It is situated at the mouth of the Hayle River (which discharges into St Ives Bay) and is approximately seven miles (11 km) northeast of Penzance.

Evidence of Iron Age settlement exists at the fort on the hill above Carnsew Pool where the Plantation now stands.

It is thought that Hayle was an important centre for the neolithic tin industry, trading not only with Irish and Breton people, but also the Phoenicians of the eastern Mediterranean.

It appears that the estuary was deeper and it was possible for boats to go up the River Hayle as far as where St Erth Bridge is now situated; the tide used to flow in and out of what is now Foundry Square in the town, and at Gwithian reached inland some considerable distance toward Connor Downs.

The departure of the Romans was followed by an influx of Christian missionaries, most of whom are said to have had Irish origins and after whom many Cornish towns take their present name.

The most noteworthy inscribed stone is one uncovered during the construction of a road in the grounds of Carnsew, and is now set into a bank at The Plantation, a public park.

A Mr Harvey had it fixed into the wall of his path on Carnsew cliff, within a few feet of the spot where it was discovered, and added a more recent replica which lies next to it, where it has remained since.

In 1758 the Cornish Copper Company (CCCo) moved from Camborne and set up a copper smelter at Ventonleague (Copperhouse Creek) and this proved very successful, so much so that a canal was built to bring vessels right up to the works and additional land was purchased on both sides of the creek for industrial use and providing housing for the workers.

Copperhouse Pool was subsequently modified to serve as a tidal reservoir both to allow ships to travel up as far as the dock, (where Home Bargains now stands), and to flush or sluice the channel to keep it clear of sand and silt.

Harvey & Co may be best remembered for producing beam engines, which not only served locally but were exported worldwide; the largest was used to drain the Haarlemmermeerpolder and is preserved at the Museum De Cruquius near Schiphol airport.

Disputes regularly erupted over access to the sea as The Cornish Copper Company controlled the dock and the tidal sluice which they had built at Copperhouse.

Harveys acted to break the Cornish Copper Company's monopoly by constructing their own harbour by deepening Penpol Creek and building a dock.

Designed from the outset to carry both goods and passengers the Hayle Railway's terminus was in Foundry Square under the present viaduct.

Steam was introduced onto the Hayle Section in 1843 but the construction of the railway meant that only light engines could be used, whilst the incline at Angarrack also remained a problem.

In 1852 a new railway was opened spanning the valley on the impressive Angarrack viaduct and passing through Hayle on a new wooden supports over Foundry Square which were later replaced with the current stone pillars.

The Harbour Branch line was closed in 1982 and the station buildings and signal box were demolished at the same time breaking direct rail links with the local communities of Praze-an-Beeble, Leedstown and Helston.

The engineering works and Foundry were closed in 1903, although the company continued to trade as general and builders merchant, eventually merging with UBM to become Harvey-UBM in 1969.

At the same time Hayle Harbour was also closed to commercial shipping, although a locally important fishing fleet, specialising mainly in shellfish remained.

Until the early 20th century Hayle had two very distinct areas of settlement around the competing foundries but slowly buildings began to appear between the two communities.

St Elwyn's Church, the Passmore Edwards Institute and a new Drill Hall all appeared within a few years of each other, and housing followed.

The sand dunes or Towans are the favoured location for a number of holiday villages and caravan and camping sites.

The Gwithian beach near Godrevy is picturesque and a popular area for water-related sports including surfing, windsurfing and body-boarding.

In the 1980s, well-known businessman Peter de Savary fronted an attempt to develop the harbour area but ultimately failed to attract financial support to bring his plans to fruition.

In 2004, ING Real Estate, an international property development company, became the owners of Hayle harbour [1] and started to purchase land within the immediate vicinity of their planned project area.

As of November 2009, the granting of outline planning permission still depends on the Section 106 Agreement being agreed, a sticking point to this is finalising traffic and transport improvements.

The design of the building, by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios had to fit into its local surroundings because it is situated in an area which is part of a UNESCO world heritage site.

On 13 July 2006 it was announced that the bid had been successful and that the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape would be added to World Heritage list.