OUR QUARRIES
Roy Crabb started out his own Plant Hire & Agricultural Contracting business back in the 1980’s (RTC Plant Hire), being soon joined by his son.
In the 1990’s an opportunity came up to rent the previously known Jenkins Quarry & having some previous knowledge, he jumped at the opportunity. Initially he was just using the quarry for his own work. Word soon spread; the business & its reputation began to grow.
In 2008 the chance to own the site came up & Trebarwith Road Rustic Quarry could truly develop & expand. There have been many changes in the economy over the years, storms to be weathered & the business has had to diversify to suit the times.
In Early 2023 we were lucky position to bring two other quarries into the fold to expand our product lines and be able to supply further afield. Trevillett (near Tintagel, Cornwall) and Mill Hill (Tavistock, Devon) will be a growing asset to us as we move towards the future.
We are still very much a family run business with many members taking different roles & responsibilities within the business. Younger branches have carried on the mantel of Plant hire & agricultural contracting in & around the county.
All of the team have an immense pride in supplying quality slate stone from our quarry along with the best customer service we can offer.
TREBARWITH QUARRY
The quarry is located on the edge of the village of Delabole where the internationally renowned Delabole slate quarry is located. Our slate was also laid down in the Devonian period as with much of Cornwall’s slate deposits some 400 million years ago. The metamorphosis of clay, shale & volcanic ash led to a rock that that is both strong & also cleaves readily making it ideal for a range of uses both inside & out.
Fossils found within the rocks have some correlation with those found in Belgium & Germany
We do not blast on our site but break out using a machine as it is a more environmentally conscious methodology. Principally we concentrate on Facing, Walling & Hedging slate but can also supply other products. Now we boast a range of machines including a mobile crusher & screener producing a range of aggregate resources.
TREVILLETT QUARRY
Trevillett Quarry is in the parish of Tintagel in Rocky Valley where the Trevillett river flows out to the sea. Two mils once operated along the river and a grand mansion was built there in the 16th Century close by to the Slate Quarry.
Trevillett Quarry was the largest slate quarry in Tintagel and at its height of activity employed 200 men. Today the site is smaller than it once was and there are considerably less employed, despite this excellent quality stone continues to be extracted. Today the site largely concentrates on the production of roofing slate, alongside side a number of other products.
MILL HILL QUARRY
This quarry has operated for over 400 years & continues to be an important source of local stone for new builds and heritage restorations. The site was part of the Duke of Bedford’s estate until 1914, and was therefore responsible for many of the cottages on the estate built in and around Tavistock (1842-1870). These were designed to help with the chronic overcrowding and were exclusively topped with Mill Hill roofing slate.
Roofing slate was produced from the mid 1600 until the late 1850’s. In 1860 the south face failed and 10,000 tonnes of debris covered the best deposits leading to a slow decline.
By around 1919 it was disused until 1959 when new owners came along to revive it.
Although this site no longer produces roofing slate the stone extracted is graded and sorted for facing stone, walling, paving and many other products.