Great Laxey Mines consisted of 3 shafts:
the Engine Shaft (1820), The Welsh Shaft (1840) and the Dumbell Shaft (late 1850s).
Each shaft needed its own winding house to lift the mined ore to the surface.
This was powered by a waterwheel, with the water being carried down a long pipe from a cistern on the hillside above. Later a water turbine replaced the waterwheel and a machine house was built above the engine house for it.
Men had to climb up and down a series of wooden ladders at the beginning and end of their shift. At 1800 feet this could take well over an hour. The shaft slopes at an angle 12˚ from the vertical so it was impossible to replace the ladders with a winding cage. Instead, the mine owners invested in a water powered machine referred to as a
‘man engine’ A heavy wooden rod ran down the depth of the mine shaft moving on roller wheels fixed to the shaft walls Wooden standing platforms were attached to the rod allowing miners to step on and off at the different levels. This reduced the time needed to reach the work face or surface by half.
As I said before: no coal on the Isle of Man; so no steam engines!
