Hook and Freystrop
The area was once the centre of a thriving coal industry. Anthracite coal was mined from the fourteenth century and was exported as far as Spain.
Legend relates that the Spanish sailors bartered daffodil bulbs for coal. The early workings were shallow shafts, four to six metres deep, but by the 19th century, deep mines such as the Old Aurora and Amen pits had opened. A tramway was built to carry coal to Hook Quay for shipment.
Hook Quay
By 1931, 35,000 tons of coal was exported by rail and water. Thereafter production declined and following flood damage in 1948, the last of the pits closed.
Hook Manor
