Prestongrange Colliery

The Prestongrange engine is of the Cornish type and was manufactured by J. E. Mare & Co of Plymouth to the design of engineers Hocking & Loam. This 70 inch engine was brought to the Prestongrange Colliery second hand in 1874 having been used previously on three Cornish Mines, the last being the Great Western Mines from 1869 to 1873. It was bought Harveys of Hayle who sold it on to Prestongrange complete with a new Beam of their own manufacture. The Harvey name cast into the beam has lead to confusion as to the manufacturer and it was Kenneth Brown who discovered the truth ( www.aditnow.co.uk/documents/Prestongrange-Industrial/Prestongrange-a-Myth.pdf ). The engine pumped the pit until electric pumps took over in 1954. The colliery closed in 1962 and the engine is now preserved as a feature in the Industrial Heritage Museum on the site.