RAILWAY AND CANAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY TRAMROAD GROUP Occasional Paper 114 The Mineral Tramways Discovery Centre Tim Edmonds For my son's half-term in mid-October we spent a very pleasant week in a cottage in the Lizard peninsula. Although I had no opportunity to explore any of the Cornish tramroads on this occasion, we did stumble across The Mineral Tramways Discovery Centre at Cam Brea. This is part of a 'cultural tourism initiative' which aims to conserve and interpret the industrial archaeology of the Camborne/Redruth area, including many of the Cornish tramroads. The ultimate objective is to gain World Heritage Site status. The Centre is managed by Groundwork Kerrier, which is a charitable trust whose stated purpose is to regenerate the economy and environmental fabric of the district in partner ship with local communities, local authorities and the private sector. It takes its name from Kerrier District Council. One of the current projects is the development of a Mineral Tramway Trail to link the north and south coasts of Cornwall, including associated mining heritage sites. The western half is based on the Portreath Tramroad between Portreath and Crofthandy, the eastern half on the Redruth and Chasewater Railway. The Portreath and Tresavean branches of the Hayle Railway are also included. Several informative leaflets have been produced, and through the kindness of Ms Jane Buchanan, Business Manager, Groundwork Kerrier, it is possible to include copies of two of these with this paper. In addition to the leaflets mentioned above a number of publications are available. There is an A4 brochure which gives a general overview of the project, Mineral Tramways Project: a future for Cornwall's mining past. It costs 55p plus p & p (31p probably). There was also available in the shop a copy of the Cornwall Archaeology report Mineral Tramways Project, published in 1989, a detailed archaeological survey of all industrial remains, not just the tramways. Also available is a book by Bob Acton, Exploring Cornwall's Tramway Trails. Vol. 1: The Great Flat Lode Trail (Truro: Landfall Publications, 1996. £6.99). I understand that Vol. 2: The Coast to Coast Trail, is presently being prepared for publication and will cover the Portreath Tramroad and the Redruth & Chasewater Railway. The Mineral Tramways Discovery Centre is at Pool, between Camborne and Redruth, which are the nearest stations (and then 'bus to Pool). The address is: Mineral Tramways Discovery Centre, Groundwork Kerrier, Old Cowlin's Mill, Penhallick, Cam Brea, Redruth TR15 3YR. Telephone: 01269 612 917. December 1996 .