Book Catalog

Nestled where three rivers meet, Truro has grown from an ancient crossing point into Cornwall's only city, and this richly detailed portrait traces every step of that transformation. From medieval market charters and stannary coinage to the Georgian townhouses of Boscawen Street and the soaring Victorian cathedral, the book explores how tin, trade, and tidal waters shaped a distinctive urban landscape. Along the way, readers discover the assembly rooms, cultural venues, and steep streetscapes that give Truro its particular character. A concise yet vivid guide for anyone curious about the layers of history beneath a lively Cornish city.

Journey into the heart of Cornwall's mining country with this rich exploration of Redruth, a town whose granite bones and copper veins helped power an industrial revolution. From ancient origins and medieval beginnings to the roaring days of pit heads, pioneering engineers, and the chapels and pubs that shaped everyday life, this book traces the rise, fall, and remarkable global reach of a Cornish community. Discover the inventors who changed the world, follow the Cornish diaspora across continents, and walk the modern landscape where heritage and renewal meet. An essential companion for anyone drawn to Cornwall's industrial soul and the enduring spirit of its people.

Journey to one of Britain's most beloved coastal towns in this richly layered portrait of St Ives, where granite cottages, turquoise waters and centuries of maritime heritage converge. From the hard-won trades of tin mining and pilchard fishing to the luminous quality of light that transformed St Ives into an internationally renowned artists' colony, this guide explores the forces that shaped the town's unique character. Discover its historic streets and sacred buildings, walk its celebrated beaches and coast path, and savour the festivals and flavours that define life here today. Rounded off with practical advice for visitors, it's an essential companion for anyone drawn to Cornwall's shimmering western shore.

Perched on the edge of Cornwall's wildest upland, Bodmin has stood as the county's granite-hearted heart for over a thousand years. This sweeping local history traces the town from its ancient beginnings through the age of saints and monks, the rise of the medieval wool and tin trades, and the tumult of rebellion and civil war. Discover how an assize town shaped by law courts, asylums and railways became the modern community that guards the moor's edge today, complete with its famous gaol and garrison heritage. A vivid companion for visitors, residents and anyone drawn to Cornwall's storied past.

Perched above the Cornish countryside, Helston is a town where medieval streets, Georgian elegance and centuries of mining heritage meet the rhythms of modern life. This richly detailed portrait explores the borough's famous Furry Dance, its tin and copper legacy, the mysterious shingle-barred waters of Loe Pool, and the busy presence of RNAS Culdrose. From practical seasonal guidance to the gateway landscapes of the Lizard Peninsula, it offers both armchair readers and visitors a warm, thorough introduction to one of Cornwall's most characterful towns.

Journey to South Australia's Yorke Peninsula and discover the story of one of the colony's most ambitious industrial ventures. This richly detailed history traces the Wallaroo Smelter from the copper rushes of the 1860s through its towering stacks, the Welsh smeltermen who brought their expertise across the world, and the bustling company town that grew in its shadow. From furnace floor to port and railway, it captures the human and engineering feats that connected a remote peninsula to global markets—and reveals what visitors can still find at the site today.

Deep in the red heart of outback Queensland stands one of Australia's most extraordinary industrial achievements. From John Campbell Miles's fateful discovery to the towering 270-metre stack that came to define a town, this book traces the remarkable story of the Mount Isa Smelter — the engineering feats, the miners who worked its shafts, and the complex environmental and human legacies left in its wake. A vivid portrait of ambition, labour, and transformation on the frontier of Australian industry.

Deep beneath the arid expanses of South Australia lies one of the most remarkable mineral deposits ever discovered—a polymetallic giant yielding copper, uranium, gold, and silver from a single orebody. This book traces the story of Olympic Dam from its improbable discovery to the vast engineering feat that turned red desert into an industrial powerhouse, guiding readers through the geology, mining, milling, and smelting processes that define the operation. Along the way, it examines the delicate equations of water and power in a harsh environment, and looks ahead to the evolving future of a site unlike any other on Earth.