Bissoe
Encyclopedia
Bissoe is a hamlet in west Cornwall
, United Kingdom
. It is situated five miles (8 km) east of Redruth
in a former tin mining
area.
Bissoe was the site of an early arsenic
extraction works, the second such commercial works in Britain. Frederick Hamilton Davey
succeeded his father as Works Manager of the Cornwall Arsenic Company's factory at Bissoe in 1902, having acted as his father's assistant for several years.
The name is believed to derive from the Cornish besow meaning birch trees. Bissoe is the home of a small number of businesses, a cycle hire company called Bike Chain Cycle Hire, a concrete
products company, Cornish Concrete Products and an environmental waste management
company called Clear-flow Ltd.
Bissoe lies on the Coast to Coast Trail long-distance footpath and cycle trail. The trail is 11 miles (17.5 km) long and links the interior of west Cornwall to the harbour of Portreath
on the north coast and the former port of Devoran
in the south. The trail follows the course of now-disused railways formerly used to carry imported coal and extracted minerals for export. Bissoe Valley Nature Reserve lies to the south of the hamlet.
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It is situated five miles (8 km) east of Redruth
Redruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...
in a former tin mining
Mining in Cornwall
Mining in Cornwall and Devon began in the early Bronze Age approximately 2,150 BC and ended with the South Crofty tin mine in Cornwall closing in 1998...
area.
Bissoe was the site of an early arsenic
Arsenic
Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As, atomic number 33 and relative atomic mass 74.92. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in conjunction with sulfur and metals, and also as a pure elemental crystal. It was first documented by Albertus Magnus in 1250.Arsenic is a metalloid...
extraction works, the second such commercial works in Britain. Frederick Hamilton Davey
Frederick Hamilton Davey
Frederick Hamilton Davey was an amateur botanist who devoted most of his leisure time to the study of the flora of Cornwall. Born at Ponsanooth in the Kennall Vale, Cornwall to a large family of limited means, he left school aged 11 to work in the Kennall Powder Mills. Encouraged by his father and...
succeeded his father as Works Manager of the Cornwall Arsenic Company's factory at Bissoe in 1902, having acted as his father's assistant for several years.
The name is believed to derive from the Cornish besow meaning birch trees. Bissoe is the home of a small number of businesses, a cycle hire company called Bike Chain Cycle Hire, a concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
products company, Cornish Concrete Products and an environmental waste management
Waste management
Waste management is the collection, transport, processing or disposal,managing and monitoring of waste materials. The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and the process is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics...
company called Clear-flow Ltd.
Bissoe lies on the Coast to Coast Trail long-distance footpath and cycle trail. The trail is 11 miles (17.5 km) long and links the interior of west Cornwall to the harbour of Portreath
Portreath
Portreath is a civil parish, village and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately three miles northwest of Redruth....
on the north coast and the former port of Devoran
Devoran
Devoran is a village in south Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated four miles southwest of Truro at . Formerly an ecclesiastical parish, Devoran is now in the civil parish of Feock....
in the south. The trail follows the course of now-disused railways formerly used to carry imported coal and extracted minerals for export. Bissoe Valley Nature Reserve lies to the south of the hamlet.