Hello I'm new around here and am currently in the process of purchasing a house in Redruth, Cornwall which sits on the old mining sett of Wheal Sparnon. Any information that anyone has about this mine or Penandrea & Wheal Trefusis or Wheal Grambler, I would love to read. Many thanks

See for newspaper refs (this edition is not quite up to date but I havn't added much since the last online edition)

http://projects.exeter.ac.uk/mhn/Newspapers2008.htm 

Many of the newspapers referred to can be seen at the Cornwall Centre, Redruth.
I have also a databases of Mining Journal and archive sources which are far from complete but I can dig out if you wish. These include stuff at Cornwall Records Office not otherwise catalogued in detail.

There is a plan of the sett/shafts in Cornwall Studies Library in their "map drawer" (ask). Failing that, it's in Hamilton Jenkins Mines and Miners, Vol 3.

There is a shaft marker in the park and apart from that, the only evidence recorded by ham jenks of a shaft was at the N side of Sparnon hill, right at the bottom. There is a gap between the wall which is where it would have been. I have not had the balls to investigate this as it's pretty much in someone's garden.

Legend has it one of the manholes in the falmouth road drops into the adit. I'm not sure which one.

The rock was cheese and one of my chums dropped one (whim shaft in the park? ) when it was open and it was 200ft to nothing.

If you find anything else out, I'd be interested, as I'm up the road.

As an interesting point, on the strike of one of the pednandrea lodes, there were "snags" with subsidence where a load of houses got condemned. In line with this, on the lanner road, right by the St Day roundabout is an interesting wall subsidence, I've noted....I wonder if it's shallow stuff on the move.

Ah yes, your talking about the ex MoD estate at the top of Raymond Road. Will look out for that wall next time I'm up Sandy Lane way. Seen the map in Cornwall Centre, was pretty much what I got from standard mining search but will look up that other one, thanks guys, interesting stuff. I'm really getting into it, even stuff that's nothing to do with Sparnon!

Some friends of mine in Redruth tried on several occations in the late 1970s early 80s to get in through the adit system along Falmouth road they didnt get anywhere all ways were blocked, too small, or collapsed.

I do have a Cobalt sample from Sparnon mine with a very ver old label on it, Not very impressive to look at but a classic location piece.

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Did they attempt going from behind the Brewery? The manhole, or the shaft which was exposed a few years ago?

There is an adit further up which doesn't go anywhere either...

Hi stuey, I think It would have been the brewery one, It was a lot of years ago, I also lived at the botttom half of ( 17 or 18 )trewirgie road years ago, there was a concrete "cap" in the garden, we were never sure if it was a well or adit shaft. took the lid off one summer was stone lined for about 20 foot to water .

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This is good news, it was on my list to do and I thought it would have probably been sumped and I'm not the biggest fan of getting really wet.

I'm quite keen on finding the manhole, as well as having a look for the ham-jenks shaft.

On the Pednandrea sett, there was a hole (behind raymond road housing carnage) which had a fence around it and was definately a hole. I had a look the other day and I think it's been bulldozed by Carnon. When I have more time, I'll go and have a look. It was one I meant to go back to.

As an aside, Carnon were mucking around with a drilling rig right by the road. I have a feeling I've seen a picture of the end terraced house (just down from there) and a load of the road fallen in, but perhaps that's elsewhere.

There are a few sites which look promising if you look at google earth and compare with old maps, however, I think they are obliterated/filled/capped.

I've also noticed on Sparnon hill a sort of yard which looks like it has a capped shaft in the corner....

Where in Sparnon Hill is that? I remember a shaft going down in a house called Wheal Jethan there about 15 years ago.

Wall collapse.

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=50.23442&lon=-5.217513&z=18.3&r=0&src=msl 

Hole in the military estate.

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=50.233836&lon=-5.220038&z=18.3&r=0&src=msl 

Shaft marker in park.

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=50.230417&lon=-5.220978&z=17.5&r=0&src=msl 

What I think looks like a capped shaft.

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=50.229761&lon=-5.223323&z=18.7&r=0&src=msl 

Only shaft open on the sett according to ham jenks.

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=50.229242&lon=-5.225676&z=18.1&r=0&src=msl 

They're the locations I'm talking about.

That's the one I dropped some years ago.

They opened 2 and there should also be another shaft here (ish) ;-

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=50.230287&lon=-5.221386&z=19.1&r=0&src=msl 

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