NAMHO conferences
Future conferences
NAMHO sponsors annual conferences at which mining topics are presented by NAMHO member organisations and other. The topics can range from history to geology and include technical as well as social subjects. The conference usually takes place in late June or July and is organised by one or more clubs or organisations in a different part of the UK or Ireland each year..
When a conference is being planned, a separate site part of this site is set up that provides access to booking, programmes, information about visits and lectures. To see this, use the links below. Depending upon the organisation sponsoring the conference, the booking and information pages may be accessible direct from the menu above under meetings/conferences.
We are currently looking for a volunteer organisation for the 2025 conference. Financial and practical help is available from NAMHO. If your organisation is interested, please contact the Chairman.
Follow the quick links to recent or future conferences (there was no conference in 2020):
Conference 2023 - Cumbria and the Lake District
Conference 2022 - Cleveland and North Yorkshire
The images below are from conferences in 1979, 2008, 2011, 2015 and 2017
Conference proceedings
Organising clubs and associations usually produce some form of record of the Conference as separate proceedings or in one of their own publications. Reports for recent Conferences are listed below. To obtain a copy, please contact the organising body or the publisher named below.
List of conferences
The Type of conference is either C (talks etc), F (field trips) or both.
| No | Dates | Type | Location | Lead organisation | Topic | Report |
| 46 | 28 June - 5 July 2024 | C/F | Pool, Cornwall | NAMHO | "Tin, copper, gold and ...." | |
| 45 | 7-10 July 2023 | C/F | Grasmere | Cumbria Amenity Trust Mining History Society | 5000 Years of Mining and Quarrying in The Lake District | |
| 44 | 17-20 June 2022 | C/F | Grosmont | Cleveland Mining Heritage Society | Industrial Minerals | |
| 43 | 2-5 July 2021 | C/F | Shropshire | Shropshire Caving and Mining Club | 60 Years of Mining Projects | |
| 42 | 3-6 April 2020 | C/F | Camborne, Cornwall | NAMHO | Copper, Tin and Gold | The conference was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Papers may still be available later. |
| 41 | 4-7 July 2019 | C/F | Cwmystwyth area | Cambrian Mines Trust | Mine exploration as a research tool - applications in mining history, geology and archaeology | |
| 40 | 2-3 June 2018 | C/F | Forest of Dean - Parkend | Clearwell Caves, GSS, Hades CC, RFDCC, SGMRG | Mines, Mining & Miners of the Forest of Dean: 'A law unto themselves' | |
| 39 | 2017 | C/F | SE England | Wealden Cave and Mine Society | Mining History Organisations - 'achievements and challenges' | |
| 38 | 17-19 June 2016 | C/F | Dublin, Ireland | Mining Heritage Trust of Ireland | Mining and Social Change | Six papers and the lyrics to two songs by Andy Irvine were published in the Journal of the Mining Heritage Trust of Ireland No.16. Two further papers were published in Journal No.17. The papers are available at: https://www.mhti.org/. A report by Steve Holding on the field trips was published in the winter issue No. 2016.4 of Below (quarterly journal of the Shropshire Caving & Mining Club). |
| 37 | 23-25 May 2015 | C/F | Nenthead, Cumbria | Nenthead Mines Conservation Society | Wartime and Mining | |
| 36 | 27-28 July 2014 | C/F | Bangor, N Wales | AditNow | Mining Technology: technical innovation in the extractive industries | Published by WMS as D.J.Linton (ed) Mining Technology: technical innovation in the extractive industries, Welsh mines & mining no.4, 2015 |
| 35 | 29-30 June 2013 | C/F | Aberystwyth | University of Wales | Mining legacies: the environmental, physical and cultural impact of mining | Published by PDMHS as Mining History Vol. 19 No. 3, 2015 |
| 34 | 30 June - 1 July 2012 | C/F | Styal and Alderley Edge, Cheshire | Derbyshire Caving Club | Copper, lead, cobalt, salt, coal, fireclay, limestone - Cheshire's mining history | Published by DCC as N.Dibben (intro) Derbyshire Caving Club special report 2012, 2012 |
| 33 | 30-31 July 2011 | C/F | Shropshire | Shropshire Caving and Mining Club | 50 years of mine exploration | Published by SCMC as K.Lake & D.Poyner (eds) 50 years of mine exploration, 2014 |
| 32 | 5-6 June 2010 | C/F | South Gloucestershire | SGMRG | Fuelling the industrial revolution | Details of talks and visits published in the conference handout |
| 31 | 20-21 June 2009 | C/F | Matlock, Derbyshire | Peak District Mines Historical Society | Archaeological landscapes | Published by PDMHS as R.Shaw (ed) Papers from the NAMHO conference 2009, Mining history, vol.17, no.4, 2009 |
| 30 | 12-13 July 2008 | C/F | Edinburgh | GSG | Mines, people and industries of Scotland | No published proceedings |
| 29 | 2007 | C/F | Morwellham Quay, Devon | Morwellham and Tamar MG | Pennies to pesticides (silver to arsenic) | No published proceedings |
| 28 | 10-11 June 2006 | C/F | Llangollen | Shropshire Caving and Mining Club | Mining in the landscape | Published by SCMC as D.Poyner (ed) Mining in the landscape, 2007 |
| 27 | 2005 | C/F | Surrey | Wealden Cave and Mine Society | ? | No published proceedings |
| 26 | 2004 | C/F | Coniston | Cumbria Amenity Trust Mining History Society | The extractive industries of Cumbria | No published proceedings |
| 25 | 2003 | C/F | Ireland | MHTI | ? | Selection of papers published by MHTI as D.Cowman (ed) Journal of the Mining Heritage Trust of Ireland, no.3, 2003 |
| 24 | 2002 | C/F | Aberystwyth | Welsh Mines Society | Water power in mining | Published by PDMHS as P.Claughton (ed) Water power in mining, Mining history, vol.15, nos.4/5, 2004 |
| 23 | 2001 | C | Bradford [Irish field meet cancelled due to foot and mouth outbreak] | Northern Mine Research Society | Mining history and beyond | Apparently no published proceedings prior to Aberystwyth, 2002 |
| 22 | 2000 | C/F | Truro ? International | Carn Brea | Acquire, record and display | ? |
| 21 | 1999 | C | Forest of Dean | Clearwell | Free mining and the mines of the Forest of Dean and other traditional British mining rights areas | ? |
| 20 | 1998 | F | Nenthead | Killhope | ||
| 19 | 1997 | C | Matlock Bath | Peak District Mines Historical Society | Mud and water | ? |
| 18 | 1996 | F | Devon | PCC | ||
| 17 | 1995 | C | Lilleshall | Shropshire Caving and Mining Club | ? | ? |
| 16 | 1994 | F | Forest of Dean | Clearwell | ||
| 15 | 1993 | C | Isle of Man | LMRG | ? | ? |
| 14 | 1992 | F | Madeley | Shropshire Caving and Mining Club | ||
| 13 | 1991 | C | Blaenau Ffestiniog | WMS | ? | ? |
| 12 | 1990 | F | Alderley Edge, Cheshire | Derbyshire Caving Club | ||
| 11 | 1989 | C | Ambleside | Cumbria Amenity Trust Mining History Society | ? | ? |
| 10 | 1988 | F | Kent | Sub Brit | ||
| 9 | 1987 | C | Cornwall | Carn Brea | ? | ? |
| 8 | 1986 | F | Yorkshire Dales | EMRG | ||
| 7 | 1985 | C | Matlock | Peak District Mines Historical Society | ? | ? |
| 6 | 1984 | F | Beddgelert | Welsh Mines Society | ||
| 5 | 1983 | C | Leeds | Northern Mine Research Society | ? | ? |
| 4 | 1982 | F | Coniston | Cumbria Amenity Trust Mining History Society | ||
| 3 | 1981 | C | Ironbridge | Shropshire Caving and Mining Club | ? | ? |
| 2 | 1980 | F | Wanlockhead | WMT | ||
| 1 | 1979 | C | Beamish | Beamish Open Air Museum | Inaugural conference | ? |