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'Redruth' () is a town and civil parish in the district of Kerrier (traditionally in Penwith Hundred), Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It lies approximately at the junction of the A393 road and A3047, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road the A30. It is approximately nine miles west of Truro, twelve miles east of St Ives, eighteen miles north-east of Penzance, and eleven miles north-west of Falmouth.
Historically, Redruth was a small market town overshadowed by its neighbours until a boom in the demand for copper ore during the 18th century. Copper ore had mostly been discarded by the Cornish tin-mining industry, but was now needed to make brass, an essential metal in the Industrial Revolution. Surrounded by copper ore deposits, Redruth quickly became one of the largest and richest mining areas in Britain and the town's population grew markedly. Most miners' families, however, remained poor.
In the 1880s and 1890s the town end of Clinton Road gained a number of institutions, notably a School of Mines and Art School in 1882–83, St. Andrews Church (replacing the chapel in Chapel Street) in 1883 and, opposite, the Free Library, built in 1895. By the turn of the century, Victoria Park had been laid out to commemorate the Golden Jubilee and this part of town had taken on its present appearance — a far cry from the jumble of mining activity that took place there in the early 19th century. Redruth was making its transition from a market town dominated by mines and industry to a residential centre.
By the end of the 19th century Britain was importing most of its copper ore and the Cornish mining industry was in decline. To find employment, many miners emigrated to the newer mining industries in the Americas, Australasia and South Africa. Cornwall's last fully-operational mine, South Crofty at Pool between Redruth and Camborne, closed in March 1998.
One of the founding fathers of gas lighting, William Murdoch (1754–1839, later known as Murdock) lived in Redruth and from 1792 is said to have used gas to light his house. If true, this would have been one of the first uses of town gas for lighting. There is an annual Murdoch Day in the town, each June. An estimated 10,000 spectators attended the 2007 event.^[1].
Today, Redruth is a small commercial town, with a population recorded in 2001 of 12,352. It is twinned with Plumergat et Meriadec in Brittany, France and Mineral Point, Wisconsin in the USA, where Cornish immigrants built many of the stone buildings still standing. A museum organised by the Old Cornwall Societyis housed in the Town Council office at the bottom of the main street (see web site for details).
Redruth is also home to Carn Brea, which has most historical interest. The Carn however is not the highest point in Redruth, beaten slightly by Carnmenellis, south west of the town centre.
Redruth also has an increasing reputation in sport, with Redruth RFC currently at the higher part of the national 2 league. Players such as Phil Vickery and Rob Thirlby have both passed through its ranks. Redruth football club has not enjoyed as much success but still thrives in its regular fixtures.
The actress, Kristin Scott Thomas, and drummer of Fleetwood Mac, Mick Fleetwood were both born here. The writer and comedian, Rory McGrath, was educated at the town's secondary school.

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Trivia

See also

External links

Trivia

★ The longest running trade in Redruth is the current Mac's Fish Shop in Higher Fore Street, which has been running for well over 80 years.

★ The town clock in the centre of Redruth used to be a prison cell in the 19th Century; the clock itself is now entirely mechanical.

★ Red River (Tin Stream), given its name due to the taint of red given by the tin in the ground, runs right through Redruth, and ends up in Portreath where it joins the sea.

See also

★ Redruth School

★ List of topics related to Cornwall

External links

★ Redruth OCS

★ Redruth local information and business directory

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★ Redruth School

★ Redruth RFC

★ BBC Nation on Film

★ Redruth Geneology On Line

★ Cornwall Record Office Online Catalogue for Redruth