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Summary

Medieval or later tin streamworks at Great Links Tor and Doe Tor. The northern area has an impressive group of beamworks and a maze of small opencuts, passing downhill into streamworks with well-develope parallel and retained spoil dumps. Also associated with the streamworks are dams, a small reservoir, and a well-made packhorse track.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1021214: Foxhole Mine and other tinworks south east of Arms Tor
• SHINE: Earthwork remains of post-medieval or earlier tin streamworking on the River Lyd and Walla Brook and leats on Doetor Common and one running from Great Nodden to the Doetor Brook
• SHINE: Earthwork remains of post-medieval or earlier streamworking north of Sharp Tor

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: SX58NW51
• National Record of the Historic Environment: 1398493
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX58NE/54
• Old SAM Ref: 34478

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• BEAMWORK (Early Medieval to Early 20th Century - 1066 AD (Between) to 1901 AD (Between))
• DAM (Early Medieval to Early 20th Century - 1066 AD (Between) to 1901 AD (Between))
• OPENCUT (Early Medieval to Early 20th Century - 1066 AD (Between) to 1901 AD (Between))
• RESERVOIR (Early Medieval to Early 20th Century - 1066 AD (Between) to 1901 AD (Between))
• STREAMWORK (Early Medieval to Early 20th Century - 1066 AD (Between) to 1901 AD (Between))

Full description

National Monuments Record, 1969, SX5885, 1 (Aerial Photograph). SDV249074.

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

Streamwork visible on 1969 aerial photograph.

Butler, J., 1991, Dartmoor Atlas of Antiquities: Volume Two - The North, 223, Map 43 (Monograph). SDV219155.

Doetor Brook is heavily streamed. The stream gushes out at Dick's Well but the workings start some 300 metres to the north in the direction of Great Links Tor. It appears the flow was not sufficient and a square reservoir 18 metres across by 2 metres deep was constructed to the west of the Well to supplement the supply, emptying via a leat in the south-west corner. Immediately downstream an enormous excavation up to 6 metres deep opens out to east and west, forcing the track to the Rattlebrook workings to divert around the uphill edge. As the stream alters course southwards the excavation decreases in depth and the sides of the gully converge on the very well preserved remains of Foxhole Mine on the west bank.

Cranstone, D. + Hedley, I., 1995, Monuments Protection Programme: The Tin Industry Step 3 Site Assessments, Devon 24 (Report - non-specific). SDV357946.

Probert, S. A. J. + Newman, P., 2003-2004, Measured survey North Dartmoor Military Range Okehampton Range: Monument Baseline Condition Survey (Report - Survey). SDV350801.

(01/04/2004) Medieval or later tin streamworks at Great Links Tor and Doe Tor. The northern area has an impressive group of beamworks and a maze of small opencuts, passing downhill into streamworks with well-developed parallel and retained spoil dumps. Also associated with the streamworks are dams, a small reservoir, and a well-made packhorse track.

Ancient Monuments, 2004, Schedule note (Schedule Document). SDV249075.

(21/01/2004) The monument includes 'Foxhole Mine' as well as alluvial and eluvial tin streamwork around 'Doetor Brook'.

Historic England, 2024, National Heritage List for England, 1021214 (National Heritage List for England). SDV365835.

The monument includes Foxhole Mine, the core part of Doetor Brook alluvial tin streamwork and associated mining remains including openworks, reservoirs, prospecting trenches and pits, buildings and an adit situated on either side of the upper reaches of the Doetor Brook.
Leading northward from Foxhole Mine is a length of tramway which cuts through earlier streamwork earthworks. The tramway is revetted in places, measures 2.6 metres wide and still possesses a number of stone sleepers. The tramway crosses the Doetor Brook on a small clapper bridge formed by eight slabs laid across the stream. Ore would have been carried to the stamping mill along this tramway. Foxhole Mine which is also known as Wheal Frederick is considered to have been active in the middle part of the 19th century, although no output figures are known.
Leading north and south from Foxhole Mine is a substantial alluvial tin streamwork. This streamwork was formed during the extraction of tin deposits using water to separate the heavy tin from the lighter silts, sands and gravels. Earthworks surviving within the gully formed by streamworking illustrate clearly the extractive methods used by the tinners. This streamwork probably represents the earliest phase of extraction in the area and when abandoned, the tinners turned their attentions to smaller scale eluvial deposits. At least three areas of eluvial tin streamwork earthworks survive within the monument with the largest situated at NGR SX55208627. Many of the dumps in this streamwork are curved in shape and lie parallel to each other. At the upper streamwork most of the dumps are revetted with large rocks and stand up to 1.2 metres high.
Once the tin deposits were exploited, the tinners turned their attention to the lodes. The first stage was extensive prospecting using pits, trenches and an adit. The pits and adit were excavated solely by hand, but the trenches were formed by using both shovels and running water. The water was brought to the area in leats and stored in reservoirs. Once the lodes had been identified they were exploited using opencast quarries known as openworks to extract the lode tin. These survive as deep, steep sided gullys which trend approximately west-east. Small buildings surviving within the vicinity probably represent shelters used by the tinners.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV8679 - Okehampton Range: Management Survey
• EDV7368 - Survey of the Willsworthy Training Area, Peter Tavy (1998)
• EDV8291 - Okehampton Range: Monument Baseline Condition Survey
• EDV8695 - Survey of Okehampton North Dartmoor Military Range
• EDV6663 - Survey of the Willsworthy Training Area
• EDV6664 - Survey of the Willsworthy Training Area
• EDV6665 - Survey of the Willsworthy Training Area
• EDV8141 - Condition survey of the Willsworthy Training Area

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