Wendron, Near Helston, TR13 0ES
Tel: (01326) 573173
Email: info@poldarkmine.org.uk
Web: www.poldarkmine.org.uk
A fascinating underground adventure for all the family
Poldark Mine lies within the Wendron Mining District of the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site. Its features include a guided tour through ancient tin mine workings, a museum of mining equipment and craft workshops.
It opened in 1972 as Wendron Forge and was later known as Ha'penny Park. After an ancient tin mine was discovered on the site it was renamed to take advantage of Winston Graham's Poldark novels and the BBC television series that was first broadcast in 1975. Also that year a new adit tunnel was driven into the hillside granite to allow safe and more convenient public access to the mine which opened during that year. A working waterwheel was installed inside the garden cafe. Young coined the advertising phrase " A little piece of heaven on the B3297". The BBC approached Peter Young to use the mine as location for a number of scenes for their 1977 series of Poldark. This included some of the underground sequences.
The original owner, Peter Young, sold Poldark Mine in 1988 following which it passed through several owners and declined in popularity. It went into administration for the second time in 2014, and in that year was bought by David Edwards who had been involved with the Ffestiniog Railway and the Llechwedd Slate Caverns in Wales. He said he hoped to keep Poldark Mine as an open-air museum and heritage centre.
As of 2015, items on display include the one-sixth size prototype of the unique traversing winding engine designed by Holman's engineer Charles Morgan in 1898; the Ting Tang mine bell, which is the only known surviving Cornish mine bell, used for shaft signals, calls to work and changing of shifts; two Holman steam or air driven winching engines dating from 1905 and 1910; the Pendarves Estate Turret clock made in the mid 1700's by John Bennett of Helston; and a range of Holman Drills.
Poldark is today the only complete tin mine in the UK open to the public for genuine underground tours of an 18th-century mine.
Poldark Mine is situated in the hamlet of Trenear two miles North of Helston on the B3297 Helston to Redruth road.
Opening TimesTuesday to Saturday10.30am - 4.30pm Admission Charged |
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