As part of the research for a book, I have a few queries which I am hoping someone on here will be able to help me with as the lockdown is preventing me from going out to check for myself. There were loads more queries, but some good friends, including the lovely ladies at the British Caving Library, have managed to resolve most of them.
So, fingers on the buzzers, here are the remaining questions:
1. The Mucky Ducks in Peak Cavern were first passed on 23 January 1949 by Trevor Ford, Norman Brindle and A N Other. Does anyone know the name of the third caver, please?
2. One of the cave divers active in Peak Cavern in 1950 was C James. Can anyone tell me what the "C" stood for, please?
3. Similarly, a diver in Speedwell Cavern in 1952 had the surname Price but I cannot find a Christian name or even an initial. Can anyone help with this, please?
4. In 1948, Bill Mack and A N Other dived in Carlswark Cavern. Does anyone know the name of the second diver, please?
5. In 1965, Ken Pearce dived in Peak Cavern with D Abbott. Can anyone tell me what the "D" stood for, please? (And I'm sure it wasn't Diane  )

Any light that anyone can shed on these would be much appreciated.
Cheers, Martin

Very vague recollection of a Dave Abbott in the 60's ??...

I believe the Cave Diver in question is James Corbett, He continued past the limit of the Oxygen Divers at Ink Sump using compressed air, "open circut" diving equpment which had just become available, using this He was able to dive below the maximum depth of the "closed circut" pure oxygen rebreathers which most cave divers were using at the time, He extended the sump to what we now know is half way a big achievement for the time! I believe He is still alive and living abroad, Jim

aquamole jim said:

I believe the Cave Diver in question is James Corbett,

Click to expand...

I think aquamole jim might mean James Cobbett.

Mark

Thanks Mark, yes

I didn't think James Cobbett was active in Peak quite as early as 1965 - but could be wrong. I was involved in putting Martin in contact with James, so hopefully he can check that directly.

Thanks for all the responses so far.
The cave diver I'm looking for is "C James" not "James C". I have already received lots of useful material from James Cobbett. Most of the queries relate to much earlier, when books and journals had the annoying habit of referring to everyone by their surname.
Cheers, Martin

Not having a subscription to "Nature" I'm not sure if this might help:

https://www.nature.com/articles/166894a0

Another bell ringing for Clive James, anyone recognise the name?

A late TV personality - originally from Australia?  :-\

:-[ :-[ :-[ My bad  :-[ :-[ :-[

Question 1, In Cave science vol 18, no 1. It lists Trevor Ford, Norman Brindle, Chalky White, Eva X and others. It?s on page 20.

So, further research has established that the "Price" is P.H. Price. Does that ring any bells for anyone, please?

Mark
I refer to your question 1
I have book that informs the reader that the mucky duck were possibly crossed by boat in the min 1800s

Hi T pot 2 and thanks for posting.
Can you give me details of the book please, as that differs from all of the other historical records I have seen?
Cheers, Martin

Was it the Mucky Ducks - or was it the smaller tunnel on the left of the inner gate in the show cave, before the existing route was made / enlarged? Isn't there a record somewhere of that having been the way Queen Victoria visited, lying on a low punt?

But elsewhere I seem to remember seeing a record of the pools just past Victoria Aven having been crossed by a boat in the 19th Century. (Possibly in one of the Puttrell accounts?)

Separately - Martin - a week or two ago I sent an email with information about how to contact a certain person in Langcliffe regarding a photo. If you didn't get this, send me an email and we'll sort it.

Yeah, Puttrell and co did the Wallows in a boat in 1904 I think - hilariously after just free-climbing Victoria Aven. Strange risk-management, but there you go. It was only when one of them fell out of the boat and realised it was waist-deep that they all got out and waded instead. They found the miner's sled just beyond, near Speedwell Pot. Scud just got me a PDF of the account but it's over 10MB so I can't post it as an attachment.

re Puttrell

In "Jim Puttrell Pioneer Climber & Cave Explorer" by J.P.Craddock are caving exploits as follows:

Chapter 7 Eldon hole
Chapter 8 Speedwell Cavern
Chapter 9 Peak Cavern
Chapter 10 Blue John & Treak Cliff Caverns
Chapter 11 Giant's Hole & Oxlow Caverns

In Chapter 9 pp 120-121 there is an account and photograph of the ascent of "Victoria Cavern" followed by exploration of what is now known as "The Wallows" on 1st March 1902.

A book well worth reading.

It is indeed a book well worth reading, although the tales of Puttrell's caving exploits occupy only the first part of the book - after that he seems to have concentrated on climbing. Puttrell was allegedly the first one to pass the "Curtain" in the Giants streamway in 1902 and in later visits from 1904 onwards he and his friends found Pillar Crawl and the Backwash Sump.  At this point the cave "ended" until Backwash Sump was passed by Ken Pearce and BSA North Midlands Group members in 1954, after a 3-year siege involving the building of 3 dams in the passage before the sump. 

All these features were blasted away in the winter of 1966/67, during the Foot and Mouth epidemic when all caving was banned.  Tom Watson, the owner of Giants, sought help from Bill Revell in an unsuccessful attempt to turn Giants into a show cave.  It resulted in the cave being an easy stroll from the entrance to the top of Garlands Pot and Garlands was reduced to 15 ft. from its former 30 ft. by rubble from the blastng tipped over the edge.

Some of these epic attempts are detailed in DCA Newsletter 152, "The Derbyshire Caver", available on the DCA website www.theDCA.org.uk.

I guess that would be considered unacceptable today  - or would it?