The owners of the Lanhydrock estate made their mark in the world primarily though the profits arising from their tin-mining interests. This is a very old industry in Cornwall, dating from at least 330 BC, although it really hit its peak between the period 1840-1865. The numerous veins of tin and copper occuring in Cornwall led to many mines being developed along the coast, often requiring a great deal of digging to follow the veins of ore down to sea level and even out beneath the seabed. This view of the Wheal Coates tin mine near St Agnes (closer to Truro than it is to Bodmin) shows its restored Engine House and the stack associated with the steam boiler required to drive the engine. The job of the engine was to help drill shafts, pump water out of the mine and run the lifts to deliver the miners and retrieve the ore.
The third photo is of the Botallack mine complex on the north coast at St Just, and only a few miles from Land's End - a spot we visited on our first trip to Cornwall in July, 1979! Although mining is known to have taken place at Botallack as far back as 1721, this mine operated from 1815 to 1914 before the ore ran out.
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on May 16, 2007
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