St Just United Mine

Mining in this area was first mentioned by John Norden in the late 1500s or early 1600s when a mine called Ball-u-hall (Bollowall) was working. This mine is mentioned at various times and with various spellings in smelting house records over the next two centuries. At the end of the 18th century various tin bounds on the coast are recorded by Cyril Noall. Although not mentioned by him, one of these was (or became) Little Bounds. This mine was visited by John Forbes in 1820 when it was 64 fathoms deep but had been abandoned below the 40 fathom level for some time. Pumping was carried out by a waterwheel, the pit of which can be seen in the cliff. An adit had also been driven 400 fathoms in land to Wheal Bellan, on Bollowall Common. Other mines operating at this time and subsequently incorporated within the sett were Wheal Buck (possibly an alternative name for Wheal Bellan), Wheal Dower and Wheal Whidden.

Little Bounds Mine appears to have expanded over the next decade and was operating as Bollowall Mine in the 1830s. By the late 1840s the operations around Bollowall Common had amalgamated to form Bollowall and Nanpean Mines, although this appears to have ceased by the late 1850s. A small steam pumping engine (15 inch cylinder) was in use, the house probably being near the cliff edge above the adit. In 1861 the leases were taken up by the St Just United Tin and Copper Mining Company, the first limited liability company to work in Cornwall. The managing agent was John Carthew, then in his early 70s, who had worked in many of the St Just mines as well as in Bolivia.

Operations had mostly been confined to the are just south of Cape Cornwall where they reached a depth of 64 fathoms. At least half a dozen other lodes were also worked. in the north part of the set equipment include a 36-inch pumping and stamping engine, bought from Wheal Trevelyon, Breage. To the south was a 26-inch (bought from Wheal Bal; it had been recylindered from a 24-inch) stamping and winding engine, the stack of which still remains. The vertical winding drum here meant that the engine could service any one of seven shafts.

The mine covered quite a large area and worked many lodes, and the workforce in November 1862 numbered 206. A year later the mine had 80 heads of stamps operating for 16 hours per day, 32 attached to the pumping engine and the rest attached to the whim engine. In 1863 a 24-inch winding engine was erected in a house just north of the pumping engine, to wind over the latter. Financial problems began to dog the mine from the middle of 1864 and the purser, William Angwin, was obliged to borrow money from the banks in return for favourable prices for tin, as the banks were also involved in smelting. By this time the mine was employing 263 men, 41 boys and 26 girls.

At the end of October 1864 John Carthew, the managing agent, was summarily dismissed and replaced by Captain Richard Pryor of Redruth. Carthew had made various promises regarding the property which had not come to fruition, including the possibility of copper production from the mine from levels he had not been able to inspect. It was at this time that work commenced on deepening the engine shaft although North Lode, nearby, was being worked at the 74 fathom level.

A year later the engine shaft was down to this level and North Shaft to the 86. The year 1866 marked the end of this period of operations. In this year the mine was being pursued for payment of dues, which had not been paid since 1864. William Angwin had been ordered by the directors to get the bills paid in company script, "payable at as remote dates as possible, in two or three Bills". In April, Bolitho's Bank refused to increase the mine's overdraft and a petition to wind up the company (from Harvey & Co. of Hayle) was heard before the Vice Warden's Court in June and the mine advertised for sale in August. There were no takers for the sett which was held by the Vice warden's Court until sold later that year (see St Just Amalgamated).

Production:
1862-66: 681 tons black tin (my figures)

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