Introduction
Column showing the succession of Lower Jurassic strata to be found on the coast and underlying country south of the River Tees.
Following the double inundation of the Late Triassic Rhaetic episode, the resulting noxious waters gradually ameliorated as the sea deepened and the area became a shallow arm [...]
The 4th February proved exceedingly windy, regardless of this 28 ramblers turned out for this informative walk around the town.
Cenotaph outside St. Nicholas’ Church.
The group assemble prior to setting off.
Inscription outside Prior Pursglove College.
Beth talks about the ancient college and some of the graves (including author and historian J.W. Ord’s) in the adjacent cemetery.
A brief [...]
Overview
The Cleveland Ironstone Formation comprises a sequence of marine ironstone seams interbedded with shale and siltstone units which collectively form a part of the Lower Jurassic System of rocks underlying Cleveland and North Yorkshire. Exploitation of the ironstone seams became a major driving force behind the industrialisation of the Teesside district during the mid- to [...]
At 10:30 on 18th November 2010, thirty-one ramblers gathered at the Fox & Hounds public house, Slapewath for a walk in Guisborough Forest to explore its former industrial heritage and geology. The weather was Autumnal with moderate visibility and a southerly breeze.
The group assemble outside the Fox and Hounds public house at Slapewath.
On the way [...]
Eighteen people met at the car park in Skinningrove on a bright and breezy August morning to take a walk along the foreshore to the remains of Hummersea alum house and back over the cliff top on the Cleveland Way.
Discussing and searching for the abundant fossils able to be found on the scar.
The group consider [...]
Twenty-four members of the public met near Boulby Potash Mine on a bright and breezy Spring day to explore the alum quarries and former works at Boulby.
The group stops at Boulby Grange, site of the former alum house.
The group stops to inspect the route of the alum liquor trough near Rockhole Hill.
On the edge of [...]
In fine weather, twenty members of the public turned out on this walk around the Littlebeck area…
Meeting at the car park near Midge Hall.
The walk commences in beautiful ancient deciduous woodland.
The woods have a geat number of interesting fungi at this time of year.
Beth relates the history of ‘The Hermitage’.
The Hermitage – carved out of [...]
Introduction.
Over the past year the RIGS Group have been working in collaboration with Tees Valley Wildlife Trust (TVWT) to run a two year project entitled Alum, Alchemy & Ammonites funded by an Heritage Lottery Fund grant and led by Beth Andrews. Its aim is to popularise, and educate interested [...]
GEOLOGICAL TIMESCALE
Shown below is a representation of the rocks underlying the Tees Valley and Darlington districts in Northeast England. The diagram depicts the relative thickness of the different systems. Absolute ages are given alongside. Click on the different areas to view more details about a particular time period.
Geological column showing the relative thickness and absolute [...]
The history of local ironstone mining and the development of the Tees Valley are intimately linked.
The History of Ironworking in The Tees Valley
The earliest smelting of ironstone in the area is traceable to c.400BC, and the Iron Age, [...]