The Towans is a stretch of coastal
duneIn physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by aeolian processes. Dunes are subject to different forms and sizes based on their interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dune are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune, and a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the...
land near the town of
HayleHayle is a small town, civil parish and cargo port in Cornwall, England, UK. The parish was created in 1888 from part of the now defunct Phillack parish, with which it was later combined in 1935, and incorporated part of St Erth in 1937...
in
CornwallCornwall is a county of England in the United Kingdom, forming the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain. It is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Taken with the...
, UK. It comprises
Mexico Towans,
Upton Towans, and
Gwithian Towans. Upton Towans was the site of an explosives factory in the late 19th and early 20th centuries giving it the alternate name Dynamite Towans. It is now a nature reserve.
The National Explosives Works were established in 1888 to supply the needs of local mines for
explosivesAn explosive material is a substance that either is chemically or otherwise energetically unstable or produces a sudden expansion of the material after initiation, usually accompanied by the production of heat and large changes in pressure . This event is called the explosion...
.
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The Towans is a stretch of coastal
duneIn physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by aeolian processes. Dunes are subject to different forms and sizes based on their interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dune are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune, and a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the...
land near the town of
HayleHayle is a small town, civil parish and cargo port in Cornwall, England, UK. The parish was created in 1888 from part of the now defunct Phillack parish, with which it was later combined in 1935, and incorporated part of St Erth in 1937...
in
CornwallCornwall is a county of England in the United Kingdom, forming the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain. It is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Taken with the...
, UK. It comprises
Mexico Towans,
Upton Towans, and
Gwithian Towans. Upton Towans was the site of an explosives factory in the late 19th and early 20th centuries giving it the alternate name Dynamite Towans. It is now a nature reserve.
National Explosives Works
The National Explosives Works were established in 1888 to supply the needs of local mines for
explosivesAn explosive material is a substance that either is chemically or otherwise energetically unstable or produces a sudden expansion of the material after initiation, usually accompanied by the production of heat and large changes in pressure . This event is called the explosion...
. The company also manufactured explosives for the
Royal NavyThe Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of HM Armed Forces . From the beginning of the 18th century until well into the 20th century, it was the most powerful navy in the world, playing a key part in establishing the British Empire as the dominant world power from 1815 until the early...
during
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
. Manufacturing of explosives ended in 1919, but the site was used to store explosives until the 1960s. The earthworks on the site became overgrown with vegetation and are still clearly visible.
Nature reserve
Upton Towans forms part of a
Site of Special Scientific InterestA Site of Special Scientific Interest or SSSI is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based...
, Gwithian to Mexico Towans. The habitat of sand dune and grassland is suited to the
pyramidal orchidThe Pyramidal Orchid, Anacamptis pyramidalis, is an orchid native to southwestern Eurasia, from western Europe through the Mediterranean region eastwards to Iran. In Germany, it is rare and was declared Orchid of the Year in 1990 to heighten awareness of this plant.This hardy perennial plant grows...
, the glow worm, the silver-studded
blue butterflyThe Lycaenidae are the second-largest family of butterflies, with about 6000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies...
, and the
skylarkThe Skylark is a small passerine bird species. This lark breeds across most of Europe and Asia and in the mountains of north Africa. It is mainly resident in the west of its range, but eastern populations are more migratory, moving further south in winter. Even in the milder west of its range,...
.
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