Hayle to display its old sluice gates

Sluice gates that were used in Hayle in west Cornwall for more than 100 years are to be displayed in the town.

The gates date back to 1834 and were found during excavation works on a new road in July 2011.

Weighing 11 tonnes (22,000 lbs), the gates will not be reburied but will be put on show near the river.

The harbour's sluices ran until 1971 when the decline in port trade led to them being closed for the last time.

Resident Anne Marie Rant, who campaigned to get the gates put on show, said: "I really wanted to save the sluice gates.

"The sluice gates were an amazing part of saving Hayle from coastal erosion.

"The original plan was to scrap them, or rebury them, but that would have been too expensive."

The gates which were used at the Copperhouses pool sluice were found below ground behind the Hayle Harbour Office.

The gates which were used to keep the channels clear of sand and silt were removed and buried when the National Rivers Authority replaced the gates with a new flood protection system in 1981.