Inverneill

Prospecting and mining for lead and copper ores were carried out in several parts of the Inverneill area at various times from the middle of the 18th to the early 20th century. A report prepared for the Inverneill estate in 1790 described the works carried out for two English companies which produced 19 tons of lead and 9 tons of copper between 1745 and 1756, and a shaft and flooded adit on the SW bank of the Inverneil Burn 1.2km WNW of Achbraad (NR 827819) have been identified with workings described at that time. These and other old workings in the valleys of the Inverneil Burn and its tributary, the Allt nan Nathair (NR 820812, 824810, 829812, 829810,832817,835814), however, were the object of further activity in the 1860s, including the opening of new shafts and reworking of old spoil-heaps. All of these sites are now heavily overgrown, and most are inaccessible in thick forest (en.1*).

Other veins of copper and lead were identified near Stronachullin, about 2.5km to the SSE, and these were worked from 1862 by the South Argyll Mining Company. One of these workings, situated on the S bank of the Stronachullin Burn (NR 843791 [Canmore 39357]) and described in 1867 as a lead mine, has survived as an overgrown cleft, some 25m in length, in the N-facing hillside. The spoil-heaps to the N appear to have been reworked, and this is probably the site where small amounts of gold were identified in 1907 (en.2*).

RCAHMS 1992, visited May 1989

The website text produced for Inverneil Mines webpages on the Forest Heritage Scotland website (www.forestheritagescotland.com).

Introduction: Lead and copper mining in Knapdale

Hidden within Knapdale forest, near the town of Inverneil, you can find evidence of past copper and lead mining.

It is common, when mining for galena ore, the mineral that contains lead, to find other metals at the same time. Often silver is found with lead, as at Tyndrum mines]. On the Inverneil estate, it was copper.

In 1326, a record shows that the Constable of Tarbert paid for coal and materials supplied to the lead mines. This is the earliest known evidence for such activity in this area. It is unknown if it specifically refers to the mines at Inverneil.

The Inverneil estate lead mines operated mainly in the 18th century. This was a time when the lead mining industry was growing in Scotland. At Inverneil, it never became a major industry, unlike the other three lead mines on the national forest estate,Tyndrum, Corrantee and Minnigaff.

There is evidence scattered throughout the forest of the mining activity. Opposite Auchbraad farm, beside the burn, there is an old mine shaft. Locals refer to the burn as Copper Craigs, suggesting this is one of the copper mine workings.

Elsewhere, there are other shafts and many spoil heaps, where the debris from the mines piled up; these piles remain today.

People Story: An informed decision

In 1790 Sir Archibald Campbell, owner of Inverneil Estate, decided to explore the estate's potential for mining.

Firstly, he hired two groups of miners to assess the value of the old mines on the estate. He wanted to know if it would be profitable to re-open these mines.

Secondly, he contacted former mine workers from the estate. He wanted to learn all he could about the previous mining activity.

On 25th October 1790, Matthew Freeman, the manager of a mine on Islay, replied to Campbell's request for information. From Freeman's account, we can discover a bit about the history of Inverneil mines.

Freeman came to Scotland in 1749 to work at Tyndrumand then Corrantee lead mines]. Here, he met miners who had worked for the Clifton Company at Inverneil.

It is unknown when the Clifton Company first started mining operations, but in 1745 the Bristol Company took over the mines. They raised 9 tons of copper and 19 tons of lead. Freeman began to work at Inverneil around this time.

In 1756, a Derbyshire company took over and ran the mines for a further two years.

In 1762, Matthew Freeman worked for a Mr Lissington, who devoted his time to prospecting for more lead and copper at Inverneil. This included re-examining old mines and undertaking trial pits with little success.

The results of Archibald Campbell's investigations wisely led him to abandon his idea to reopen the lead mines on his estate.