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Summary

A tinners' leat dug in the early 19th century to convey water from the Meavy River to supply the mine at Keaglesborough. It took water from the Meavy below Hart Tor (SX57707193), with a feeder from the Hart Tor Brook (SX576471530), and runs down the Meavy valley above a steep tinners' cliff (SX57407111) before it is cut by a deep area of tin streaming activity (SX57577061).

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1020129: Tinworks and other archaeological remains in the Meavy valley at Stanlake, Black Tor, Hart Tor and Cramber Tor
• Scheduled Monument 1021042: Keaglesborough Mine and Riddipit farmstead 850m north east of Norsworthy Bridge

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX57SE244
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 1461629
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX57SE/236
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX57SE/320
• Old SAM Ref Revised: 24106(P)
• Old SAM Ref: 22297(P)
• Old SAM Ref: 22382

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• LEAT (XVIII to XIX - 1800 AD (Between) to 1850 AD (Between))

Full description

South West Heritage Trust, 1838-1848, Digitised Tithe Maps and Transcribed Apportionments (Cartographic). SDV359954.

Leat is depicted on the 1840s Walkhampton Tithe Map.

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

Incomplete sections of leat depicted on the late 19th century historic map.

Royal Air Force, 1947, RAF/CPE/UK/2149, 4439 (Aerial Photograph). SDV282746.

Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England, 1985, Aerial Photograph Project (Dartmoor) - Dartmoor Pre-NMP (Cartographic). SDV319854.

Leat visible on 1947 aerial photograph.

Newman, P., 1987, The Moorland Meavy - a Tinner's Landscape, 225, 236, fig 2 (Article in Serial). SDV231207.

'Leat 1'. Leat drawing water from Hart Tor Brook and the River Meavey and supplying Keaglesborough openworks (SX56NE/505) and Riddipit openworks (SX57SE/157/1). Clear over moorland section but difficult to trace in forest. Headweir of Hart Tor branch is the best preserved example in the area.

Gerrard, S., 1990-2002, Monument Protection Programme. Archaeological Item Dataset. (Report - Survey). SDV277946.

[MPP 152520] - 15/05/1992 A tin prospecting gully and leat are situated at SX 57667170. Both have caused limited damage to the Prehistoric stone alignments through which they were cut. The gully measures 3m wide, 1.6m deep and trends south-east by north-west across the monument. Banks on either side of the trench indicate that it was largely dug by hand and should therefore not be confused with the better known prospecting hushes associated with the lead industry. The leat was used to carry water to a nearby tin stamping mill at Black Tor falls.
[MPP 157346] - 27/06/2002 (SX 5741 7016) Leat 1010m north-north-east of Norsworthy Bridge forming part of Keaglesborough Mine.
At the southern end, the leat measures 2m wide by 0.5m deep and its associated bank is 2.2m wide by 0.6m high. Towards the northern end it is slighter, being 0.2m deep with a 0.3m high bank. This leat carried water from the River Meavy to the stamping mills at Keaglesborough.

Gerrard, S., 1998, Hart Tor Tinworks (Meavy Valley Archaeology Site Report 10), 9, Fig 4 (Report - Survey). SDV360974.

Bluesky, 2006 - 2007, Bluesky aerial photographs 2006 - 2007 (Aerial Photograph). SDV341189.

Visible on the aerial photography.

Fletcher, M. J., 2007-2008, Walkhampton Premier Archaeological Landscape; Field Investigation Project (Report - Survey). SDV359195.

(20/11/2007) A tinners' leat dug in the early 19th century to convey water from the Meavy River to supply the mine at Keaglesborough. It took water from the Meavy below Hart Tor (SX57707193), with a feeder from the Hart Tor Brook (SX576471530), and runs down the Meavy valley above a steep tinners' cliff (SX57407111) before it is cut by a deep area of tin streaming activity (SX57577061). Surveyed at 1:2500 scale.

Bluesky International Ltd/Getmapping PLC, 2015-2017, 2015-2017 Aerial Photographs (Aerial Photograph). SDV361462.

Section of leat is visible on the aerial photography.

Williams, C., 2020, Keaglesborough / Gnantham notes, Walkhampton (Interpretation). SDV363687.

This leat is indicated on the tithe map and is mostly still traceable today although disrupted by forestry operations.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV7507 - Survey of Keaglesborough Tin Mine
• EDV7517 - Survey of Hart Tor tin works
• EDV7526 - Survey of Har Tor Stone Rows and Cairns
• EDV8351 - Walkhampton Premier Archaeological Landscape; Field Investigation Project
• EDV8862 - Survey of archaeological sites on SWLT land in the Burrator catchment
• EDV8863 - Survey of archaeological sites on SWLT land in the Burrator catchment

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