I have recently completed a book on the underground sites of East Surrey.

Concentrated into a small area of South East England in East Surrey, there exists a great variety of underground features. Some are natural, but most are man-made. There are mines for building stone,  hearthstone, sand, fullers earth and chalk. Wartime tunnels, cellars, and underground follies add to the  variety. The swallow holes of the River Mole are also covered. This book describes these fascinating sites, and explains how they were created, how they have since been used for other purposes, and why they are still important places that should not be forgotten and neglected.

Inspired by the Kent Underground Research Group who in 1994 published a similar book - "Kent and East Sussex Underground" - I have brought together into a single volume an illustrated guide to East Surrey's curious variety of mines, caves, tunnels and other underground features. The book contains the following chapters:

Safety/Introduction/Sand Cave and Mines/Firestone Quarries/Hearthstone Mines/Mushroom Farms/
At Times of War/Deneholes/Fullers Earth Mines/That Sinking Feeling/The River Mole/Early Explorers/
Rumours and Myths/Conservation

The book is softback, 9" x 6", 121 pages, well illustrated with photographs (B+W), and location maps.

£9 + £1 p+p

The book is currently only available through me.

PM if you are interested in buying a copy, or email me at peter[dot}burgess{at]wcms[dot}uk

Here's a link to a promo page.

http://www.wcms.org.uk/pages/esu_book_sale_nov2006.shtml

Hello Peter
thanks for my copy, very well put together and a very interesting read.
Cheers

I've got Kent & East sussex underground, and a fine tome it is....I'm sure this new book will be equally as interesting....

Well I have to say I am pleased with the quality now I have received and distributed the first batch from the printer. Thanks to Andy Sparrow for the 'heads up' on Lulu publishing earlier this year. It has been a reasonably painless exercise, so far. As yet, the book is not available through the lulu website, as at the moment it is more economical for me to order in bulk from them rather than expect people to buy single copies and pay a high delivery charge.

EAST SURREY UNDERGROUND by Peter Burgess 2006  121 pp, many photos, maps, surveys etc.  SB no ISBN.  Available from the author at 8 Trotton Close, Maidenbower, CRAWLEY, West Sussex, RH10 7JP price £9.00 + £1 post and packing.

East Surrey is about 30 miles south of London and I was surprised to find that it was once a heavily mined area.  In the towns of Dorking, Reigate, and Godstone, there are numerous caverns, dug in order to extract the sand.  These have been excavated over the centuries and the sand was used both in the glass industries and as a cleaning agent.  It can be spread on the floor and then swept up without leaving a stain.  Many a Victorian skivvy was probably very familiar with this sand!

Undoubtedly, the most famous cave in the area is the Barons’ Cave at Reigate.  This cave has been a local attraction since the late 18th century.  Stories have grown around the cave and legend has it that the English barons in AD 1215 met in the cave to draw up the terms of the Magna Carta.  A more likely explanation is that the cave was an impressive wine cellar for the Earl of Surrey, Earl de Warenne.  The wine was transported in large barrels called `tuns’ each containing up to 1000 litres of wine. 

Both Barons’ Cave and the Dorking Caves are open to the public.  The latter were also used as a wine cellar. 

Other mines include those in the Firestone and Hearthstone Quarries.  Firestone has been used extensively from the Norman period to the present day as a building stone.  Its excavation in this locality has left a vast network of mined passages with a surveyed length of 17 km.

There has been much confusion between hearthstone and firestone. This is not surprising since both materials were dug from the Upper Greensand beds.  The hearthstone was used for whitening stone door steps, hearths and window sills.  When rubbed on it dries to a chalky white colour. 

At the end of the 19th century the firestone mines at Godstone were given a new lease of life.  The disused galleries were used as mushroom farms.  However, this practice eventually died out in the 1930s as there were difficulties in maintaining the right conditions of temperature, humidity and air flow, plus the risk of infestation from pests. 

Other man-made sub-surface voids in the area include Fullers Earth Mines and Dene Holes.  Fullers earth was originally used to degrease woollen fleeces.  Today it is used extensively in the chemical and petrochemical industries.  Dene Holes are simply chalk mines, the chalk being used for agricultural purposes.

Cave explores will no doubt be interested in the River Mole.  A fitting name for a river that flows underground for a comparatively short distance between Dorking and Leatherhead.  Although there are numerous sink holes in the river bed no cave passages have yet been entered.  This is unusual considering the extensive chalk caves both in Beachy Head and Normandy. 

To sum up, this is an excellent account of the great variety of underground feature in a small area of south east England.  Wartime tunnels, cellars and underground follies add to the variety.  It provides a very readable account of these fascinating sites.  Peter Burgess is obviously an expert on this area and I found this book a pleasure to read.  Informative, amusing and difficult to put down.  Highly recommended, and if you are quick it could be an ideal solution for Christmas for the caver who has everything.

Oooo, thanks. 

No promises for Christmas delivery. New Year maybe.

My copy arrived in a plain brown paper package
My wife confiscated it before I had any chance to look at the photos 




something about a Christmas present was mentioned 

well done Peter 

I hope to have a number of copies of "East Surrey Underground" with me at the Hunters on Saturday evening. I have had a number of queries from Somerset, and if you were thinking of getting a copy, and are going to be there, let me know and I'll try to reserve a copy for you. £9.50 each.

Peter

I was reading it on Saturday-a friend of mine has a copy-its a very interesting read.

Nice one Peter. 

I shall have a box of books with me on Sunday at the SECRO exercise at Merstham.

I have a first  addition, with the authors signature, I wonder if I could get any good offers on Ebay for it??

Excellent reading and a must for interested people, Come and investigate the local area, its much better than the Hastings caves.

      :halo:

Peter

before you come REALLY famous will you sign my copy 
a good read !

geoff r

The book will be on sale at the Reigate Caves open days.

12th May
9th June
14th July
8th September

WCMS reception in Tunnel Road from 10am to 4pm.

Get there early to avoid disappointment!

http://www.wcms.org.uk/pages/club/reigate_caves.shtml