Mines of the St Ives Area - Wheal Reeth

Grid reference SW501372

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Location
The sett of Wheal Reeth lies between Trink Hill and Nancledra in Towednack parish about two and a half miles southwest of St. Ives. Along with Wheal Durloe, Giew Mine and Billia Consols, the mine made up the Reeth Consols group. The mines worked the tin lodes on the southern slopes of Trink Hill near the moorland village of Cripplesease. Neighbouring mines were Wheal Sisters, Wheal Kitty and Wheal Trencrom to the southeast and Balnoon Consols and Worvas Downs to the northeast. To the North lay the copper and tin mine of Tyringham Consols. Collectively they lay close to the southeastern boundary between the Lands End Granite and the Killas - Greenstone country rock around Canon's Town.

The lodes ran mainly southwest - northeast, with the underlie to the southeast. Wheal Durloe worked Durloe Lode just west of the B3311 road at Cripplesease, whilst Wheal Reeth worked four lodes including Durloe Lode, North Lode and South Lode. Reeth worked Durloe Lode from Trewhella's Shaft, West Whim Shaft, Durloe Shaft and Magy's Shaft.
To the east of the B3311, Durloe Lode was worked from Davey's Shaft and Unity Shaft. North Lode meanwhile was cut by Reeth Shaft, Boundary (otherwise known as Banbury) Shaft, Bag's Shaft, Garden (or Engine) Shaft, Monster's Shaft and Trink Shaft. South Lode was explored from Ned's (Stvens') Shaft and New or Frederick's Shaft.

The mine dates from at least 1835 as reported by Thomas Spargo, in his book 'Statistics and Observations on the Mines of Cornwall and Devon' (1865): ' Billia Consols, in Towednack, Cornwall, in 1,000 shares. Purser, Mr. J. B. Coulson, Penzance. Manager, Captain Richard Blight, Penzance. Landowners - Duke of Cleveland, Mrs. Gilbert, and others. Dues, l-18th. Adit, 20 fathoms deep (at late engine shaft in Reeth Consols); and bottom, 202 fathoms under it (idle). Depth under adit at Billia shaft, 25 fathoms. Pumping-engine, 36-inch. Stamping-engine, 27- inch. Winding-engine, 22-inch. Rock, granite. 68 men, 33 females, and 54 boys employed.

Mineral Sold In 1864: 66 tons, 12 cwt., 1 qrc., and 17lbs of Black tin for £4,132 16/- 6d.

The late Company commenced the works about 30 years ago, under the name of Reeth Consols. A few years ago they changed the name to Durlo. The present Company, who came a short time since, confine their operations to Billia lode, from which the present name of the mine is derived. It is in the northern part of the sett. The prospects are good ; but the late Company lost a large sum in the concern'.

Wheal Reeth was never a large tin producer, records that are available show that it raised 1,955 tons of black tin for the periods of 1837-39 and 1853 to 1867. Wheal Durloe meanwhile produced 462 tons of black tin in the five years between 1859 and 1864..

For more information read the excellent Cornish Mines: Metalliferous and Associated Minerals, 1845-1913 (Mineral Statistics of the United Kingdom, 1845-1913) by Roger Burt.

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