Coal mining has taken place since antiquity throughout the UK, but very little evidence of this being done locally until later medieval times. The extraction of coal was at first restricted to those which lay close to the surface. By the early 18th century there were no deep coal mines, the day of businesses exploiting this for commercial gain had not yet begun, coal mines locations were typically leased from the lord of the manor or landowners by yeomen and well-to-do farmers who required coal for lime burning. These sank shallow pits which supplied the domestic and industrial needs of their neighbours and themselves. This type of mine was known as a bell-pit, the depression of a few of these are still visible in the hollow north of Grasshill, with another site possibly identified for this activity, from these tentative beginnings developed deeper coal mines of later days.
