Parkenoweth Mine

Overview

A tin mine in the Pendeen district of St Just, named among the area's more prosperous mines in an 1868 parochial history, though no detailed account of its own working life has yet been located.

History

Parkenoweth worked tin in the Pendeen district of the St Just mining area, part of one of Cornwall's most important 19th-century mining districts for both copper and tin, where large-scale production ran from around 1820 to about 1930. An 1868 parochial history of St Just names Parkenoweth among 'the more prosperous' tin mines of the district, in the same company as Levant, Boscaswell Downs, Balleswidden, Boscan, Wheal Owls and Wheal Boys -- but despite a genuine search of the specialist sources covering this well-documented district, including a detailed history of neighbouring Pendeen village, no operator, working dates, output or closure specific to Parkenoweth itself could be located.

Workings

Parkenoweth was one of the lodes and workings absorbed into the wider Wheal Owles group, alongside Wheal Edward, Wheal Grouse, Cargodna, Wheal Boys, Wheal Gendall, Wheal Chase and Lower Boscean -- no reliable detail on its own individual working arrangements, separate from the group's, has yet been located.

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.

• The St Just district was one of Cornwall's most important 19th-century mining areas for both copper and tin, with large-scale production running from around 1820 to about 1930. ¹
• An 1868 parochial history of St Just names Parkenoweth among 'the more prosperous' tin mines of the district, alongside Levant, Boscaswell Downs, Balleswidden, Boscan, Wheal Owls and Wheal Boys. ²
• Parkenoweth was one of the constituent lodes/workings of the wider Wheal Owles group at Botallack, alongside Wheal Edward, Wheal Grouse, Cargodna, Wheal Boys, Wheal Gendall, Wheal Chase and Lower Boscean. (uncertain) ³

Sources

1. (secondary) Geevor Tin Mine Museum: Ten Thousand Years of History (History of Pendeen) — Geevor Tin Mine Museum
2. (primary) Information about St Just in Penwith (Lake's Parochial History, 1868 extract) — West Penwith Resources
3. (secondary) Wheal Owles — Wikipedia

Record created: 31 August 2026 · Last researched: 31 August 2026