The Crags are a chain of north facing-slopes forming one side of a 'funnel' leading into the Don Gorge. They have been known as the Crags for at least 100 years, although the name on the 1841 Ordnance Survey map is Northcliffe Hills.
The limestone soil of this steep-sloping rocky ground is in a sea of grasses, dotted with sparse, bent backed shrubs and pockets of gem-like wild flowers. Look carefully in summer you might discover bright Tormentil, delicate Cowslip, coiling White Bryony or even the exotic Bee Orchid. Myriad insect species flourish on this rich grassland while Skylarks, Linnets and Sparrowhawks share the skies with many other birds. Small creatures scurry along secret paths and underground tunnels - Field mice, Common Shrews, Moles and Hedgehogs among them.
In ancient times the Crags overlooked marshy expanses beside the river Don. These rocky outcrops were vital to local transport, communication and defense. They provided firm ground for travel and vantage points for surveying the landscape.
More recently, the hills have been a link between the two neighbouring communities of Conisborough and Denaby. In 1900 Denaby was a developing township and became a separate parish. The enduring link between the new parish and its older neighbour was affirmed in 1927 when Conisborough Urban District Council laid footpaths across the Crags between the two settlements.
In living memory, views from the Crags were limited by smoke from coal fires in the valley. When miners were getting up to work the morning shift, and when they were due home from the pit, their wives would mend the household fires. All the chimneys would belch simultaneously, sending up a huge pall of smoke as if a switch had been thrown. During the summer of 1976 hot weather lifted the muck and smoke which shrouded the area and the local people saw distant views from the Crags for the first time! Today there is far less pollution due to pit closures and the disappearance of domestic coal fires. On a clear day you climb the Crags and see the Derbyshire hills, Emley Moor television mast, Barnsley Town Hall and the urban skylines of Sheffield and Rotherham, as well as the near landscape.
Surface coal was dug by local people from mediaeval times and at least one small colliery operated in the 1760s. The opening of the Don Navigation in the eighteenth century led to more mining in the area by providing cheap, convenient transport. At the same time, the growth of industry and steam-powered railways created a new market for coal. In 1868 the Denaby Main Colliery opened working the Barnsley Main seam. The settlement which grew up around the pit was called Denaby Main, after the mining company.
The Strike in 1902-3 was one of several conflicts between local miners and colliery owners. It concerned the level of payment for removal of waste from the pit. Miners and their families were evicted from colliery-owned houses over the winter. Dependent on local support, some are said to have camped on the Crags during the coldest months of the year.
Denaby Main Colliery produced coal for power stations and the Sheffield steelworks. It was central to the life of the community until its closure in 1968. The nearby Cadeby pit, which was opened shortly after Denaby Main Colliery by the same company, closed in 1986.
For centuries limestone has been quarried around Conisborough to cottages, farms, and walls, as well as the castle and the church. However, most stone from Northcliffe Quarry was burnt in kilns to make fertilizer.
A tramway known as the Incline carried drotts, or trucks, to transport stone to the kilns. There was a winch at the top of the tramway, powered by one man turning a handle! You can still see the remains of the incline if you look carefully.
In 1968 the opening of Denaby Main Colliery meant that new houses were built for miners. These required mortar and plaster, made from stone out of Northcliffe Quarry.
The quarry is now a Local Nature Reserve and a Site of Scientific Interest.
For directions to The Crags please ring the number at the top of this page.
By Bus:
Telephone Travel South Yorkshire on 01709 515151 for full details of all bus services.
