In 1968 the Tramway Society approached the Peak District Mines Historical Society to ask if
it would be interested in constructing a display of some kind to reflect the Derbyshire lead
mining industry.
With mining relics - especially some of the larger ones - fast disappearing, this offer
constituted the start of a still-ongoing project to provide an area in which old mining artefacts,
minerals and machinery could be displayed for both the general public and mining historians to
visit, enjoy and learn from.
Today the project has grown to provide a site of great historical and archaeological interest
and educational value and is managed and co-ordinated by two of its inaugurators, Mick and Lilian
Bridges. Along with a team of enthusiastic volunteers, they ensure that the mining display is
kept in good order, manage an on-site shop at what is now the National Tramway Museum selling
mineral samples, books and gemstones (the proceeds of which directly benefit the Society) and answer questions from
visitors.
