Milestone Circa 180M North-East Of Windy Ridge

The milestone dates from circa 1833 and is constructed of stone. It is triangular in plan and sits on a rectangular base, with broach stops to the corners. The milestone is approximately 0.83m high and painted white. Inscriptions are in black paint on the left face, reading HELSTON / 2 / PENZANCE / 15, and on the right face FALMOUTH / 10 / TRURO / 14 ¾, with the ¾ mark being incised only. The base of the milestone is painted black.

The milestone is a remnant of the mid-18th century onward, when turnpike trusts provided markers on roads. The Helston Turnpike Trust, established by Act of Parliament in 1760, operated routes from Falmouth, through Penryn to Helston and Marazion. Records from 1766 indicate that initial milestones required re-cutting due to unsatisfactory inscriptions. Stylistically, this milestone does not appear to date from the 18th century, but matches milestones established by the same trust in 1833 on a new road section west of Helston, at Breage. It is therefore likely these stones replaced earlier, unsatisfactory 18th-century milestones. The road on which the milestone stands was recently slightly re-aligned, and now forms a lay-by. The milestone is shown on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1880 in its present location.

This milestone is designated at Grade II for its intactness as a milestone from 1833 in its original location, its group value with other listed milestones along the turnpike route, and its historic interest as a testament to 18th-century road improvements undertaken by Turnpike Trusts.