Hensbarrow Beacon facts for kids
Hensbarrow Beacon is a well-known hill in Cornwall, England. It's located about a mile north-west of the village of Stenalees. This hill is the highest natural point in the Hensbarrow uplands. This area is known for its unique natural beauty and landscape.
The natural top of Hensbarrow Beacon is 312 meters (about 1,024 feet) high. You'll find a special marker there called a trig point. This trig point sits on top of a round pile of stones, called a cairn, which is 5.4 meters tall. This cairn was once used as a beacon to light fires and send signals. It's now a protected historical site, known as a scheduled monument. You can reach the top with a short walk from a nearby road.
However, there are even taller spots nearby! These are large piles of waste material, called spoil heaps, from the local china clay mines. The highest of these piles reaches 355 meters (about 1,165 feet). This means the artificial "summit" created by mining is 43 meters higher than the natural hill.
What Makes Hensbarrow Beacon Special?
Geographically, Hensbarrow Beacon is also the highest point of the St Austell Downs. This is a large area of open land north-west of St Austell. It stands quite far from Bodmin Moor to the north-east. Because of this distance and its height, it's considered a "Marilyn." A Marilyn is a hill in the UK or Ireland that is at least 150 meters (492 feet) taller than any surrounding land. Even though the natural hill is a Marilyn, the official "Marilyn" status has been moved to the top of the highest china clay spoil tip. Its "parent" hill (the closest higher ground) is Brown Willy.
History of the Area
In the Middle Ages, the Blackmoor Stannary was based at Hensbarrow Beacon. A stannary was a special court or district where tin mining was regulated. The records for this stannary were kept at the church in Luxulyan.
Mapping History
Hensbarrow Beacon played an important role in mapping Cornwall. It was the starting point, or "origin," for the 6-inch and 1:2500 scale maps made by the Ordnance Survey. These maps are very detailed and important for understanding the land.
