Bernard Deacon's Blog, page 25

Merchants of Lostwithiel

Lostwithiel was a town planned in the 1100s by the Cardinham family who controlled Restormel Castle overlooking the River Fowey upstream of Lostwithiel. In the later 1200s the town became the de-facto administrative capital of Cornwall when the Earl of Cornwall and then the Duchy made it their headquarters, later constructing the Duchy Palace near … Continue reading Merchants of Lostwithiel →

Tall stories from Little Petherick

Little Petherick, a few miles to the west of Wadebridge, wasn’t called little because it was small, barely a mile wide and running down a creek draining north into the Camel estuary. It was ‘little’ in reference to its big brother of Padstow, two miles to the north. The patron saint of both parishes was … Continue reading Tall stories from Little Petherick →

Liskeard’s London connection

In the 1800s thousands of people from Cornwall’s mining communities left to make their way to coal and iron mining districts in the north of England and south Wales. But there was also a strong migration flow to London. Craftsmen and shopworkers were particularly likely to make the move to London, attracted by the greater … Continue reading Liskeard’s London connection →

Liskeard: Victorian Cornwall’s boom town

In the 1830s copper ore reserves were discovered on Caradon Hill on the southern edge of Bodmin Moor near Liskeard. Soon after, in 1843, rich lead deposits were noted to the south east at Menheniot and to the south of the town. In consequence Liskeard became Cornwall’s boom town in the 1840s as several mines … Continue reading Liskeard: Victorian Cornwall’s boom town →

Irish immigrants at Liskeard

Cornwall was not a major destination for people leaving Ireland in the wake of the Great Famine and the traumatic 1840s. In 1861 there were 1,475 people born in Ireland and living in Cornwall (or just 0.4 per cent of the population). Moreover, several of these were Irish-born military personnel. Most of the other Irish … Continue reading Irish immigrants at Liskeard →

Linkinhorne: born out of wedlock

The third quarter of the 1800s was a time of profound social change at Linkinhorne, a parish to the east of Bodmin Moor. It was on the edge of the district that experienced a mining boom from the 1830s to the late 1860s. As a result, its population almost tripled during those years as miners … Continue reading Linkinhorne: born out of wedlock →

Contrasting fortunes for Lezant’s carpenters

Whether urban or rural, mining or farming, all parishes in Victorian Cornwall would have had a number of men and women who got their living from their craft. For men this might include a variety of jobs such as blacksmiths, shoemakers or masons; for women it tended to be restricted to dressmaking. But did craftsmen … Continue reading Contrasting fortunes for Lezant’s carpenters →

Lewannick: leaving the nest. Or not

It’s back to the Launceston district as we home in on the parish of Lewannick, to the south west of the town. Around 1,300 years before the Victorians, two fellows named Ulcagnus and Ingenvus lived here. We know because they left their memorial stones behind, inscribed in both Latin and ogham. They were Irish-speakers who … Continue reading Lewannick: leaving the nest. Or not →

Lesnewth and one of Cornwall’s first old age pensioners

No need to take hours pondering over which fascinating biography to choose to illustrate a life from this parish. For the simple reason that Lesnewth, near Boscastle on Cornwall’s north coast, provides just one case for the database. Fortunately, or unfortunately for the length of this blog, the life course of Fanny Woolridge can be … Continue reading Lesnewth and one of Cornwall’s first old age pensioners →

Staying single at Lawhitton

This small farming parish is found just south east of Launceston, bordering on the river Tamar and Devon. As Launceston encroached into rural Lawhitton in the 1890s the parish was split into urban and rural parts. But in 1861 it looks to have been largely farming country. There were only a few children aged 11 … Continue reading Staying single at Lawhitton →