Sedbusk Mine

Overview

A small stone quarry and associated coal working on Stags Fell above Sedbusk in upper Wensleydale, worked into the 1930s for Yoredale Limestone rather than for the lead the wider dale was better known for.

History

Sedbusk lies on the north side of upper Wensleydale, beneath Stags Fell, which was formerly a centre of quarrying for Yoredale Limestone. The fell also had a small colliery, though its coal is believed to have been worked only to fuel lime-burning rather than for wider sale. Quarrying here ceased in the 1930s. This is a more modest working than the lead mines elsewhere in Wensleydale, an area that had produced lead since at least monastic times and whose ore, in 1378, was used to rebuild the gatehouse of Carlisle Castle.

Workings

Worked for Yoredale Limestone, with a small associated colliery believed to have supplied coal for lime-burning rather than for sale.

Closure

Quarrying at Stags Fell ceased in the 1930s.

What remains

The tunnels cut into the hillside during quarrying survive but are considered dangerous to enter.

Abandoned workings can be dangerous — unstable ground, uncapped shafts, flooding and bad air are common even where a site looks safe from the surface. This entry describes history and general location only; it is not an access guide.

Recorded claims

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

• Stags Fell had a small colliery believed to have supplied coal only for lime-burning, alongside the Yoredale Limestone quarrying that was the fell's main activity. ¹
• Wensleydale had produced lead since at least monastic times; in 1378 lead from the dale was used to rebuild the gatehouse of Carlisle Castle. ²

Sources

1. (secondary) Sedbusk — Wikipedia
2. (secondary) Wensleydale — Wikipedia

Record created: 1 September 2026 · Last researched: 1 September 2026