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The walls
on the right are the remains of some of the miners drys and the middle
tree marks the location of the blocked adit entrance which passes under
the yard on its way to meet with Sump Shaft. |
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Above
the main adit and below Donkey pond can clearly be seen the walls of an enclosed square
yard.
Although the structure has the appearance of a farm or domestic building
it was built in the 1860's as part of the improvements
in South Caradon's processing facilities and included a miner's dry. The dry provided an important
facility in improving the miners welfare. In these buildings the workers
could change their wet working clothes for a dry set prior to their walk
home. This was not a luxury but an important factor in reducing the high
death rates from lung disease
A modern track now cuts across the yard, breaching the walls at each end
as it does so. The chimney that can be seen to the south of the yard served
a boiler that provided the steam for the Dry. Around the yard was also located
storage sheds, a wash house and even a barbers shop. The decision to invest
in such a large set of buildings probably stemmed from the
owner's
experience working underground as a miner.
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TeamManley
