Our visit to Wheal Marytn was phenomenal! We learnt loads throughout the day and we also had soooo much fun!
Steve, our tour guide, taught us that the settling tanks were 5ft deep and the water was grey/white because of the China clay. I was surprised to hear that the hose/monitor was strong enough to blow a roof off a building and that people got frost on them in the past, when using them, because of how cold it was. We saw the massive clay pits and we heard the machines working. It helped me to understand how mining has changed the Cornish landscape. We also saw engine houses, that looked like the ones that we see on Bodmin Moor.
My group got to watch a little movie clip that was really interesting. I couldn’t believe that children had to start working as ‘kettle boys’ at the age of 10.
In the workshop, I dressed up as William Cookworthy and I wore a white wig. I felt very proud because he was such an important person because he discovered the ‘secret’ ingredient that has made China Clay so important for Cornwall. We looked at lots of different items that were made from China clay like: toothpaste, pottery, paper, clothes and some toys.
It was amazing to visit Wheal Marytn. My tour guide was called Ian. He was very good at telling us about clay mining – I learnt loads.
In the workshop, we got to dress up as clay mining people. We were mapping the history of Cornwall. My group were learning about Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Me and my group had to build a bridge that was strong enough to hold a toy train. This was because the train lines were built, in Cornwall, in the 1800s to carry the mined items like China clay, tin and copper.
The museum was amazing. I liked everything about it. I really enjoyed dressing up. It helped me to understand how the Cornish people looked in the past. The videos and photographs gave me a better idea of how Cornwall has changed. I learnt so much about clay mining,
Seeing the water wheel was one of my favourite parts of the day. I was surprised about how high it was.