Carn Brea

The parish Church of St Euny in Redruth is Georgian, with a 15th century tower. The church was founded by Euny, an obscure Celtic saint. Notice the extra long coffin rest covered by an appropriately extended lych-gate (a roof gate under which to rest their bier). This was built to cope in the event of a major mining accident.

The castle, which proudly flies the Cornish flag was built in 1379. Then, when the slopes were thickly wooded and abundant in game, it served as a hunting lodge. Long before in Neolithic times, people had lived here and made axes. Hut circles have been dated to the Iron Age when a fort occupied the eastern end of the hill.

The 27 metre high Basset Monument was erected by the county in 1836, as a tribute to Francis, Lord de Dunstanville and Brea. He was a rich mine owner who cared for the miners welfare. His family line of Bassetts descended from Norman times and where the most important mining family in the area, and members of the family had lived in nearby Tehidy House for over 700 years. Francis Bassett was however the first to be elevated to the nobility due to his efforts to raise an army of miners to defend the port of Plymouth from the combined Spanish and French fleets.

Monuments such as the Basset Tower were often erected on ley lines (lines linking ancient sites that may have had magical significance in prehistoric times). It seems there may be some connection between these leys and the appearance of strange lights in the sky. A group of three adults and 90 children from Treleigh County Primary School in Redruth witnessed such a light above here in July 1976.

There was once a number of tin mines at the foot of Carn Brea. Indeed, Carn Brea was, at one time, the centre of the Cornish mining industry. A ruined engine house still stands as a reminder of a locality's prosperous past.

At first the mines were worked for copper, but in 1881 tin had become more important. The depth reached was 1,710 feet (513 metres), with levels stretching for a total length of 29 miles, and a workforce of over 1,000 people. Closure finally came in 1921.

In a depression near the summit of Carn Brea are the remains of the "Smugglers' Cave". The tunnel is rumoured to extend into Redruth, but rather than being a route for contraband, it is probably an abandoned mine working. It was blocked with rocks by the council in the 1980's to stop children entering.

With the mines came the railway, carrying freight and passengers between Redruth and the port of Hayle as early as 1843. Just over twenty years later, the line was being used by broad gauge through trains running from London to Penzance. Standard gauge prevailed in 1892 and the first Cornish Riviera Express ran in 1905.