there is one from (if you look at a map,comming off riverside rd a little way up on left hand side there is a u shaped office block and house behind it with ducts on roof.Not far from the gas cilo).Well behind that there is a tunnel which goes from the hill to under rosary rd twrds riverside rd.I bet there is a house on riverside rd with a cellar which it connects to!I dont know exactly where the entrance is but its gotta be close cause some of my workmates went down it while i just ate my sarnies.


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## Black Shuck (Jan 19, 2011)

Yes that's the one, you said the Magic word Gas Silo, Topcat De ner ner ner ner!! Leader of the gang!!!!! Well done!!!


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## topcat (Jan 20, 2011)

Sounds like the same one mate.I know it crosses the road where the entrance is for the building i described in the earlier post as we found it when digging the footings.


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## Black Shuck (Jan 20, 2011)

Nice one, I will be partaking again in the no too distant Future.


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