Portreath
Encyclopedia
Portreath is a civil parish, village and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall
, United Kingdom
. The village is situated approximately three miles (5 km) northwest of Redruth
.
The village extends along both sides of a stream valley and is centred around the harbour. West of the harbour entrance and breakwater is a sandy beach which is popular with holidaymakers and surfers
.
In the late 1770s, during the American Revolutionary War, lieutenant-colonel of the North Devon militia, Francis Basset
, commanded local miners to fortify the port, which helped counter a Franco-Spanish invasion fleet gathered as part of the European theatre of the war.
In the 19th century, Portreath was, with Devoran
on the south coast, one of the main ports for sending the copper ore mined in the Gwennap area to Swansea
for smelting
. The ships returned with Welsh coal to fire the steam engines used on the mines. The two rectangular basins that today make up the harbour and the long breakwater just below the cliffs were all built for this trade. The peak of this enterprise was around 1840, when some 100,000 tons of copper ore were shipped out each year.
To the south of the harbour are the significant remains of the old cable-worked incline
used by the Hayle Railway
in the 19th and early 20th centuries to descend to the quayside.
The railways and tramways associated with the minerals trade today for the Mineral Tramways Coast to Coast, a long distance cycleway and footpath extending 15 miles from Portreath to the south coast
RRH Portreath
, on Nancekuke Common to the north of the village, is now a radar station operated by the RAF, but was originally built in 1940 to be the RAF's main fighter airfield in Cornwall during WW2.
for its biological
interest. The woods are one of only 2 sites in Britain
to contain Irish spurge (Euphorbia hyberna), a Red Data Book of rare and endangered plant species
.
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The village is situated approximately three miles (5 km) northwest of Redruth
Redruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...
.
The village extends along both sides of a stream valley and is centred around the harbour. West of the harbour entrance and breakwater is a sandy beach which is popular with holidaymakers and surfers
Surfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
.
History
The name Portreath (meaning "sandy cove") was first recorded in 1485. Tin streaming in the valley was recorded from 1602, and the first quay was built in 1713 near Amy's Point, though it was destroyed by the sea before 1749. The village also had a fishing fleet, mainly for pilchards.In the late 1770s, during the American Revolutionary War, lieutenant-colonel of the North Devon militia, Francis Basset
Francis Basset, 1st Baron de Dunstanville and Basset
Francis Basset, 1st Baron de Dunstanville and Basset FRS was an English nobleman and politician. He was the first son of Francis Basset and Margaret St...
, commanded local miners to fortify the port, which helped counter a Franco-Spanish invasion fleet gathered as part of the European theatre of the war.
In the 19th century, Portreath was, with Devoran
Devoran
Devoran is a village in south Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated four miles southwest of Truro at . Formerly an ecclesiastical parish, Devoran is now in the civil parish of Feock....
on the south coast, one of the main ports for sending the copper ore mined in the Gwennap area to Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
for smelting
Smelting
Smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy; its main use is to produce a metal from its ore. This includes iron extraction from iron ore, and copper extraction and other base metals from their ores...
. The ships returned with Welsh coal to fire the steam engines used on the mines. The two rectangular basins that today make up the harbour and the long breakwater just below the cliffs were all built for this trade. The peak of this enterprise was around 1840, when some 100,000 tons of copper ore were shipped out each year.
To the south of the harbour are the significant remains of the old cable-worked incline
Hillclimbing (railway)
While railways have a great ability to haul very heavy loads, this advantage only really applies when the tracks are fairly level. As soon as the gradients stiffen, the tonnage that can be hauled is greatly diminished.- Techniques to overcome steep hills :...
used by the Hayle Railway
Hayle Railway
The Hayle Railway was an early Cornish railway, built to standard gauge, and opened in 1837. The railway served the engineering works and copper quays at Hayle with the copper mines of Redruth and Camborne carrying ore to the port and coal to the mines, before the construction of the Saltash Bridge...
in the 19th and early 20th centuries to descend to the quayside.
The railways and tramways associated with the minerals trade today for the Mineral Tramways Coast to Coast, a long distance cycleway and footpath extending 15 miles from Portreath to the south coast
RRH Portreath
RRH Portreath
RRH Portreath is a Remote Radar Head operated by the Royal Air Force. It is situated at Nancekuke Common on the clifftops to the north of Portreath beach and southwest of Porthtowan in Cornwall...
, on Nancekuke Common to the north of the village, is now a radar station operated by the RAF, but was originally built in 1940 to be the RAF's main fighter airfield in Cornwall during WW2.
Geography
Nance Wood, 1 mile to the south east of the village is, is designated as a Site of Special Scientific InterestSite of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
for its biological
Flora and fauna of Cornwall
Cornwall is the county that forms the tip of the southwestern peninsula of England; this area has a mild and warm climate regulated by the Gulf Stream...
interest. The woods are one of only 2 sites in Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
to contain Irish spurge (Euphorbia hyberna), a Red Data Book of rare and endangered plant species
IUCN Red List
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...
.