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Summary

Mine shaft number 1 forming part of the 19th century Eylesbarrow Tin Mine

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1021055: Eylesbarrow Tin Mine and associated remains

Other References/Statuses

• National Monuments Record: 1300505
• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX56NE/27/29
• Old SAM Ref: 34467

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• MINE SHAFT (Constructed, XVII to XIX - 1700 AD to 1900 AD (Between))

Full description

Gerrard, S., 1990-2002, Monument Protection Programme. Archaeological Item Dataset., MPP 157160 (Report - Survey). SDV277946.

Site visited on 9th May 2002. Shaft 870 metres west-south-west of Eylesbarrow, forming part of Eylesbarrow Tin Mine. A steep sided circular pit measuring about 4 metres deep cuts into the earlier streamwork earthworks. Spoil from this shaft lies to the west, forming a dump over 5 metres high and partly overlies an earlier shaft whose spoil dump survives a short distance to the west and measures 1.4 metres high. Covered in heather, bracken and grass.

Newman, P., 1999, Eylesbarrow (Ailsborough) Tin Mine, 9, Figure 2-3, Appendix 1 (Report - Survey). SDV352201.

Over thirty shaftheads are still visible at Eylesbarrow. They consist of conical pits surrounded on the downslope side by a crescentric ring of spoil or linear spoil dumps.
Shaft 1 is not named and may have been an early shaft or possibly an air shaft.

English Heritage, 2005, Industrial Survey Information (Report - Survey). SDV346396.

GeoInformation Group Ltd, 2010, 1:625 2010 Colour (12.5cm resolution) (Aerial Photograph). SDV346026.

Shaft shown on aerial photograph.

English Heritage, 2013, Pastscape, 1300505 (Website). SDV352645.

Remains of nineteenth century mine shafts and adits at Eylesbarrow Tin Mine, which was mined from 1814 until 1856. An English Heritage archaeological field survey identified 25 shaftheads of which 16 have names recorded in documentary sources.
Most of the shaftheads comprise conical pits between 9 metres and 16 metres in diameter, surrounded on the downslope side by either a crescentic or linear spoil dump up to 3 metres high. Some also have remains of masonry collars. It is likely that the majority of the shafts would originally have had collars, particularly those associated with winding or pumping equipment but they were destroyed or obscured when the shafts were capped after abandonment. At least five of the shafts were associated with pumping equipment, powered by the two waterwheels located on the lower flanks of the hill. Three shafts have evidence of balance bob pits built into the upper rim of the shafthead. Six of the shafts were used for winding.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6239 - Eylesbarrow (Ailsborough) Tin Mine
• EDV7382 - Condition Survey of the Cramber Tor Training Area
• EDV8155 - Plym Valley Survey

Search results generated by the HBSMR Gateway from exeGesIS SDM Ltd.