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- Danescombe Mine
Calstock, Cornwall
- Overview
- Essential info
- History
- Restoration
Overview
Danescombe Mine is one of Landmark’s most iconic and courageous early restorations. Standing by a stream in a steep wooded valley, the engine house of a former mine was first converted in 1972-3.
- Dogs Allowed
- Cot
- Fire or Stove
- Open Space
- Parking Available
- Bath with Shower
- Remote
Beds 1 Double
- Sleeps
- 2
- 4 nights from
- £332 equivalent to £41.50 per person, per night
Book now
Nestled in the woods
In the woods above Danescombe lie the abandoned shafts of other mines; and only a short and beautiful walk away is Cotehele, a noteworthy unaltered medieval house owned by the National Trust. We took a long lease from the National Trust for this Landmark, which was in a dilapidated state and without a roof.
Following a careful restoration it now makes a comfortable base to get a good sense of the tremendous past of the Devon and Cornish mining industry. This was a dreadful but romantic trade that has its own mythology and enriched, among others, the Dukes of Bedford and the family of William Morris. The mine worked on and off from 1822 to 1900, kept alive by the demand for arsenic which protected cotton against the boll weevil.
The living room leads onto wooden decking where you can sit out and overhear the stream running past the back door and wonder what life was like here a century ago.
Drone video
Floor Plan
Danescombe Mine is a short distance from Calstock, a small village dominated by a spectacular viaduct, which carries the Tamar Valley Line, one of England's loveliest country rail branch lines. Travel in style to visit nearby Cotehele, an impressive Tudor mansion set high on the banks of the River Tamar, amidst an extensive estate with gardens and orchards. Take a ramblethrough the woodlands surrounding Cotehele, following planned routes.
Calstock also hosts an eclectic mix of music festivalsand events and you can enjoy fish and chips at The Tamar Inn on Fridays.
Experience life in Victorian times first hand during a day out at Morwellham Quay, a fascinating, award-winning museum. There's a wealth of fun activities for all, such as: exploring the enchanting, historic village; travelling deep underground to venture into a copper mine; dressing up in period costumes.
Nearby museums include Cotehele (2.4 miles) and Dingles Fairground Heritage Centre (14.9 miles). Discover local walks for dogs with our friends at Walkiees.co.uk, the dog walks community. For more information on things to do during your stay at Danescombe Mine, please see our Pinterestpage.
Please Note: The Landmark Trust does not take any responsibility and makes no warranties, representations or undertakings about the content of any website accessed by hypertext link. Links should not be taken as an endorsem*nt of any kind. The Landmark Trust has no control over the availability of the linked pages.
Essential info
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Contact the Booking Office
You can ring the Booking Office on01628 825925or email [emailprotected]Opening hours are: Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm+
History
Former copper and arsenic mine
Danescombe Mine is a former copper and arsenic mine, which was worked on and off throughout the 19th century. Its beginnings are obscure, but it was working before 1837 when it was restarted under leases granted by Lord Ashburton and the Earl of Mount Edgcumbe. This company was wound up in 1842 and the 30-inch pumping engine was sold to the South Hooe lead mine on the other side of the river, and the steam whim to Marke Valley in Linkinhorne.
There were further operations at the mine and the closely related Wheal Calstock mine between 1846 and 1868, the company's name being changed to Calstock Consols in 1850. The machinery was sold off in 1872. Then the mine was restarted again in 1888 and both copper and arsenic were produced. After 1900 production ceased, though there was some later prospecting in the valley.
The varying fortunes of the Danescombe mine and the replacement of copper by arsenic as the main product were the result not only of the unpredictability of mining, but also of the changing economic situation. Copper mining was rendered unprofitable in Cornwall by the discovery of deposits in Cube, South Australia, Chile and then Michigan, culminating in the great copper slump of 1866-8. Tin became the mainstay of Cornish mining after copper declined, but the opening-up of the Australian tin deposits brought about a slump in the 1870s. The subsequent opening of mines in the Malay states and in Bolivia after 1900 further injured the Cornish tin mines. In 1891 there were 6,156 men and boys classed as miners in Cornwall; seven years later this number was 2,749. Thus the events in Danescombe are representative of the experience at all Cornish mines. Even today, the decline of the world tin price can make Cornish tin uneconomic to mine and thus what was once the country's main industry is virtually extinct.
For a short history of Danescombe Mine, download the history sheet.
To read a more indepth history of Danescombe Mine, download the history album.
The Danescome Mine children's explorer pack is aimed at children aged 7+ and includes the history sheet, recipes, writing and drawing activities.
Restoration
Only the structural walls were sound
The part of the mine buildings that is now leased by the Landmark Trust from the National Trust and let out for holidays, was restored in 1972-3 to plans drawn up by Paul Pearn of Pearn and Procter, architects of Plymouth. They formerly housed an engine, a Cornish boiler and crushing plant. The builders who worked on the project were E.L. Greening and Sons, of Tavistock. When work began the building was extremely dilapidated with only the structural walls being sound and there was no roof.
In the course of restoration the following alterations were made. A new staircase of steel strings and traditional cast-iron open chequer type treads was placed at the north end of the building and new floors were inserted at the levels of the original platforms. A concrete slab was poured at the entrance level over the pit, which housed the condenser and this and the higher ground floor were finished with the used slate flagstones. The upper floors were laid over now softwood joists; the new floor covered what would have been the large hole for the tall condenser. The roof trusses, of softwood, were left exposed, whilst the covering is random width Delabole slates with a grey clay ridge tile. It is almost certain that the original slates would have come from that famous Cornish slate quarry or one very near it. By great good luck it was possible to reinstate the cast-iron window frames. A firm was found, Irons Bros. of Wadebridge, who still had the moulds for the window frames of the right size and new ones were cast.
The buff-coloured bricks for the quoins, which had originally been made at Calstock nearby, were matched with some from the brick yard of Messrs. Hexter Humpherson of Newton Abbot. From these a new flight of steps was made between the boiler house and crushing plant building. A terrace of open timber slats was made at the top of walls which carried the axles of the winding gear and balance wheels, surrounded with a traditional balustrade consisting of diagonal criss-cross members. This has been painted in the red-oxide colour which is still commonly used in the county. Almost the only alteration that was made to the original plan was the new top window. The gap where the lever of the main engine would have protruded was glassed over, forming a top bedroom with a wonderful view down the valley.
As part of our extensive programme of maintenance across our portfolio, in 2022, we closed Danescombe and began a major upgrade. With the reinvigorated building now welcoming guests once again, it was a complex project including important changes to meet new fire regulations, the installation of new windows and the introduction of a brand new kitchen.
Read more about Danescombe Mine's latest renovation
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