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Summary

A two mile long 19C leat resembling a canal at Devon Great Consols

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX47SW/504/27

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• LEAT (XIX to XX - 1801 AD to 2000 AD (Between))

Full description

Ordnance Survey, 1907, 105 SW (Cartographic). SDV276342.

Leat also on OS 6" (1907) map.

Ordnance Survey, 1954, SX47SW (Cartographic). SDV336689.

'Old canal' recorded on OS 6" (1954) map. Runs from the Tamar at cSX414734 to wheelpits at South Fanny, on to wheelpits SW of Blanchdown. Leat tailback to Tamar at cSX437727 may be mis-identified as 'track of old railway'.

Pye, A. R. + Dixon, T., 1989, The Arsenic Works at Devon Great Consols Mine, Tavistock, 108 (Article in Serial). SDV219136.

Devon Great Consols Mine. The courses of most leats are still extant. They include the 'Canal', which is in fact the lower leat, which powered the waterwheels near the river at South Fanny and Blanchdown.

Richardson, P. H. G., 1992, The Mines of Dartmoor and the Tamar Valley after 1913, 94-108 (Article in Serial). SDV323598.

A leat, two miles long and 5.49m wide was cut in the hillside leading to a waterwheel located at the bottom of the sett on the banks of the river. Other details: Fig 17.

Dyer, M. J. + Manning, P. T., 1998, Objective 5B: Lower Tamar Valley Recreation and Land Management Iinitiative: Cultural Heritage Appraisal, 34 (Report - non-specific). SDV319814.

Buck, C., 2002, Devon Great Consols: Archaeological Assessment, 86-88+ Figs 8,38 (Report - Assessment). SDV241758.

The 'Great Leat' at Devon Great Consols running from SX41497338 to SX43257291 was built in the 1840s to power five large water wheels to the south east. The leat was found during survey to be 4.5m wide x up to 3m deep & resembled a canal. Parts of the feature were dry & parts held static water. At SX41497336 the granite walls 3m high x 5m long that supported the large timber sluice or lock gates remain. At SX41927255 a stone revetment wall 1.7m deep x 2.6m long x 2.3m wide may be the site of a major sluice gate operated by a winch. A small building 2m long x 1.8m wide at SX41937255 probably represents a shelter for a sluice operator. At SX42677258 a tunnel no longer visible took the leat under a track. In the 1940s the 'lower' copper processing works used the bed of the Great Leat as railway sidings from SX42857287 to SX42957292 & evidence of the tram rails & sleepers remain. A stone bridge or viaduct at SX43127244 spanned a small north to south tributary. The site of the sluice gates at SX43357299 is marked by a pond of unknown depth. Other details: Sites 100,100/1,100/2,100/3,100/4,100/5,100/6,100/7.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV219136	Article in Serial: Pye, A. R. + Dixon, T.. 1989. The Arsenic Works at Devon Great Consols Mine, Tavistock. Proceedings of the Devon Archaeological Society. 47. Paperback Volume. 108.
SDV241758	Report - Assessment: Buck, C.. 2002. Devon Great Consols: Archaeological Assessment. Cornwall Archaeological Unit Report. 2002R069. Digital + A4. 86-88+ Figs 8,38.
	Linked documents:1
SDV276342	Cartographic: Ordnance Survey. 1907. 105 SW. Second Edition Ordnance Survey 6 inch Map. Map (Paper).
SDV319814	Report - non-specific: Dyer, M. J. + Manning, P. T.. 1998. Objective 5B: Lower Tamar Valley Recreation and Land Management Iinitiative: Cultural Heritage Appraisal. Exeter Archaeology Report. 98.60. A4 Stapled + Digital. 34.
SDV323598	Article in Serial: Richardson, P. H. G.. 1992. The Mines of Dartmoor and the Tamar Valley after 1913. British Mining. 44. A5 Paperback. 94-108.
SDV336689	Cartographic: Ordnance Survey. 1954. SX47SW. Ordnance Survey 6 inch map. Map (Paper).

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV1314 - Objective 5B: Lower Tamar Valley Recreation and Land Management Initiative: Cultural Heritage Appraisal
• EDV1315 - Devon Great Consols: Archaeological Assessment

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