Gaverigan Tin Streaming

Overview

An alluvial tin-streaming works near Indian Queens, in the parish of St Enoder, mid Cornwall -- one of two such operations, alongside Goss Moor, that supplemented farming in this upland parish.

History

Gaverigan worked alluvial tin deposited alongside the River Fal, where four tin lodes were discovered and worked in the course of streaming -- washing loose ground to recover cassiterite concentrated there by erosion, rather than following a lode underground. St Enoder parish's own history records tin streaming at Gaverigan and on the adjoining Goss Moor as a real supplement to the parish's farming economy through the 19th century; Gaverigan later also had its own brickworks, one of several in the immediate area alongside Burthy, Chytane and Wheal Remfry. The site produced a distinctive variety of cassiterite known as 'sparable tin', named -- per mineralogist R.H. Solly's 1891 description in the Mineralogical Magazine -- for its resemblance to a cobbler's sparable nail, and specimens of wood tin, another cassiterite variety, were collected nearby by the noted mineral collector Sir Arthur Russell.

What remains

Recorded by Mindat as an inactive alluvial deposit; no current workings.

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.

• In the course of tin streaming at Gaverigan, four tin lodes were discovered and worked adjacent to the River Fal. ¹
• R.H. Solly recorded 'sparable tin' -- a cassiterite variety named for its resemblance to a cobbler's sparable nail -- from Gaverigan in an 1891 Mineralogical Magazine description; wood tin specimens were also collected nearby by mineral collector Sir Arthur Russell. ¹
• Tin streaming at Gaverigan and on the adjoining Goss Moor supplemented farming in St Enoder parish through the 19th century; Gaverigan later also had its own brickworks. ²

Sources

1. (secondary) Gaverigan Tin Stream Works — Mindat
2. (secondary) History of St Enoder — St Enoder Parish Council

Record created: 29 August 2026 · Last researched: 29 August 2026