Magpie Mine

Magpie Lead Mine started 300 years ago but during the 1820s and 1830s there were serious disputes between the miners of Magpie and the nearby Maypitts over rights to work the Great Red Soil vein. At various times the miners broke through into each others workings and would light a fire underground and try to smoke the other out. In 1833 this had fatal consequences as three Red Soil miners were suffocated to death by a fire lit by the Magpie miners. Subsequently 24 Magpie miners were put on trial for their murder, several were freed immediately. Eventually all were acquitted because of the difficulty in identifying the individual culprits, and the provocative actions of the Maypitt miners themselves. It is said that the wives of the “murdered” men put a curse on the mine, and the effect of the disputes was to ruin the mine, which closed in 1835.
In 1839, John Taylor, a famous Cornish mining engineer was brought in to re-open the Magpie Mine, which now incorporated the Great Redsoil workings. He introduced a number of innovations, including steel borers, safety hats, safety fuse, and iron winding ropes. He also introduced a more regular pattern of shift working and payment for his workers, some of whom had come up from Cornwall with him.
Today it is just a nice ruin waiting to be photographed.


From here we enjoyed a nice pint and good food in the Cock and Pullet. A great atmosphere as the place was full of farmers at the end of their long days. We should have guessed it was from the array of tractors and land rovers parked outside.