Mining in Cornwall Vol 6: Mid-County to the Tamar

The interface of metalliferous mining with the China Clay Industry is addressed in some detail in the first chapter. It will be noticed that the decline of metal mining in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries is marked by the movement of steam engines to the ever-expanding clay area centred on St Austell. The present-day clay production accounts for nearly 100% of freight traffic on the railways in the county. It also gives additional employment at ports such as Fowey and Par. In common with mining operations worldwide many jobs are created in the service and supplies industries of the area.

The cameo of the Castle-an-Dinas Wolfram Mine has a special place as it contains a unique range of photographs of the premier Wolfram mine in the county.

In East Cornwall there existed a number of exceptional mines and these have been dealt with as comprehensively as the limitation of space permit. There are many hitherto unpublished prints of some of the lesser mines which will be of much interest.