Mines of the Callington District - Kelly Bray & Redmoor

OS Explorer Map 108: Grid reference SX361714

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These mines lie to the west of Kit Hill and mainly worked lodes of tin, copper, and arsenic. The mines opened in the eighteenth century and closed by 1888. Kelly Bray, Redmoor, Holmbush were usually worked together, Redmoor and Kelly Bray Mine made up Emmens United. The group also included at times South Kelly Bray, West Holmbush,and East Holmbush. Between 1888 and 1893, Holmbush Mine was amalgamated with Kelly Bray and Redmoor Mines to form Callington United Mines. Redmoor re-opened briefly between 1907 and 1914 and in 1934 and 1943.

The Kelly Bray Section worked on five lodes: North Lode; Kelly Bray Main Lode worked from Kelly Bray Shaft and New (or Watson's) Shaft; Blair Lode from Blair's shaft; King's Lode and Lead Lode, worked from North Engine Shaft.
The Redmoor Section can be further divided into two groups of lodes. A northern group including Martin's Lode, Reed's Lode, James' Lode and Hockin's Lode. The southern group made up of Johnson's Lode, Vivian's lode and Great South Lode. Shafts on the section were Johnson's Shaft and Counthouse Shaft.

Thomas Spargo, the mining historian, in his book of 1865, 'The Mines of Cornwall and Devon: Statistics and Observations' writes that Kelly Bray Mine was '... in the parish of Callington, Cornwall, in 5,000 shares, commenced in 1845. The Purser and Manager is Captain George Rowe, of Wheal Edward. Secretary, Mr. Edward King, London. Rock, clay-slate. 39 men, 4 females, and 4 boys employed (total 47). Mineral Owner, Duke of Cornwall. Dues, 1-30th. Depth of adit, 27 fathoms. Under adit, 135 fathoms. Pumping-engine, 60-inch. Winding-engine, 18-inch. Crushing-engine, 36-inch. Water-wheel, stamping, of 35 feet diameter.

Mineral sold in 1864: Copper ore for £1,694 15s 9d and Arsenic for £20 0s 0d making a total of £1,714 15s 9d. The expenditure over receipts, from the beginning, amounts to about £20,000; in the year 1864, to about £1,200'.

Production reports show:
Kelly Bray
1851-72 - 15,251 tons of 5.25% copper
1860-64 & 1877-78 - 540 tons of arsenical pyrite (mispickel)
1874 - 366 tons of pyrite.
Redmoor
1861-62, 1869-78 & 1907-08 - 148 tons of black tin, 47 tons of 17% copper and 2 tons of Wolfram
1858-60, 1869-71,1878 & 1883-84 - 272 tons of 55% lead ore, 9,170 ounces of silver, 90 tons mispickel, 195 tons aresenic and 8 tons of silver-bearing ore.

Now that 'World Heritage' status has been achieved Cornwall in Focus will monitor developments and learn how the mines of the Tamar Valley Mining District fare within the overall Mining framework.

For those of you with possibly a little more time to explore, once you've done 'the tourist bit', why not explore Cornwall's industrial heritage through its Tin and Copper Mines or learn more from my Cornish Bookstore