Truro in the Second World War. By Alan Murton in 1995
When did you first realise that the years you have lived through are “History” to others? The shock hit me in my forties when I took my 13 year old son and his French exchange visitor to a farming museum near our home “in exile” in Hertfordshire and discovered exhibited items that I had seen […]
Hands Across The Sea by Lewis Rowe
Cousin Jacks and Jills in foreign parts With memories of this Duchy in their hearts;In Philadelphia or Wisconsin, USA,Australia, down Perth or Melbourne wayLiving where Pacific rollers thunderIn a place we call “down under”Whose ancestors left when times were thinTo go abroad to dig lead or tin“Cos Cornish miners are the best,“Twas the thing – “Young […]
Deep as Dolcoath by Allen Buckley in 1996
For over two-hundred years Dolcoath Mine, in Camborne, has been a by-word to the Cornish. The expression: “Deep as Dolcoath” is not merely used to emphasise physical depth – as in a shaft or mine – but, is more usually employed to describe a “deep” person: one who is secretive, profound with “hidden depths”. Dolcoath […]
Cornwall’s Remarkable Adits by Allen Buckley
Cornwall’s mining history is well known, and hundreds of books have been written on most aspects of what is undoubtedly an impressive story. Although there is a general awareness of the great network of drainage tunnels which spread like webs throughout all of our ancient mining regions, the truly massive engineering achievement that these tunnels […]
A Midnight Encounter by Thomas Shaw
St. Blazey Gate Methodist Church which was built in 1824 stands on the left-hand side of the road from St. Austell to St. Blazey at the junction which is signposted “Luxulyan”. It is a typical Wesleyan Chapel of the period but the simple magnificence of its interior furnishings would lead one to suppose that its […]
Yesterdays – Some Other Ways Of Earning a Living by Dulcie Wing
I wonder if any of our readers can recollect the sandman? I first knew of him when I went to stay with my Aunt Mary at Canonstown. One morning she said to her father, “I’m taking Dulcie up to Blights shop with me, I’ve put two pence on the mantelpiece so when the sandman comes […]
Morwenna’s Place by Mike Whitaker
The year is 550 A.D. (give or take). A Celtic princess, young and beautiful (all princesses are beautiful – this one probably red haired with the redhead’s transparent clarity of skin) is dying in her monastic cell on the top of a wild Cornish cliff. “Lift me up, so that I may see the hills […]
Idle Thoughts from Cornwall by Cornubian in 1996
I first conducted a Cornish brass band at the age of three. At the time, I was perched on my father’s shoulders waving my little hands and quite unaware that the bandsmen weren’t looking at me at all but at their own little conductor who, beneath the canopy of a Victorian bandstand edged with scarlet […]
Aunt Eliza by Dulcie Wing
Dulcie Wing now sadly deceased used to live in an old people’s home in Falmouth. She was wonderfull lady who had a great memory and way with words. I knew a little old lady in a seaside village, years ago. Everyone called her Aunt Eliza. This woman lived in a semi-detached cottage which had a […]
What May Means to me by Jill Biddle Obby Oss 1996
A poem written by Jill Biddle with scans of the original photos by Terry Harry of Padstow’s Obby Oss. Hopefully it will remind everyone of one of the great days in Cornwall. It will not happen in 2020 because of the dreadful Covid19 virus. Stay well everyone and aim for next year.
A Little Bit More Chat With Maid Lowenna by Joy Stevenson
Donkey shays were a means of transport for many Cornish years ago; miners, especially, used them to get to their work each day. It was a simple contraption little more than a piece of board fixed to an axle and a pair of wheels; it was just big enough to fit one man. Not exactly […]
A wonderful piece from our friends in the Toronto Cornish Association
Thank you to John Webb from the TCA, yes that’s in Canada.
The Feast of St Day & The Customs of a Community by Paul Annear in 1995
Many Cornish towns and villages continue to celebrate their annual feast, but few match the enthusiasm and goodwill enjoyed at St. Day. Each year hundreds upon hundreds flock to the ancient town to witness events which have since matured to tradition. Flags line the wide streets and stubbly cottage fronts throw the spectacular sun from […]
John Wesley’s Cornish Amphitheatre by Joan Hellyar Shaw in 1996
Did you know that tucked away between St. Day and Carharrack and just one-and-a- half miles from Redruth is a place visited by over 20,000 people each year? This long disused mine working was first used by John Wesley to get out of a strong high wind in 1762 and described by him as an […]