Poldark Mine

Genuine mining heritage, later taking the Poldark name

The mining history at this site near Wendron runs deep - records point to a mechanised tin stamping mill here as early as 1493, and the genuine underground workings known as Wheal Roots were worked by hand roughly between 1720 and 1780. Those 18th-century tunnels are what set the attraction apart: for decades, descending around 100 feet into real, historic tin workings made it the only complete tin mine in the UK to offer underground tours to the public, rather than a recreated or staged experience.

The modern visitor attraction began in 1972, when Royal Marine Peter Young revived the site as "Wendron Forge," later renaming it "Halfpenny Mine" after further ancient workings were rediscovered. It became Poldark Mine following the huge success of the BBC's Poldark, first broadcast in 1975 and based on Winston Graham's novels - Graham himself sanctioned the use of the name, some filming took place on the site, and he chose to launch his final Poldark novel there in 2002. So the Poldark name was a later addition to a site whose genuine mining heritage came first, not the other way around.

At its peak, the attraction combined the underground tour with a museum of historic mining machinery and social history, a restored 1850s beam engine, a scheduled ancient monument known as the Trenear Mortar Stone, riverside gardens and a craft courtyard. The whole site sits within the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site, recognising the international significance of Cornwall's mining industry.