Cligga Head

Overview

Cligga Head is a dramatic clifftop mine site near Perranporth, worked first for tin and then, most notably, for wartime tungsten. Its rich wolfram veins made it strategically important during the Second World War, and its collapsing adits and mineral-stained cliffs remain a landmark for geologists as much as mining historians.

History

Undocumented cliff workings extracted tin here before 1825, and the site operated through the 19th century as Wheal Prudence, an open tin mine. Its real significance came later: on 21 September 1938 the Cligga Wolfram and Tin Mines Ltd was founded to exploit the site's rich wolfram (tungsten) veins, and the mine passed to the Rhodesian Mines Trust Ltd in 1939. Wartime demand made this valuable — tungsten was needed for armour plating and munitions — and between 1940 and 1944 the mine produced around 300 tons of wolframite and 200 tons of black tin. Production fell away once Britain began importing cheaper American tungsten, and the mine closed in 1945. Substantial mineral reserves are believed to remain beneath the headland, and reopening was seriously considered on three separate occasions in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The Geevor Mining Company, in partnership with several other companies, leased the site in the early 1960s and deepened the contact shaft during rehabilitation work, but abandoned the attempt by early 1964 after flooding at around 250 ft. A further evaluation by Wheal Concord in 1976 planned a reopening for the mid-1980s that never proceeded.

Geology

The site is geologically notable for its greisen — a mineralised, altered granite — hosting tin, tungsten, arsenic, copper, iron and silver ores.

Workings

Ore was initially hauled up cliff workings in baskets before more conventional shaft mining developed. The contact shaft was deepened to 550 ft during the 1960s rehabilitation attempt, with a seaward drive extending roughly 800 ft under the sea.

Closure

The mine closed in 1945 once wartime demand for tungsten ended and cheaper American imports undercut domestic production; subsequent reopening attempts in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s all fell through.

What remains

Extensive mine spoil remains visible near Shag Rock, and cliff collapses — some caused by vibration from historic blasting — have damaged earlier mine structures including a pump chamber. Tunnels and adits remain visible in the cliff face.

Mine spoil and cliff-face tunnels are the main visible remains; there has been no formal conservation programme at the site.

Redevelopment

No redevelopment has taken place; substantial mineral reserves are believed to remain under the headland but no active mining has resumed.

Abandoned workings can be dangerous — unstable ground, uncapped shafts, flooding and bad air are common even where a site looks safe from the surface. This entry describes history and general location only; it is not an access guide.

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• Between 1940 and 1944 the mine produced around 300 tons of wolframite and 200 tons of black tin, mainly for wartime munitions use. ¹
• A 2019 underground exploration report describes a recent collapse in the giant stope at Cligga Head and unstable ground in places, with a short modern ladder used to pass between the stope and the middle level. (uncertain) ²

Photographs & further reading

This page doesn't try to reproduce everything — these are the best original sources found for this mine.

Images

Sources

1. (secondary) Cligga Head Mine, Cornwall — Cornwall Calling
2. (observational) Cligga Head Mine: Giant Stope and Middle Level — 28DaysLater
3. (secondary) Cligga Head Mine - Cornish Mine Images — Cornish Mine Images