Botallack
Mine was created by the Industrial Revolution that shaped Cornwall.
There
is evidence of tin mining in this area from the 17th Century and possibly earlier. Botallack
stands defiant above the Atlantic on Cape Cornwall, and its old workings are the
most recognised symbol of Cornwall's proud mining heritage. But this was
a harsh industry which sometimes claimed lives. Mines were small, cramped
and vertical - death and injury were a fact of everyday life. Rockfalls,
accidents and explosions were not uncommon. In 1863 the chain which pulled
the mine gig suddenly broke, causing eight men and a boy to plummet their deaths
down the shaft.
Many miners developed health conditions such as Bronchitis,
TB and rheumatism from their time underground.
It was the high value
of the tin that drove some men to take desperate risks and at Botallack they tunnelled
under the ocean itself. The tunnels which run underneath the old engine
houses travel out into the Atlantic for more than a mile, forming a vast industrial
complex under the waves. Botallack continued successfully as a mine until
the 1870s until closure in 1895. Despite sporadic reopenings, Botallack
finally closed in February 1914 during the mining depression and, despite efforts
to investigate new workings, it never reopened. Today Bottallack shows
that sometimes man made wonders are more than objects of beauty or power - they
are monuments to the people who suffered because of them. Visitors can
still see the remains of the engine houses precariously clinging to a promontory
above the sea. At the top of the cliffs there are also the remains of one
of the mine's arsenic-refining works.
Also look out for the mine's count-house
or account house which acted as the mine’s office.
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