04 Wendron
In the heart of beautiful countryside surrounded by open moorland and gushing streams, Wendron is one of the smallest Areas in the entire Site – although thanks to its rich tin deposits it once had enough inhabitants to rival the combined population of Redruth and Camborne. The demand for housing led to the creation of a large number of smallholdings around Carnmenellis, which are among the best preserved in the entire site. Here you can see pretty granite cottages and tiny fields framed by dozens of low walls made from cob and moorland granite respectively.
Mining Heritage D
eep-shaft mines had become established here by the 17th century, but before this, tin was extracted by tin-streaming. Wendron was arguably one of the most productive areas and records indicate the district’s rich alluvial deposits were worked by tin-streamers from before the 1500s.
The recent discovery of mortar stones used to crush tin ore (probably sourced from the nearby River Cober), and the hand-cut (rather than gunpowder-driven) shallow levels at Poldark Mine (Wheal Roots), confirm the long history of tin working at this location.
These early tin works led to the discovery of mineral lodes, which were exploited through both shallow and deep-shaft mining from the 17th century onwards. The small number of surviving engine houses are important landmarks – particularly those at Wheal Ann, Trumpet Consols and Wheal Enys.
Sites within the district Click on the site to find out more.
• Poldark Mine For travel information click here.
Highlights
• Venturing down into Wheal Roots – the 18th century tin mine at Poldark – to learn about Cornish mining history and find out what conditions were actually like for Cornish mine workers.
• Viewing the re-sited Greensplat steam beam engine, believed to have been the last to pump commercially in Cornwall.
• Exploring Porkellis Moor – a Cornwall Wildlife Trust reserve, where nature has reclaimed the ancient mining landscape.
• Walking the footpaths around Carnmenellis (in the north of the Area) and seeing the surviving mine workers’ smallholdings – probably the best examples in the whole Site. (Footpaths ring Carnmenellis but do not connect with the summit of the hill).
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Did you know?
Three lives Mineworkers’ smallholdings were normally leased under the ‘three lives’ system – lasting as long as the lifespan
of three named people.
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