Long Grass Quarry

Last updated

Long Grass Slate Quarry
Coordinates 50°39′36″N4°45′50″W / 50.660°N 4.764°W / 50.660; -4.764

Long Grass Quarry (also known as Cliff Quarry [1] ) is a small, disused slate quarry between Tintagel and Trebarwith on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England, which was worked up until 1937. It was the last of the slate quarries on this stretch of coast to be abandoned.

Contents

Location

The quarry site occupies the stretch of coastline immediately north west of the Tintagel youth hostel and just to the south of the abandoned Gillow Slate Quarry. The quarry workings extend for around 70m in length and reach a height of 59m.

Quarrying

Men would use flights of wooden ladders to climb down the sheer rock face to the left of a small "box cave" that had been tunnelled at the foot of the cliff. Quarrying here was hazardous: in 1886, three workers lost their lives when the rock they were drilling fell into the sea and a quarryman named Reuben Tinney died in 1936 shortly before the quarry closed. [2]

Industrial remains

The youth hostel building is associated with nearby Lambshouse Quarry where it served as offices, powerhouse and smithy. The remains of a strip of ten small buildings can still be seen; these were possibly sheds where slate was dressed. [3] There are possibly ruins of some splitting sheds at the extreme south of the quarry which were destroyed as the quarry expanded some time after 1907. Remains of iron handrails, chains and rusty stanchions in the cliff face are evidence of aids for the men climbing down the cliffs on ladders. [2]

Stone

The quarry provided a source of Upper Devonian slate and Lower Carboniferous slates of a greyish green colour used predominantly for roofing. Slate from inside the box cave provided exceptionally good quality slate. [3]

History

The quarries on this stretch of coast possibly date back to the 17th century [4] and Long Grass remained operational until 1937. It features as a site on the 1884 OS map and was expanded considerably between 1907 and 1937. During this time, many of the earlier quarry buildings were destroyed. An archaeological survey conducted by the Cornwall Archaeological Unit in 1990 recorded traces of splitting huts and a tramway, as well as ruins of a small 20th-century concrete structure. By the time the quarry closed in 1937, it will have been used for little more than extraction and dressing stone.

Charles Hambly

Hambly was a "rockman" at Long Grass Quarry- one of the workers suspended by rope against the rock face. On 20 December 1893, Hambly led a party of four men in the rescue of eleven crew from the Italian barque, Iota. The ship had struck a nearby pinnacle known as Lye Rock. Coastguards scaled Lye Rock and Hambly was lowered down the rock face on a rope. Despite strong gusts of wind and hail, he secured ropes to seven of Iota's crew who were then brought to the mainland by breeches buoy. [5] For his efforts, Hambly was awarded the Testimonial on Vellum [6] as well as the Italian Silver Medal for Bravery.

Hambly was also responsible for rescuing some of the crew of the wrecked French ship Gazelle in April 1899. For this he received the French Silver Medal for Bravery. [7] In the early days of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Hambly was a correspondent for the Society.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tintagel</span> Village in Cornwall, England

Tintagel or Trevena is a civil parish and village situated on the Atlantic coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village and nearby Tintagel Castle are associated with the legends surrounding King Arthur and in recent times have become a tourist attraction. It was claimed by Geoffrey of Monmouth that the castle was an ancient residence of King Arthur.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tintagel Castle</span> Medieval fortification in North Cornwall, England

Tintagel Castle is a medieval fortification located on the peninsula of Tintagel Island adjacent to the village of Tintagel (Trevena), North Cornwall in the United Kingdom. The site was possibly occupied in the Romano-British period, as an array of artefacts dating from this period have been found on the peninsula, but as yet no Roman-era structure has been proven to have existed there. It was settled during the early medieval period, when it was probably one of the seasonal residences of the regional king of Dumnonia. A castle was built on the site by Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall in the 13th century, during the High Middle Ages. It later fell into disrepair and ruin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Cornwall</span> Area of Cornwall, England

North Cornwall is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is also the name of a former local government district, which was administered from Bodmin and Wadebridge 50.516°N 4.835°W. Other towns in the area are Launceston, Bude, Padstow, and Camelford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bossiney</span> Human settlement in England

Bossiney is a village in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is north-east of the larger village of Tintagel which it adjoins: further north-east are the Rocky Valley and Trethevy. Until 1832 the village, with its neighbour Tintagel, returned two MPs as a Rotten Borough, for the Bossiney constituency. The beach of Bossiney Haven is located nearby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treknow</span> Human settlement in England

Treknow is a small village in Tintagel civil parish, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom: it is the second largest settlement, and is located between Trevena and Trebarwith. It is situated 19 miles (31 km) north of Bodmin, 4 miles (6.4 km) north-west of Camelford, and 1 mile (1.6 km) west of Tintagel, grid reference SX056869

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trebarwith Strand</span> Section of coastline in Northern Cornwall, UK

Trebarwith Strand is a section of coastline located near the coastal settlement of Trebarwith on the north coast of Cornwall, England, UK, 2+1⁄2 miles (4.0 km) south of Tintagel. It has 800m of sandy beach contained by cliffs in which natural caves are found. The beach can only be accessed at low tide. The strand was once used to land ships to export slate from the nearby quarries while sand from the beach was used for agricultural purposes. The view from the beach is dominated by rocks 300m offshore known as Gull Rock or Otterham Rocks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geology of Cornwall</span>

The geology of Cornwall, England, is dominated by its granite backbone, part of the Cornubian batholith, formed during the Variscan orogeny. Around this is an extensive metamorphic aureole formed in the mainly Devonian slates that make up most of the rest of the county. There is an area of sandstone and shale of Carboniferous age in the north east, and the Lizard peninsula is formed of a rare section of uplifted oceanic crust.

Gillow State Quarry is a small, disused slate quarry between Tintagel and Trebarwith on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England. The quarry was abandoned by the turn of the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lambshouse and Gull Point Quarry</span> Two disused slate quarries in Cornwall, England

Lambshouse and Gull Point Quarries are two disused slate quarries between Tintagel and Trebarwith at Lambshouse Cove on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England. The quarries were latterly worked jointly as one site and were abandoned by the turn of the 20th century. It is likely that Lambshouse Quarry originated at the cliffs at the north of the cove while Gull Point was to the south.

Bagalow Quarry is a disused slate quarry between Tintagel and Trebarwith at Bagalow Cove on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England. The quarry was worked from the 1830s into the early part of the twentieth century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tintagel Slate Quarries</span> Series of quarries in Cornwall, England

Tintagel Slate Quarries fall into two categories: the series of quarries lying between Tintagel Castle and Trebarwith Strand on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England and the open cast quarries further inland. There are around eight cliff-edge quarries as well as two wharfs, all of which are now disused as well as four inland sites, two of which are still in operation. The first quarry to be worked appears to have been Lanterdan at some point in the fifteenth century, while the last of the coastal quarries, Long Grass ceased operations in 1937. The remains of the coastal quarries occupy coastal land owned by the National Trust and most are easily accessible from the South West Coast Path. The Prince of Wales Quarry has been turned into a country park by North Cornwall District Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hole Beach</span>

Hole Beach is a bathing and surf beach just north of Trebarwith Strand on the North Coast of Cornwall, South West England. The beach can be accessed from Trebarwith at low tide or by a zigzagging quarryman's track from the village of Treknow. The beach is sandy and the water is good for surfing. The sheer cliffs to the north of the beach form part of the now disused Caroline Slate Quarry and were created by quarrymen suspended by ropes attached to strongpoints some 75m on the clifftop above. A cave 15m above sea level is artificial and is also the result of quarrying- this is the "hole" that gives the beach its name. There is also a natural sea cave at the rear of the beach. One of the stone strong points still perches on top of the near vertical cliffs 75m above the beach, as does a second building which was possibly used as a toolshed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lanterdan Quarry</span> Disused slate quarry in Cornwall, England

Lanterdan Quarry is a disused open cast slate quarry between Tintagel and Trebarwith on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England. The quarry is the oldest, largest and most spectacular of Tintagel’s coastal quarries and was worked from the fifteenth until the early twentieth century. A distinguishing feature of the quarry is a 25m high pinnacle of inferior slate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tintagel Haven</span> Section of coastline in Northern Cornwall, UK

Tintagel Haven also known as Castle Cove is a small beach on the north side of Tintagel Island on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England.

Penhallick Wharf is a disused coastal loading dock between Tintagel Castle and Trebarwith Strand on the north coast of Cornwall in South West England. The wharf served the Tintagel Slate Quarries, particularly those without easy access to the loading beach at Tintagel Haven. These include Caroline, Dria, Bagalow and possibly Lambshouse and Gull Point quarries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Quarry</span> Disused slate quarry

West Quarry is a disused open cast slate quarry between Tintagel and Trebarwith on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England. The quarry ceased operations towards the end of the nineteenth century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lye Cove</span> Small coastal inlet

Lye Cove is a small coastal inlet near Tintagel on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England. The cove lies immediately below the Iron Age hill fort known as Willapark and nearby Lye Rock was the site of the wreck of the Italian cargo ship Iota in 1893. Above the cove is the remains of a nineteenth century lime kiln.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Willapark (Tintagel)</span> Iron Age hill fort

50.574°N 4.743°W

Iota was a wooden barque built in Bideford in 1866 and weighing 572 tons. The ship was owned by an Italian firm named Mazella based in Naples and was wrecked near Tintagel, Cornwall, on 20 December 1893.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boscastle Slate Quarries</span> Series of disused coastal quarries in Cornwall, England

Boscastle Slate Quarries are a series of disused coastal quarries between Willapark and Trevalga on the north coast of Cornwall, South West England.

References

  1. ↑ Dyer, Peter (2005) Tintagel: a portrait of a parish. Cambridge: Cambridge Books. ISBN 0-9550097-0-7; p. 200
  2. 1 2 Booklet: ”The National Trust Coast of Cornwall: 4 Tintagel”, Brian Le Messurier, 1991
  3. 1 2 «Coastal Slate Quarries – Tintagel to Trebarwith” (1990) Adam Sharpe, CAU archaeological survey for the National Trust. ISBN 1 871162 95 5
  4. ↑ Evidence report: the building stones of Cornwall; the identification of heritage quarries; Cornwall Council; p. 162
  5. ↑ "Geocaching - the Official Global GPS Cache Hunt Site". www.geocaching.com. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
  6. ↑ "Ship wreck victim remembered". www.thepost.uk.com. Retrieved 27 April 2022.[ title missing ]
  7. ↑ Dyer, Peter (2005) Tintagel: a portrait of a parish. Cambridge: Cambridge Books. ISBN 0-9550097-0-7; pp. 434-36
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.