| Summary: | Kelly Mine is situated on the eastern fringe of Dartmoor, in an area where the granite contains several loads of high quality micaceous haematitie, a rare variety of iron oxide known locally as 'shining ore'. The earliest record of the mine is in 1797, when it was described as 'A mine of rich ore, resembling black lead, which has been worked for several years past'. When the mine closed in 1951, according to local tales, the landowner was owed rent and royalties by the mining company and refused to allow them back on site unless he was paid. The result was that, unlike most mines, the machinery and equipment were never removed for reuse or scrap. Kelly mine thus retained its entire collection even down to miners' tools and clothes.
The buildings are mainly timber framed with corrugated iron cladding, typical of late 19th or early 20th century mine buildings, within which is a fine collection of original mining machinery. Probably the most significant feature of the mine is the survival of virtually all the processing equipment. The restoration means that it is now possible to demonstrate the entire ore processing system from hauling trams up the incline to weighing barrels of iron ore ready for despatch. |
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