Vol: 390                                                                                                                                      April/May 2010

Dear Members

I have received the sad news from Huntly member Carol Trevelyan that Blenheim member Betty Chegwidden has died.  Betty was one of the original members, helping Cliff Trevelyan with his work in starting the Association.  Betty’s membership lapsed for a long while, but in May 2008, I visited her to see if she could provide information to be included in the commemorative booklet which we are producing for the Association’s 50^th anniversary in 2012.  She couldn’t remember much of what happened, it being so long ago, but was delighted to be back in touch with the Cornish Association and became a member again.

More sad news, this time from member Mr Gordon Grey of Probus, Cornwall who advised me that his mother Betty has died.  Betty was a member when she lived in New Zealand, but continued her membership when she and Gordon returned to Cornwall a few years ago. 

Thank you to those members who have sent their subscriptions so promptly.  Please make sure you write my address correctly, ie. 1-81 Lancewood Drive, and put your return address somewhere on the envelope.  Someone, I’ll mention no names, omitted the 1- and did not give a return address and so the letter was forwarded to the Auckland office (a bit nit-picky by the sorters I thought as I had other mail delivered to me on the same day).  I received a phone call to say that the cash contained in the envelope could not be forwarded to me as this is illegal and so a cheque would be forwarded at a later date.  It’s OK by me to send cash if you’re prepared to take the risk, but please make sure you address it properly and provide a return address!

It never ceases to amaze me how much money the people of Cornwall raise for Charity.  As you are no doubt aware, I receive The Cornishman every week and there are always news items about Male Voice Choirs, schools and groups donating large amounts they have raised to well-deserving charities, but their efforts for ShelterBox (which I have featured in a previous Newsletter) are out-standing.  From The Cornishman: “A charity auction in Mousehole has raised £9,450 for ShelterBox.  With 110 lots donated by Marshall Estate Agents, the Porthenys Players and generous members of the community, the evening, held at the Coastguard Hotel, proved a great success.  Bids were taken on a range of promises, which included offers of help, alongside trips to the Henley Regatta and tickets for rugby internationals.  The car park next to the establishment donated their takings from the night and a raffle further bolstered funds.

Students and staff at Cape Cornwall School surpassed themselves by raising an amazing £1424 in a two-week fund-raiser for Haiti which included assemblies, cake stalls, sponsored silences, jumble sales, sponsored runs and even a penalty shoot-out with our very sporty head teacher.  This is a fantastic amount for a small school.  Head of School Council, Sam Nicholls, phoned ShelterBox and they were delighted.  They will give us three boxes which we can track.”

From the Cornish Guardian: “Pupils and staff of Whitstone Community Primary School are busy raising funds for Helston-based disaster relief charity Shelter-Box.  The school welcomed Graham Smith, Barry Megson and Martin Prentice of the Holsworthy Rotary Club to an assembly to receive a cheque for £490 that they had raised to support the charity’s work.  The Holsworthy Rotarians gave a talk on the Shelter-Box Trust and, inspired to raise funds, pupils set themselves the task of raising £490 to provide a ShelterBox through a variety of events and support from the community.  The school has continued to raise funds and is already on its way to providing a second box.  Paul Woolner, head teacher at Whitstone, said: ‘The aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Haiti shows us how important the work of ShelterBox is in providing relief to the victims of such disasters.  We are privileged to be involved in supporting the work of ShelterBox.  On behalf of the children and staff, I would like to thank everyone who has helped us reach our target in such a short time.  It’s been a magnificent community effort.”

I have received an email from Kaitaia member Terence Trethewey about the article in the February/March Newsletter on ‘The St Ives to St Just Road’ and I thought it was worthy of including in this Newsletter:   “Yes, I know the road from St. Just to Zennor very well. When I was about sixteen - late 1950's - I did cliff-climbing and night exercises on the moors and along the road, taken by youth clubs assoc. and led by some Royal marines. The setting sun promised hardship and excitement, but not romance! I have loved the road ever since. I remember standing on a pile of rough-hewn stones nearby in West Penwith that had been a wall 2000 years ago, gauging that length of time through my boots; then, looking across the moors to the bare rocky bones of a burial chamber 2000 BC, I was hit by a sensation which was a thought and an experience. A Celt had placed his foot on a new wall and looked across at the burial mound ancient to his eyes and as far removed from his life as his life would be from me.”  Strangely enough, I (Jean) had a similar experience in 1995 when Graham and I visited the Chysauster Ancient Village.  It was hard to get my head around the fact that someone, 2000 years ago, could have been standing where I was standing, leaning against one of the granite walls, looking at the view of Mount’s Bay.  From the internet: “Chysauster contains many of the hallmarks of the traditional Cornish village, right down to the street of neat stone cottages with terraced gardens.  The remarkable thing is that the inhabitants lived here nearly 2000 years ago.  Chysauster is an example of a courtyard village, consisting of a number of stone-built houses.  Each house has a stone-paved courtyard surrounded by rooms and byres, the whole complex enclosed within a stone wall.  Outside are stone-walled fields belonging to the settlement.  This late Iron Age village is believed to have been in use up until and during the Roman occupation.  There are nine large oval houses, many of which are very well preserved.  The plan is that of an open courtyard with a round living room opposite the entrance and a long narrow room along one side wall, but many houses at the site are built in pairs, with circular living rooms and smaller rooms off, which may have been used for storing or keeping animals...”

Here’s a romantic story from The Cornishman: “In 1930, Suffolk-born Stanley Agar and Barbara Carr, from Newcastle, took up positions in service with the St Aubyn family on St Michael’s Mount.  He became a valet and she worked as a parlour maid.  The couple fell in love and two years later they married, before moving to Berwickshire in 1935 and starting a family.  The end of the Second World War saw the family move back to Cornwall, with Mr Agar becoming butler to the then Lord St Levan.  This was a huge promotion which he took very seriously.

For their young daughter Gill, it was something else.  She said: ‘I was amazed when I first saw St Michael’s Mount – to live on an island in the middle of the ocean.’  But it was not all fantasy, as there were many practicalities to living off-shore for her to get used to.  They lived their lives around the tides and moods of the sea.  Very quickly she learned when they could walk the causeway to the mainland and when travel was reliant on boats.  ‘Every single day we had to know whether the tide was in our out and, if we were on a boat, which landing point to go to,’ she said.  ‘And if it was too rough there wouldn’t be any boats going in either direction, so you could get stranded.’  At school this often made her the envy of her friends as big swells meant time stuck on the Mount, away from the classroom. 

There were around 50 people living there, many of whom worked on the island and several who came each day to the mainland.  She said: ‘All of the cottages were full and there were quite a lot of children growing up there at the time.  There were five of us children who lived and played together.  We would climb and make dens, go to the caves and fish in the pools.  A popular game was pretending we were part of the gentry.  In all our play, we had to make sure we couldn’t be seen from the windows of the castle as Lady St Levan would be cross if she saw us.’

Each Christmas a party was held for the children by the Lord and Lady.  They would organise games, food and have a decorated tree in the blue room which had a present for each child under it.   In her teenage years, Gill was employed as a housemaid where she learned all about what it meant to keep a house such as that on the Mount.   Every year the St Levan family’s grandchildren came to stay and a governess would be appointed to chaperone them.  One summer, Gill looked after their teenage grand-daughter, who was coming of age.  This involved the prestigious honour of her dining with guests of the family.

In 1958, she married Ted Joyce, in what was only the third wedding that century held on the Mount.  News of this Fairytale event spread far and wide, with papers across the country sending photographers and running stories.  ‘There was the Evening Express, the Herald, The Cornishman, and even a newspaper from New Zealand who ran a story,’ she said.  The young couple moved away to pursue careers and start a family.  When summer came they would head back to Marazion and make the journey across to her childhood home to visit her mother and father.  With their connections to the Mount, it was fitting that when it came time for their daughter Fiona to marry, the present Lord St Levan allowed her to follow in her mother’s footsteps and wed on the island.  Then, for Gill and Ted’s 40^th wedding anniversary, they held a party at the place where it had all begun the Mount.  Sadly Ted passed away not long afterwards.  Now living on top of Newlyn’s hill, Gill’s front room offers the perfect vantage point to scan across the bay and look back at the site of so many of her memories.”

Graham has been reading the new Cornish Association Library book donated by Brian Palamountain, The Cornish Overseas by Philip Payton, and occasionally reads out little snippets which he thinks amusing or interesting:  “As the American historian Albert Louis Copeland observed in his now famous essay of 1898, ‘The Cornish in South-West Wisconsin’, ‘there was no real mining done by the Americans before the Cornish came.  The battle of Bad Axe effectively ended the Black Hawk War, opening the way for unimpeded mineral development and the ensuing demand for skilled hard-rock miners prompted the arrival of the Cornish in large numbers – many from the older mining districts back east such as Maryland and Kentucky but increasing from hungry Cornwall itself, especially the district around Camborne, Redruth, Illogan, St Day, Kenwyn, St Allen, St Agnes and Perranzabuloe.  As John Rowe observed, by 1850 there were perhaps 6000 Cornish people in the three Wisconsin counties Grant, Iowa and Lafayette, and possibly two or three thousand more in the neighbouring counties of Jo Daviess, Illinois and Dubuque, Iowa.’

Certain districts became especially associated with the Cornish, such as Platteville in Grant County – settled by no fewer than 52 related families from Perranzabuloe – and the country around Shullsburg in neighbouring Lafayette county.  Dodgeville in southern Iowa county also sported more than a smattering of Cousin Jacks and Jennies.  But it was in Linden and (especially) Mineral Point that the Cornish most enduringly left their mark.  In Mineral Point, Cornish architectural influence is reflected to this day in the solid limestone cottages in Shakerag Street (so called, it is said, after Cousin Jenny’s habit of signalling to her man in the open-cast workings on the opposite hill when his meal was ready), notably in three beautifully restored Cornish-style houses: ‘Trelawney’, ‘Polperro’ and ‘Pendarves’.    Nearby Linden was nicknamed ‘Pard Town after the Cornish practice of calling one’s colleague (typically in a tribute or tutwork gang or ‘pare’) ‘Pard’ or ‘’Pardner’: another expression of Cornish identity, of the clannishness that underpinned the myth of Cousin Jack.  Intriguingly, in an echo of the Linden  experience, the district about St Just-in-Penwith in West Cornwall was still known as ‘Pard Country’ as late as the 1970s, an indication of the longevity of that clannish spirit and evidence of continuing cultural links between contemporary Cornwall and that first American mining frontier.”

From The Cornishman: “Cornish Lunch is fit for a Duchess.  A delicious lunch supplied and sourced by Nancledra farmers was enjoyed by the Duchess of Cornwall when she visited one of the most prestigious ceremonial regiments in the Army last week.  Steve and Bridgette Clamp, of Higher Trenowin, were asked by the commanding officer of the King’s Troop of the Royal Artillery to provide the all-Cornish three-course meal for 12 in honour of the Duchess, who was visiting the troop’s barracks in St John’s Wood.

Bridgette told The Cornishman she had thoroughly enjoyed getting all the ingredients for the lunch, comprising trout with quail eggs, cauliflower soup, woodcock and local cheeses and had heard from the CO that the Duchess had really enjoyed the food.  ‘The food was very easy to source’, she said.  ‘Everyone I contacted was so proud to contribute and generous with their produce.  I think they all wanted to show how good our food can be in Cornwall.  Since the meal, the commanding officer has called us and said the Duchess was enthralled by the lunch and the CO is planning to send me a copy of the menu.’ 

The request for the all-Cornish meal was made by the CO to Steve and Bridgette and they quickly contacted local producers for all the menu’s ingredients – for example Drift farmer Geoffrey Reynolds supplied the potatoes for the Dauphinoise, John Hodge of Fraddam, the rainbow trout, Jonathan Laity of Millpool, red cabbage and the Clamps themselves grew the cauliflower used in the soup.  A particular request, said Mrs Clamp, was for woodcock.  ‘We got hold of William Prouse from Zennor, who we know is a very competent shot, and he was able to get the six brace of woodcock over the New Year period, just before the voluntary ban on shooting wildfowl was brought in because of the cold weather.’  As well as the food supplied for the lunch itself, the Clamps also sent the Duchess a goodie bag of produce from the Higher Trenowin farm shop, including a selection of home-made jams and cakes.”

From Cornish World: Bob Richards’ article about famous Cornish men and women includes this item about Dr William Thomas Angove.  “Dr William Thomas Angove was born in Camborne in 1855.  He was the son of Thomas Angove, a landowner and copper company agent, and his wife Henrietta.  William qualified in medicine from the London Hospital in 1875 (was he really only 20 – Jean) and became a general practitioner and surgeon, practicing at locations in Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.  He married Emma Carlyon in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire in 1879.  Emma was the daughter of another Cornishman, Frederick Carlyon and his wife Lucy, formerly Turner, both of whom were born in Truro.  Her father was a member of the same Carlyon family who have given us many very prominent Truro names down the generations as churchmen and Mayor of Truro as well as in the legal profession and as county coroner.

Thomas and Emma Angove emigrated from their home in Mildenhall, Suffolk to Australia in1886, where he not only continued his medical career, attending to the medical needs of all, including the poor and the destitute in his role as district medical officer, but he also began experimenting with wine making, growing his own vines at Tea Tree Gully in the foothills near Adelaide.  His enterprise expanded from red and white wines into making of fortified wines.  These were believed to have medical benefits for those suffering certain ailments.  A large Cornish built steam boiler was specially imported and installed to help in the process of making these fortified wines.  The business thrived and grew and Angove wines became well known in Australia.  Dr Angove returned to England in 1912 to carry on his medical work at the London Hospital.  His son Thomas Carlyon Angove took over and expanded the wine business in Australia.  One of their new products was St Agnes Brandy, named after the area in Cornwall well known to the Angove family before they left for Australia....”

News from the internet: THE CORNISHMAN is to become the first local newspaper in the country to produce his and hers editions.  From this month, our female readers will be able to buy an alternative paper, The Cornishwoman, easily spotted on newsagents' shelves with its new pink masthead.

The Cornishman, with its customary bold blue masthead, will still be available for those wishing to retain a more traditional paper.  The changes will help the paper comply with EU regulations, introduced on April 1, which state that women must be given an equal platform to men in all areas of public life. The Cornishwoman will feature all the best local news and photographs that readers have come to expect, but with a distinctly feminine slant.

News about local schools will in particular focus on mums, features about politics will seek out the views of women councillors, and business news will look at the contribution of female entrepreneurs.

Editor Jacqui Walls said: "We recognise that The Cornishman is a well-respected and popular brand, but it has a peculiarly male slant to its name. We know there are plenty of female readers who loved our old Weekender Women section, but we thought that rather than bring back a single page, why not create a whole paper for women?

"It is a first for the industry, but helps bring us into line with equality laws and gives us a unique selling point.

"We hope to lead the way on this and perhaps even see The Scotsman and Daily Mail follow suit."

Mock mayor and Cornishman columnist Fi Read said she was looking forward to reading the new Cornishwoman. "As a hard-grafting single mum of four, I think women's work needs to be valued and celebrated. With our first female editor, it's only fair that the paper reflects a more female approach to the news in this area. I'll be looking out for my Cornishwoman on the shop shelves."

Fi Read, Penzance Mock Mayor.

Christchurch Branch: The report on the St.Piran’s Lunch which took place at Aldersgate on Saturday the 6^th of March 2010.  The lunch commenced at 12.30pm with the President welcoming 29 members and guests to the 3^rd St.Piran’s celebration lunch held by the Christchurch branch.  To start proceedings “Hail to the Homeland” was sung by all present accompanied by Graham on the piano. Grace, sung in Kernewek and led by the President, was followed by a buffet lunch of Ham, Silverside and six different salads accompanied by the usual peas, potatoes, tomatoes, beetroot etc. all provided by the ladies of the committee. Following a leisurely lunch during which many members returned to the buffet for second helpings, Les gave us an update on news from Cornwall while the tables were cleared in preparation for the branch Annual General Meeting.  All the current Officers were re-elected. Mac Reynolds and Sue Gilbert were elected as committee members, proposed by the President and agreed unanimously. The Treasurer’s proposal that the increase in Subs, which was passed in 2008 but held over in 2009, should be charged, with the subs for 2010 being $15. The Treasurer’s report and proposal was seconded by Les Mitchell and carried by acclamation. Following the branch A.G.M afternoon tea was served and the raffle drawn, among the winners were Margaret Swaney, Sister Deirdre Nelson, Dorothy Drew, Jean Piper, John McDonald, Cedric Trounson and Sue Gilbert.

The  report on the monthly meeting held at Aldersgate on Saturday the 10^th of April 2010 commencing at 2pm.   The President opened the meeting by welcoming 26 members and our speaker for the afternoon John McCombs.  Apologies were received from – Rosemary & John Moulton, Frieda Looser, Mike & Sue Elliott, Ida Hocking, Dorothy Drew, Margaret & Bill Jenkins and Pam Barnett. 

The President proposed a vote of thanks to Jean Piper for the donation of a large screen T.V. that should make the viewing of DVDs a bit easier on the eyes. Graham Harry also received our thanks for his work in adapting a stand to accommodate the T.V. and player.  

President Val conducted our 8^th lesson in the Cornish Language by reviewing our previous lessons from last year.  Les gave us his news of happenings in Cornwall over the past month. 

Our guest speaker this month was John McCombs a former colleague of member Alan Doney at the “Christchurch Star” and “The Press”.  John, a photographer, joined the “Press”, the morning newspaper owned at that time by the “Pyne Gould Guinness” group in 1972 as a member of the newly established photo dept who were described by the editor of the time as a bunch of “misfits”. John moved on in 1975 to join the Christchurch evening newspaper the “Star” before starting his own freelance photographic business in 1991, contributing to magazines such as N.Z Woman’s Weekly, North & South and N.Z Farmer till today he has over 600 clients. Among his more memorable shots was the Concord aircraft taking off from Christchurch during which it lost part of its tail, which brought considerable interest from the aircrafts makers. Another more tragic assignment involved taking photos of the Air N.Z crash site on Mt. Erebus. Other jobs were “Americas Cup” yachting in Perth and early shoots with super model Rachel Hunter. The change in 1992 from film to digital and the use of e-mail was a huge step forward, as much early film has been lost through chemical deterioration. John concluded his talk by saying that while at times frustrating, it is also an enjoyable way to make a living. John then answered many questions and shared memories with members. 

The President thanked John for is interesting talk and before afternoon tea drew the raffle, among the winners were Pamela Maw 2 prizes, Bruce Moore, Dallas Dunham, Joyce Doney and Jeanette Beaumont. 

Next month’s meeting will be on 12^th June and the following month on 10^th July, both at Aldersgate at 2pm.

Regards

Jean

Vol: 389                                                                                                                    February/March 2010

Dear Members

We’re having a beautiful Indian summer here in Christchurch, lovely after the awful weather we have had for months.

As the next Newsletter will not be until May, I have included Annual Subscription Renewal Forms for the year beginning 1^st April 2010 for National Members and Branch members who do not attend meetings.

Cornish World recently had an article about The Rain it Raineth Every Day, a famous painting by Norman Garstin, one of the Newlyn School of artists.  We have a print of it on our lounge wall and it brings back many happy memories of the Sunday Evening teenage ritual of walking along, sizing up members of the opposite sex.  Many a happy relationship developed from this ritual, including our own 56 years ago.  This ritual has died out now because all the youngsters have cars!!  “This famous painting by Norman Garstin now hangs in Penlee House Gallery and Museum, Penzance and is perhaps their most well-known Newlyn School work.

Visitors come from all over the world to see the painting and prints have been spotted hanging in places ranging from an apartment wall in the American hospital drama series St Elsewhere to a hotel bedroom in Cape Town.  (and at Chy-an-Logh in New Zealand).  Painted in 1889, the artist submitted it for exhibition at the Royal Academy, but it was rejected for being ‘too French’ in style.  Indeed, so French does it look that even though it features Penzance promenade – a view still very recognisable today – one of the places it has been spotted is in the French Pavilion in Disney World, Florida!

Disappointed by the Royal Academy’s rejection of what he considered to be his masterwork, Garstin decided on the very generous gesture of donating the painting to the town where he lived and which had inspired the work.  The painting was handed over to the Town Council, no doubt with the usual civilities, but its recipients were far from grateful.  Instead of putting it on public show, they hid it in the basement of St John’s Hall, where it mouldered unloved until Garstin’s death nearly 30 years later in 1926.

Unlike the Academicians, the town fathers cared not a jot about how French it looked: their problem was with its title.  Just as the railway was beginning to make tourism one of the town’s key industries, Garstin had made the mistake of painting Penzance’s charming promenade, complete with its adjacent leading hotel,  and giving his painting a title from Shakespeare (both King Lear and Twelfth Night) of The Rain it Raineth Every Day – hardly the greatest advertisement slogan.  Now, of course, the painting is one of the town’s tourist assets and is almost always on display at Penlee House Gallery and Museum.”

From The  Cornishman:  “Historic Pete Goss voyage to Australia will become a film.  The dramatic story of a fishing lugger’s voyage from Cornwall to Australia in the 19^th century is to be made into a film, writes Helen Dale.  Production is about to start on the project, which is being made possible thanks to a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF).  The Mystery set sail from Newlyn with seven Cornish fishermen on board in 1854.  The voyage was recently re-created by adventurer Pete Goss and his team who followed in the crew’s footsteps on board the replica Spirit of Mystery .

The film, which will dramatise events leading up to the original crossing, is being made by Collective Arts Ltd, formerly the Cornish Theatre Collective, in partnership with the National Maritime Museum Cornwall in Falmouth.  Producer, Jason Squib, from Falmouth, explained the reasons behind the film: ‘I’ve been performing Voyage of the Mystery as a one-man show, for the education department of the Maritime Museum for a couple of years and find the story fascinating.  The school children that watch it are intrigued with the story, the characters and this epic journey to the other side of the world.  When Pete Goss came to Falmouth, before embarking on his own voyage to Australia, there was such a great interest in everything Mystery related I thought it would be great to mark both of these voyages with a lasting legacy – and what better way to do that than a film.’ 

The project has won support from various sources, including Cornwall Playing for Success, Azook, Penlee House and Pete Goss and his team.  The tale has been described as a story of ‘perseverance, ambition and teamwork’ by Cassie Williams, deputy head teacher of St Ives Infant School.  Working alongside the Collective Arts professional team of actors and technicians will be students from Truro College’s media department and performers from Penryn Community Theatre.  Local playwright Pauline Sheppard will write the film and director James Ellwood will be on hand to guide all involved.  The film is expected to be shot in Cornwall at the end of March and will be distributed shortly after.  Nerys Watts, HLF’s head of region for the South West, said: ‘The region has a wonderful maritime heritage illustrated so fittingly by this story of fortitude and endurance.  We are delighted to be able to support this fascinating project, which will ensure that the achievement of those who sailed in The Mystery more than 150 years ago can be understood and appreciated by the young people of today”

From Cornish World: “Science think tank celebrates an amazing 175 years.  One of Britain’s oldest think tanks, the Royal Cornwall Polytechnic Society, is celebrating 175 years of promoting bright ideas and technology.  The Polytechnic Hall in Church Street, Falmouth is home to the Royal Cornwall Polytechnic Society and has been at the centre of some of the most exciting developments in science and technology.  It was here that Alfred Nobel made one of his first demonstrations of dynamite – causing minor damage to the building’s interior.  The concept of the revolutionary life-saving mine-shaft lift, the ‘man-engine’, was incubated at the Poly along with a revolutionary folding lifeboat and where Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated his newfangled ‘telephone’ invention.  Falmouth teenagers, Caroline and Anna Maria Fox, persuaded their father, businessman Robert Were Fox, to set up the organisation to help incubate and make use of the ideas coming from workers at the family firm – the Perran Foundry based at Perranarworthal.  See Wikipedia for more information.” You can click on the book cover to read one of the annual reports.

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I have received an email from Colin Roberts, the Administer of the Gorsedh Kernow about “the launch of a new Website resource made possible by our friends at the Federation of Old Cornwall Societies.  This is a direct result from feedback at Bewnans Kernow meetings last year.”  Our Association is already featured on the website www.oldcornwall.org/Diaspora.htm and I shall be sending a copy of our Newsletters to be included on the website:

Federation of Old Cornwall Societies - Cornwall Diaspora Introduction.  It has been estimated that between 1861 and 1901 a quarter of a million people left Cornwall to make a new life elsewhere. Whilst this period saw the bulk of the emigration, hundreds if not thousands of Cornish men and women had left Cornwall before 1861, and thousands more have left since 1901. Some eleven million people around the world can trace all or part of their ancestry back to Cornwall and some of these have formed or belong to Associations and gather together to enjoy their cultural heritage. Those who live too far away from one of these groups have found that the internet has allowed them to make contact with others of Cornish descent to learn more about Cornwall and its people.

This web page has been added to the Federation of Old Cornwall Societies' site in order to let people around the world pass on what is happening in their part of the worldwide Cornish community. If you are Cornish and do not belong to an Association and feel you have some news relating to Cornish history or culture in your area then why not drop us a line and let us know?

The links between Cornwall and the Cornish families who have settled elsewhere has continued to grow. Today with the internet and fast air travel the links grow stronger. When Colin Roberts, the Gorsedd Administrator, first approached Terry Knight, the Federations President, and me about adding this page to the Federation's web site, neither of us hesitated in agreeing. Terry is also the Editor of the Journal which has now reached its 245th issue.

To mark the 90th birthday of the first meeting, which resulted in the setting up of the St Ives Old Cornwall Society, we are offering a special discounted rate to those who HYPERLINK http://www.shop.oldcornwall.org/journal.htm  , take out a subscription, and a free copy of the present issue for the price of the postage to the first 50 who take up the offer. Finally, for those of you doing Cornish family history we have a page of: HYPERLINK"http://oldcornwall.org/family_history_links.htm"links where you can get lots of free information and help.

George Pritchard

Web master F.O.C.S.”

From Cornish World:”Wreck of The Nancy.  It is a story seemingly fit for the silver screen, yet it is being enacted just of the Isles of Scilly.  The mystery of The Nancy, an East India Company ship that sank off the island of St Agnes during a storm in 1784, is finally being brought to light thanks to Scillonians Ed Cummings and Todd and Carmen Stevens.  The trio have spent much of the last 3 years seeking out the story of  the wreck, the site of which has eluded divers for years.

The story of the wreck is extraordinary.  Upon striking rocks in February 1784, the entire crew of 36 and 12 passengers were killed, among them the famous actress, beauty and singer Ann Cargill, having been summoned back to Britain with her illegitimate child and vast fortune.  Cargill, a scandalous character for her time, was found with her baby in her arms. 

There have since been many ghost stories based on her tragic tale, one telling of the haunting strains of a woman singing a lullaby.  There are rumours that the ship may still contain Ann Cargill’s sunken fortune, though this is doubtful as the wreck was most likely stripped of items of value at the time of the disaster.  The results of the search are eagerly awaited as it is hoped that personal items belonging to the actress might be recovered.”

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I featured an article recently about ShelterBox and the work they do in disaster areas.  This article is from the New England, New York and New Jersey Cornish Heritage Society East and tells us more about the wonderful work being done by ShelterBox: “ShelterBox Founder and CEO Tom Henderson OBE has been recognised for his services to humanitarian aid by the Queen in her New Year Honours list. Tom has been appointed an OBE by the Queen for his outstanding contribution to charity and humanitarian work since he founded ShelterBox in 2000.  During that time ShelterBox has worked on every continent providing emergency aid after earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, hurricanes, typhoons, landslides, volcanoes and armed conflicts. As a result people who have lost everything have been given something back and the chance to start rebuilding their lives.

Tom Henderson, a Rotarian and former Royal Navy search and rescue diver, saw that the aid response to most disasters was in the form of food and medicine to help people survive the immediate aftermath.  Little or no assistance was given in terms of proper shelter to help them through the first few days, weeks and months as they tried to rebuild their lives. ShelterBox was launched to fill that void. In 1999, Tom started researching the idea, sourcing equipment and twisting arms to get the project off the ground. His persistence paid off in April 2000 when ShelterBox was launched and the Rotary Club of Helston-Lizard in Cornwall adopted it as its millennium project. Little did they know that it would become the largest Rotary club project in the world, with affiliates in eight countries.  The first consignment of 143 boxes was sent to earthquake victims in the Indian state of Gujarat in January 2001. Over the next three years the project matured and by the end of 2004 nearly 2,600 boxes had been dispatched, following 16 major disasters. On 26 December 2004, news came of the devastating Indian Ocean Tsunami and ShelterBox faced its most significant challenge, one that would change its course forever.  Donations and volunteers poured in and we were able to ramp up our operations on a scale unimaginable just six months earlier.  In 2005 we sent out more than 22,000 boxes, almost 10 times the number we had sent out in the previous three years. Not only were we sending aid to victims of the Tsunami, but we were also able to help those who had lost their homes in Hurricane Katrina in the USA and the massive earthquake that hit the Kashmir region of Pakistan. In just a few short months, ShelterBox had emerged as a major player in the field of international disaster relief. We have continued to build on our Tsunami experience, helping as many people as we can, as quickly as we can, the moment disaster strikes.  We have now worked on every continent, responding to earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, typhoons, hurricanes, volcanoes and conflicts.

From Cornish World: “Romance is a Cornish road.  The winding B3306 road connecting St Ives and St Just has been named of the most romantic places to watch the sunset.  Its picturesque moorland, proximity to the sea and beautiful view won it the title in a study after it was found that watching the sun go down is the nation’s favourite romantic pastime.  The road, previously also named one of the most relaxing drives in the country, passes through Zennor, Morvah, Botallack, Carnyorth, Trewellard and Pendeen.”  (Some of us already knew that, didn’t we!!)

Taranaki Branch:  The Branch AGM was held at the Citizens Advice Bureau on Saturday 13^th February.  There were 18 members present, including our own poet as featured in the last National Newsletter.  Officers for the coming year were elected:

President          Gary Wellington

Vice President   Ray Barkla

Secretary          Carol Cowling

Treasurer          Bernice Woods

Committee        Raewyn Wellington, Ava Stevens

                         and Graham Cowling

Sales Table       Elaine James

The sub was set at $15 to cover both national and local expenses.  The President reported on the range of activities held throughout the year.  The President is going to do a press release in local papers to, hopefully, be printed on or before St Piran’s Day.

A detailed discussion was held on the float for the Ethnic parade (27th March) and also on ideas for activities.

As our next meeting occurs on Flora Day, we may be attending in top hat and tails.  Douglas Chisholm read us a poem that he had composed for the occasion.  The day finished with afternoon tea.

Christchurch News:  The first meeting of 2010 was the annual picnic held this year at the Edmonds Gardens in Ferry Road Christchurch on the afternoon of Sunday 31st January following a postponement from the previous week due to bad weather.  17 members enjoyed a very warm and sunny afternoon catching up on the happenings since our last meeting in early December.  Our next meeting will be on Saturday, 10^th April at 2.pm.

Regards

Jean

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Vol: 387 October/November 2009

Dear Members

What a strange Spring we have had this year weatherwise! At least here in Christchurch there

were no strong winds to blow the blossom off our late flowering Cherry Tree and it’s been

particularly pretty this year.

In response to Elaine Bolitho’s request in the last Newsletter, I have received the following email

from Brisbane member Don Jamieson: “A follow-up to your very interesting newsletter just

received. I too have wondered how my ancestors emigrating from Cornwall to New Zealand got to

London, or, in their case, to the ship’s departure point of Gravesend. John Jameson (as then

spelt) was a seaman from the Shetland Islands, working on coastal shipping between Portreath

and presumably Bristol, meeting his wife Jane née Lean in Portreath. They married in 1857.

Jane’s mother was a Tangye and her father Thomas Lean or Layne was apparently from Bristol,

also meeting his wife Mary Tangye in Portreath. When they were to emigrate in 1865, with their

three children (seven more were to be born in New Zealand) in the ship Tudor to Lyttelton, how

would they have gone to their point of departure? Did the emigration authorities provide them with

transport? They could, of course, have gone by rail, but there are no family stories about this, so

we can only conjecture. I would certainly be very interested in any further information on this.”

Don’s email address is jamieson@australiaonline.net.au

From the Cornishman: “Europe flies in with £24.3m for development at airport. Newquay Airport

has received the second largest grant of any European airport, following a £24.3m cash injection.

The money was approved by European Commission (EC) chiefs and will allow bosses to push

ahead with the airport’s massive expansion programme. The EC’s approval saw money from

convergence funding and the Objective One scheme matched with cash from Cornwall Council

and the Regional Development Agency. Known as ‘state aid approval’, the EC said it gave the

grant the green light after realising the long-term beneficial effects the airport has on the local

economy. Chris Cain, project director at Newquay Airport, said: ‘It demonstrates that they have the

confidence in our team to be able to deliver on our goals and targets for the airport.’

However, Mr Cain said the money did not give them approval for mass building projects included in

the airport master plan. ‘This doesn’t give us the green light to go out and build hotels and other

new facilities,’ he said. ‘That is all separate and has to be worked through closely with individual

business plans and through the normal planning process. What the money does allow us to do is

to claim back some of that already spent on some aspects and then allow us to sit down and

assess where we go forward from here. The funding process is somewhat bureaucratic but you

can’t do an awful lot without it.’

The cash does mean Newquay Airport has now secured £68m in total from various agencies for its

development. And one immediate result of that cash boost could be the creation of more jobs. Mr

Cain explained: ‘We have inherited about 300,000 sq ft of buildings from the Ministry of Defence

and we are now working to get these renovated and rented out to aviation businesses with the aim

of creating more jobs.’ The airport’s master plan – released in December last year – outlined a

host of potential developments. Included is a new terminal on the south side of the airport, an

aviation training centre and a business park.

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News of the funding approval has been welcomed by tourism and political leaders in Cornwall.

Steve Gilbert, prospective parliamentary candidate for Newquay and St Austell, said: ‘Newquay

airport is a huge success story for Cornwall and a vital transport link for local people, businesses

and visitors. It’s great news that the future development of the airport now looks secure and this

investment comes at the right time to be a real boost to the local economy.’ And Malcolm Bell,

chairman of South West Tourism, added: ‘Developing the airport is about raising the profile of

Cornwall. Even if people don’t use the airport, they expect a major tourism destination to have a

decent airport. We also need to open up the county to overseas visitors if we want to boost the

local tourism economy.”

There has been much debate about including ‘Cornish’ as a tick-box for Country of Origin on the

British Census Form. The Letters column of the Cornishman has been running hot with opinions

for and against. James Cook from Cornwall writes: ‘I just cannot understand it. There’ll be

Berkshire and Shropshire on there next. Cornwall, like Devon, is just a county. Get over it!!’

And the following week from GL of Marazion: ‘Cornwall translates as something that is unique. I

don’t know, he discovers Australia and thinks he knows it all! Cornwall is a county – correct

James, but, unlike Devon and every other county in England, it used to be a country with its own

language, so perhaps that is why the Cornish never quite ‘get over it’. As a former country,

Cornwall is accorded the honour of having its name translated into other languages; Cornouaille

(French), Cornualles (Spanish), Cornualha (Portuguese), Cornovaglia (Italian), Corn na Breataine

(Irish). As for Berkshire, Shropshire and even Devon...well, other countries don’t think they are

worth the bother of a translation. Tells you something, doesn’t it?’ Personally, I have always

thought that no other county in England describes its people as “ish” as in Scottish, Irish, Welsh

and Cornish!! – Jean.

by monks in the 11th century and was an important place of medieval pilgrimage. It was

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into the busy 15th century ‘Blue Anchor’ pub [with brewery out the back] to sample their

From the Cornishman: “Jethro observes would-be hedgers. Cornish comedian Jethro has

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Cornishman: ‘It has been a good day and the great thing is that some of them build very

And the theme is continued in the following week’s Cornishman in Mike Sagar-Fenton’s

And from County Life by Mark Griffiths: “Some say a ‘Cornish hedge’ is a free-standing

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Taranaki News: There were 20 members present at the meeting on Saturday 8th August,

as a picnic day at a private garden and all ages have been invited. November 7th had

Christchurch News: The meeting on Saturday 12th September was held at the Aldersgate

Lounge, the 42nd birthday of the formation of the Christchurch Branch. The President

awards at the Cornish Gorsedd held on 5th September at Saltash. Jean Harry, the

President Val gave us our 5th lesson in the Cornish Language and seems to be pleased

The meeting on Saturday 10th October was held at Aldersgate Lounge, commencing at

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operation next week. President Val pointed out to members that the car park at the back of

the Church is available for members on the day of the meetings. The notice about

‘unauthorised vehicles being towed away’ is only operative Monday to Friday and double

parking is permitted in appropriate places. Val gave us our 6th lesson in the Cornish

Jean Piper, Margaret Swanney, Cedric Trounson, David King and Pat Jeffrey. Our next

meeting, our Christmas Party , will be on Saturday 5 th December, not the usual second

Saturday of the month.

This is the last Newsletter for the year and so I will finish with this Cornish greeting: Nadelik

Lowen Ha Blydhen Nowydh Da.

Regards

Jean

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