Morwellham

The Bedford Estate dominated much of the land around Tavistock and the Tamar Valley for centuries. After the Dissolution of Tavistock Abbey in 1539, its possessions passed to John Russell, ancestor of the Dukes of Bedford. By the nineteenth century the estate was not simply a landowner: it influenced housing, employment, roads, public buildings and the appearance of whole communities around Tavistock. (Historic England)

For working families this relationship could be both beneficial and controlling. The estate provided purpose-built housing, but landlord and employer interests were often closely connected. Mill Hill Cottages, for example, comprise 24 Bedford Estate dwellings dating from about 1850–54. They stood in an industrial landscape associated with the nearby Mill Hill slate quarry; the official archaeological record describes their use as quarry-workers' housing as probable rather than absolutely documented. (Heritage Gateway)

The Bedford connection extended directly to Morwellham Quay. After Tavistock Abbey was dissolved, Morwellham also passed into Russell ownership. The quay was already ancient: it had served the abbey by the thirteenth century, importing food, wine and building materials and exporting tin. Its position on the River Tamar, at the highest point readily navigable by large sea-going vessels, made it the natural link between the mineral-producing country inland and ports such as Plymouth — and ultimately overseas markets. (Historic England)

Its great expansion came with mining. The Tavistock Canal, completed in 1817, carried ores towards Morwellham and brought coal, limestone and timber inland. Copper transformed the port after Devon Great Consols opened in 1844. A railway and steep incline were built in 1857–58 to carry ore directly to newly constructed quays, replacing the much more expensive use of horses. (Historic England)

At its Victorian peak Morwellham was one of Europe's most important copper-exporting ports, handling enormous quantities of ore and linking the Tamar Valley mines with international trade. Later, arsenic became increasingly important. The copper slump from the 1860s, the decline of local mining and the arrival of the railway at Tavistock gradually destroyed the river trade; by the early twentieth century Morwellham's commercial heyday was over. (Historic England)