East Pool Mine

East Pool mine started out in the early 18th century as a copper mine called "Pool Old Bal". The land under which it was allowed to mine (the "sett") was leased from the Basset family and it generated enough money for that family to build their country house at Tehidy. The mine's adit was 32 fathoms (192 ft; 59 m) below ground and mining had taken place 16 fathoms (96 ft; 29 m) below this, the workings being drained by a flatrod system powered by a water wheel south of Pool village. This phase of mining ceased in 1784.

The mine restarted as East Pool mine in 1834. Its small sett (about 900 by 400 yards) was bounded on the west by South Crofty and Tincroft mines, and on the south by the Carn Brea mines. On its north was Wheal Agar, with which it was later to merge. The mine had a very productive and long life, raising 91,000 long tons (92,000 t) of copper ore and, later, 46,000 long tons (47,000 t) of tin ore. In its early days the copper ore here was particularly rich, selling in 1835 for over £12 a long ton which was more than twice the average price at the time. This first profitable period lasted for ten years during which time a total of £32,256 dividends were paid on the 128 shares that had cost their owners a mere £5 each.

By 1843 the mine was employing 300 people and its deepest workings were at 90 fathoms (540 ft; 160 m). However, a slump in the later 1840s almost caused the closure of the mine and its workings became partly flooded, which jeopardised the neighbouring South Crofty mine. This caused Lady Basset to threaten to revoke the sett unless the mine was fully worked. The mine struggled on—one regular source of income was the monthly drainage charges totalling £60 that were paid by the neighbouring mines, including Wheal Agar—but it was not profitable again until 1854.

In 1860 a rich body of ore containing wolframite was discovered. This ore has a similar specific gravity to cassiterite and the normal methods used for separating the ore from gangue could not separate these two minerals. To solve this problem a Wetherill's Magnetic Separator, which could process 10 tons of ore per day, was installed.

East Pool was one of the few mines, along with South Crofty, Tincroft, Dolcoath and Wheal Basset and a few others, that were able to survive the depression of the Cornish mining industry in the late 19th century. All these mines were close to one another and pumping water from the workings was still of highest priority: if any of the pumping engines stopped there were serious repercussions at the other mines. Such was the problem of underground water that their winding (whim) engines were adapted to haul water by using self-tipping water-skips—this was done at East Pool in 1897. East Pool mine still had a problem with water coming from Wheal Agar, which was losing money at the time and kept threatening to switch off its pumps, which it did in late 1895. The productive lower levels of East Pool flooded, meaning that it was restricted to reworking its older higher levels. Negotiations between the two mines continued for over a year until, after the intervention of Lord Robartes, who owned the Wheal Agar land, East Pool purchased Wheal Agar and all its equipment for £4,000, taking possession on 10 March 1897.