The North Coast Bal Maidens

This book gives glimpses into the life and work of the women and girls who worked at the mines on the north coast of Cornwall (between Portreath and Padstow). Female employment was widespread here, with the earliest accounts coming from the late 18th century copper mines. It continued through until the early 20th century, with the last bal maidens working at the tin mines in St Agnes. This was a significant mining area with complex mineralogy, so bal maidens dressed lead, silver, zinc, iron and clay, as well as copper and tin. In addition to describing their work, there is an assessment of the numbers of bal maidens employed, and an overview of women and girls from key mining families. There are also accounts of a six year-old bal maiden who lived to be one hundred years old, and a Portreath ore dresser who helped in the discovery of copper in Australia, as well as the tragic story of the bal maiden who died in a boiler explosion, at United Hills Mine.