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The Purbeck Mineral & Mining Museum
Welcome

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 The working models of Norden and Eldon's have been invited to various exhibitions during 2009.    Click here for details of exhibitions

Purbeck is rich in Minerals and they have been supplied across the world. They have changed the way we live. The Museum is being built to tell that story. The first aim of the museum is create a working Ball Clay Mining Museum complex. This will include displays showing how Ball Clay has made its mark on the Industrial revolution, paid for the education of the first person to send a radio message and who went on to invent the spark plug for internal combustion engine. It will show how Ball Clay changed the eating hygiene of the nation, provided the wealth that allowed Darwin to formulate his theory on "the origin of the species". It will show a link between Guy's Hospital, St Paul's Cathedral and the Ball Clay extraction at Norden. From Corfe to Wareham, the extraction Ball Clay has been been the main employer since the mid 18th Century. The Museum will record the living conditions of the workers, and show the families of the Clay Merchants. The Museum will record that 3 narrow gauge clay lines were in Purbeck before the Swanage Railway branch was built and will relay track along the old formations at Norden as well as rebuilding some of the buildings of the Norden Complex. The visitor will be able to read about, see and hear the Mining activities now relegated to the history books.


The Norden Complex in the 1960's © Mike Day

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If you have any photos or artifacts connected to the Ball Clay Industry we would love to know.

Changes to Website

Revision

Date

 Details

Revision AA 18th May 2009 Track Laying progress Photos added
Revision BB 24th May 2009 Track Laying progress Photos added
Revision CC 25th May 2009 Model Page changed
Revision DD 29th May 2009 New Link to Anna added
Revision EE 31st May 2009 Track Laying progress Photos added and Memory updated 
Revision FF 9th June 2009 Progress Unpdated 
Revision GG 15th June 2009 Aldermoor added to "Creech Mines" 
Revision HH 21st June 2009 Model Page dates changed  
Revision II 25th June 2009 Information on Septimus updated 
Revision JJ 28th June 2009 Mine construction photos updated 

               
 is part of the

Purbeck Mineral and Mining Museum

           

Swanage Railway Trust – Swanage Railway,    
Station House, Swanage, Dorset. BH19 1HB    
A Company Limited by Guarantee No.4115126
           Registe
red Charity 1087318 

 

 

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