Before the Railway: How Perran's Iron Ore Reached the Sea
Gravel Hill’s iron mine stood beside the Atlantic. Its ore still travelled about three miles by cart to reach a ship. That awkward journey explains a great deal about this coast.
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Transport History
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When Ships Sailed Up the Gannel
The Gannel carried cargo, served mines and supported shipbuilding. Restoring that movement changes the relationship between Newquay and Crantock.
From Waterwheel to Railway: The Industrial Landscape Hidden Around Holywell
A wheelpit, a corn mill, coastal mines and competing transport schemes reveal the working landscape behind Holywell’s beach.
The Strange Holes in the Rock at Fern Pit — A Gannel Mystery Since 1890
The hollows beside Fern Pit have attracted explanations for more than a century. Their history is easier to establish than their purpose.
Seven Bridges, the Smugglers’ Den and the Railway in the Valley
A pub with a tunnel story sits beside a landscape of old mineral routes. The interesting part is working out which connections belong together.
Watergate Bay: The Hotel Waiting for a Railway That Never Came
Watergate Bay’s hotel was built for an expected railway arrival. The railway failed to turn up; the building found several other futures.
The Railway to Holywell Bay That Never Was
Holywell Bay could have had a railway, pier and harbour. The parliamentary record reveals a serious Victorian proposal—and a coastline that escaped a very different future.