The village of Wanlockhead has existed for over three hundred years.  The first miners came to pan for gold and lived in tents through the summer months, but it was impossible to stay in the winter because of the severe weather conditions.

As Wanlockhead was an isolated place, many generations of the same families  lived and worked here.  During the recessions in the lead industry, many of the families left to start new lives in Canada, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and United States.    

At the Straitsteps Cottages you can experience what it was like to live as a miner in the 18th and 19th centuries. One cottage depicts a cottage interior around 1740 and the second around 1890. The artefacts on show, illustrate how the people of Wanlockhead lived, worked and played. The tour guide will explain how the miners' families lived during these two time-periods.

18th Century Living
By the time the lead mining industry had started the tents were replaced by stone buildings made from local stones and thatched with heather or sods.  These buildings mostly consisted of 'but and ben' cottages and consisted of one room with a rushes on the floor and a fire place which was no more than a hole in the wall with ventilation through a hole  in the roof which acted as a chimney. 

Fuel for the fire was peat.  The windows did not have any glass in as it was too expensive due to the window tax and the elements were kept at bay by wooden shutters.

19th Century Living
As new mining families moved into the area they were allowed to build their homes on any free ground they liked. When The Duke of Buccleuch took over the mining operations, housing substantially improved.  The houses now had two rooms and the roofs were covered with slate and there was an outside  toilet. 

The windows were fully glazed but they were small to keep the heat in. Peat fires were replaced by coal by 1809 which was burned in  cooking ranges with a proper chimney.

The Cottages Today
Outside the Straitsteps Cottage is the Beam Engine.  This unique piece of hydraulic pumping equipment which pumped water out of the Straitsteps mine, is the only remaining water-bucket engine to be seen on a mine in Britain.