A Cathedral Of The Mines
For many years I remember seeing Robinsons Shaft in the middle of an industrial patch of wasteland , it was owned by the National Trust then and mothballed . Now it is in the centre of Heartlands .
Robinson’s Shaft is the living soul and epicentre of Heartlands. Located at Pool in Cornwall, it’s one of the most important mining sites in the country.
It forms a part of one of the ten discrete landscapes that make up the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site and is home to a number of Grade II listed buildings.
So what makes this particular mining site so special? Well, it closed as recently as 1996 so it has retained more of its historic architecture and structure than any other site you see today where mining ceased much earlier. Robinson’s Engine House also holds the Crown Jewels of mining machinery – the Cornish pumping engine of 1854. This masterpiece has been kept in a remarkable state of preservation and was the last Cornish Engine to work on a Cornish Mine.
Robinson’s Shaft came to prominence around 1900-8, when it became the principal shaft of the South Crofty mine. However, it crops up on a plan from 1833 so it took nearly 70 years for it to take centre stage.
The turning point came in 1900, when they had to deepen the shaft to exploit the tin deposits in that part of the South Crofty mine. This involved a series of colossal engineering feats. The first of which was the construction of a winding engine, finished by 1901. Next came the installation of a pumping engine, which started in 1903. They then began the usual act of building the engine house and engine in tandem. By 1908, they’d completed the pumping engine, which allowed the shaft to be sunk to 205 fathoms. By 1910, they could mine to 238 fathoms, that’s 1428 feet or 435 metres - higher than Brown Willy, the highest point in Cornwall.
With the pumping-engine in place, the rest of the development around the shaft proceeded over the following 3-4 years. The layout was dictated by the way the different functions served the shaft, so what might appear to be a random cluster was in fact a highly organised working entity. The other early development at the shaft was the introduction of electric power, which astonishingly, seems to have taken place as early as 1910-11.
By 1967 the South Crofty mine had been reconfigured, so that the shaft at Robinson’s was used for lifting men and equipment, whilst ore was lifted at the nearby new Cook’s Shaft. The result of the changes of the 50s and 60s is that the site as seen today is essentially the product of two phases: its original development in 1900-11, when it became the major shaft in the South Crofty complex with all the typical functions of a tin mining site, and its modernisation in 1955-65 when it was adapted to play a subsidiary role in that complex.
The pumping engine at Robinson’s Shaft is a gloriously well-preserved example of a Cornish engine. It worked at this site between 1903 and 1955.
The engine was designed by Captain Samuel Grose, a pupil of Richard Trevithick, and was built by Sandys Vivian and Co. at the Copperhouse Foundry, one of the two major engineering works at Hayle. Apart from its state of preservation, and the fact that it continued to work until the 1950s, another claim to fame of this engine is that it experienced being moved no less than four times:
first erected at the Wheal Alfred mine near Hayle, where it worked 1855-64
moved to Wheal Abraham near Crowan, when it worked 1865-75
after a period of idleness moved to Tregurtha Downs mine near Marazion, where it worked 1883-95/1899- 1902 (the gap being because of the collapse of tin pieces in the mid-1890s)
re-erected for the final time at Robinson’s Shaft in 1903
If you think of shifting a house, bricks, mortar and all, you might begin to understand the complexity of this operation. Despite all these moves the engine as seen today is essentially as it was first built in 1854-5
Robinson’s Engine stopped working at 1.15pm on 1 May 1955, the last Cornish Engine to work on a Cornish Mine.
Robinson’s Engine is currently undergoing more restoration work (it’s a bit like painting the Forth Bridge), but you can still go on guided tours to see this magnificent engine and talk to our restoration team about the processes involved along with all the blood, sweat and tears. Once restored, the engine will run again using a hydraulic system. We believe in protecting the environment and we use renewable energy across Heartlands, so for now, the engine will not be run on steam.
The view in the first comment box is actually looking through the upper window in the shot above !!
A Cathedral Of The Mines
For many years I remember seeing Robinsons Shaft in the middle of an industrial patch of wasteland , it was owned by the National Trust then and mothballed . Now it is in the centre of Heartlands .
Robinson’s Shaft is the living soul and epicentre of Heartlands. Located at Pool in Cornwall, it’s one of the most important mining sites in the country.
It forms a part of one of the ten discrete landscapes that make up the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site and is home to a number of Grade II listed buildings.
So what makes this particular mining site so special? Well, it closed as recently as 1996 so it has retained more of its historic architecture and structure than any other site you see today where mining ceased much earlier. Robinson’s Engine House also holds the Crown Jewels of mining machinery – the Cornish pumping engine of 1854. This masterpiece has been kept in a remarkable state of preservation and was the last Cornish Engine to work on a Cornish Mine.
Robinson’s Shaft came to prominence around 1900-8, when it became the principal shaft of the South Crofty mine. However, it crops up on a plan from 1833 so it took nearly 70 years for it to take centre stage.
The turning point came in 1900, when they had to deepen the shaft to exploit the tin deposits in that part of the South Crofty mine. This involved a series of colossal engineering feats. The first of which was the construction of a winding engine, finished by 1901. Next came the installation of a pumping engine, which started in 1903. They then began the usual act of building the engine house and engine in tandem. By 1908, they’d completed the pumping engine, which allowed the shaft to be sunk to 205 fathoms. By 1910, they could mine to 238 fathoms, that’s 1428 feet or 435 metres - higher than Brown Willy, the highest point in Cornwall.
With the pumping-engine in place, the rest of the development around the shaft proceeded over the following 3-4 years. The layout was dictated by the way the different functions served the shaft, so what might appear to be a random cluster was in fact a highly organised working entity. The other early development at the shaft was the introduction of electric power, which astonishingly, seems to have taken place as early as 1910-11.
By 1967 the South Crofty mine had been reconfigured, so that the shaft at Robinson’s was used for lifting men and equipment, whilst ore was lifted at the nearby new Cook’s Shaft. The result of the changes of the 50s and 60s is that the site as seen today is essentially the product of two phases: its original development in 1900-11, when it became the major shaft in the South Crofty complex with all the typical functions of a tin mining site, and its modernisation in 1955-65 when it was adapted to play a subsidiary role in that complex.
The pumping engine at Robinson’s Shaft is a gloriously well-preserved example of a Cornish engine. It worked at this site between 1903 and 1955.
The engine was designed by Captain Samuel Grose, a pupil of Richard Trevithick, and was built by Sandys Vivian and Co. at the Copperhouse Foundry, one of the two major engineering works at Hayle. Apart from its state of preservation, and the fact that it continued to work until the 1950s, another claim to fame of this engine is that it experienced being moved no less than four times:
first erected at the Wheal Alfred mine near Hayle, where it worked 1855-64
moved to Wheal Abraham near Crowan, when it worked 1865-75
after a period of idleness moved to Tregurtha Downs mine near Marazion, where it worked 1883-95/1899- 1902 (the gap being because of the collapse of tin pieces in the mid-1890s)
re-erected for the final time at Robinson’s Shaft in 1903
If you think of shifting a house, bricks, mortar and all, you might begin to understand the complexity of this operation. Despite all these moves the engine as seen today is essentially as it was first built in 1854-5
Robinson’s Engine stopped working at 1.15pm on 1 May 1955, the last Cornish Engine to work on a Cornish Mine.
Robinson’s Engine is currently undergoing more restoration work (it’s a bit like painting the Forth Bridge), but you can still go on guided tours to see this magnificent engine and talk to our restoration team about the processes involved along with all the blood, sweat and tears. Once restored, the engine will run again using a hydraulic system. We believe in protecting the environment and we use renewable energy across Heartlands, so for now, the engine will not be run on steam.
The view in the first comment box is actually looking through the upper window in the shot above !!