Roman Camp No. 1 Mine

Location	The Caw Burn, near Roman Camp, Broxburn, West Lothian — 55.9142, -3.4861 (approximate)
Commodity	Oil Shale
Type	Mineral
Worked	to 1918
Operators	Broxburn Oil Company Ltd (?–1918, owner) — Owner (Scottish Shale; DMM r225)

Overview

A steeply inclined Broxburn Oil Company shale mine on the Caw Burn near Broxburn, whose adit crossed the burn on a trestle bridge to screens over the railway; it worked the Pumpherston Shales for Roman Camp Oil Works until 1918.

History

Roman Camp No. 1 Mine was one of a string of steeply inclined mines following the outcrop of the Pumpherston Shales along the western arm of the Pumpherston anticline, worked by the Broxburn Oil Company for its Roman Camp Oil Works. The Ordnance Survey of about 1917 marks it simply as 'Mine'. It appears to have had an adit coming out of the western bank of the Caw Burn and crossing the steep little valley on a trestle bridge to an elevated staging and screens, from which shale could be tipped into standard-gauge railway wagons; a range of buildings marked 'No. 3' nearby seems to have belonged to a shaft serving a parallel underground incline.

No. 1 employed 52 in 1915. Its workings in the Jubilee, Maybrick, Curly, Plain and Wee shales were abandoned in 1918. The area has been heavily regraded since, and little marks the workings beyond retaining walls and brick abutments beside the Caw Burn.

Geology

The Pumpherston Shales (Jubilee, Maybrick, Curly, Plain and Wee) on the western arm of the Pumpherston anticline.

Workings

A steeply inclined adit from the western bank of the Caw Burn, crossing the valley on a trestle bridge to a staging and screens over the standard-gauge railway; probably a shaft serving a parallel underground incline nearby.

Closure

Workings abandoned in 1918.

What remains

Waste land, heavily regraded.

Retaining walls and brick abutments beside the Caw Burn.

Related mines

Roman Camp No. 3 Mine — Both were Broxburn Oil Company mines on the same outcrop of the Pumpherston Shales, working the same Jubilee, Maybrick, Curly, Plain and Wee seams.

Nearby mines

Holmes Mine — 0.2 miles (0.4 km) NW
Roman Camp No. 3 Mine — 0.2 miles (0.4 km) N
Roman Camp No. 5 Mine — 0.3 miles (0.4 km) W
Pumpherston No. 1 Mine — 0.3 miles (0.5 km) S
Pumpherston No. 4 Mine — 0.3 miles (0.5 km) W

Straight-line distance, within 9 miles (15 km). Show on the map.

What's uncertain

Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.

The adit appears to have crossed the Caw Burn on a trestle bridge to a staging and screens over the standard-gauge railway. (uncertain) ¹

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

The adit appears to have crossed the Caw Burn on a trestle bridge to a staging and screens over the standard-gauge railway. (uncertain) ¹
No. 1 employed 52 in 1915. ²
It worked the Jubilee, Maybrick, Curly, Plain and Wee shales. ^1,3
The workings were abandoned in 1918. ^1,3

Photographs & further reading

Roman Camp No.1 mine (Scottish Shale) (reference)

The Museum of the Scottish Shale Oil Industry's page for this mine, with maps, plans, site photographs and newspaper extracts.

View source

Sources

(secondary) Roman Camp No.1 mine (Scottish Shale, Museum of the Scottish Shale Oil Industry) — Almond Valley Heritage Trust
(primary) Roman Camp (Oil Shale) (Durham Mining Museum) — Durham Mining Museum
(primary) BGS mine plan: ROMAN CAMP NO.1, Jubilee seam, abandoned 1918 — British Geological Survey / Mining Remediation Authority

Record created: 25 October 2026 · Last researched: 25 October 2026