Redruth townscape

Throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries Redruth was west Cornwall’s principal market town and the acknowledged capital of the Cornish mining industry. Redruth possesses some fine Victorian urban architecture including The Mining Exchange (1880, Listed Grade II). Mining business and ticketing (or bidding) for copper and tin took place in this building. Also of note is The Coffee Tavern (1880, Listed Grade II) and the Town clock (1828, Listed Grade II).
 

There were also a number of houses built for the professional classes, many of whom were engaged in the mining industry, or its ancillaries. One such example is Belmont House built in 1837. This building replaced the eighteenth century home of Dr William Pryce (1735-1790) who was a mine surgeon and author of Mineralogia Cornubiensis (published in 1778). Belmont became a traditional residence for doctors, including the Pryce family. 'Chylowen’ in Plain-an-Gwarry was for a time the home of James Watt (1736-1819), of Boulton & Watt engineers, who rented this cottage during the 1780s when consulting with William Murdoch on mine pumping engines. Murdoch House (c1660, Listed Grade II*). Mining engineer William Murdoch (1754-1839) lived here whilst he worked on local mines as an engine erector for Boulton & Watt of Birmingham. He made a small working model of the world’s first steam locomotive in 1784 and also invented gas lighting in this house in 1792
 

Clinton Road is lined with impressive late Victorian and Edwardian villas built on former mining ground at a time when Redruth miners were prospering in South Africa. Remarkable buildings include the the School of Science & Art (1883) that stands next to the Robert Hunt Museum (1890). It was built as a memorial to its founder by the Miners’ Association of Devon and Cornwall. The Redruth School of Mines was based here and extra-mural classes continued until the 1950s.
 

St Andrew’s Church (1883) and number 1 Clinton Road  were designed by Redruth-born architect James Hicks whose distinctive designs are a feature of Victorian Redruth. Plain-an-Gwarry Chapel (1883, Listed Grade II) was also designed by James Hicks and built for the Primitive Methodists.

Pedn-an-Drea Mine (1824, Listed Grade II), Redruth. The survival of this telescoped chimney (although much reduced from its original height of over 42m) is important in that it represents a Cornish design that was once commonplace. The engine that this stack served only worked for three years; it thereafter served only as a landmark.

Click here to find out more about Redruth's industrial past.