19th Century Life

Letter written to the Times by the Vicar of St Minver 27 April 1863 about wrecks on Doom bar and the concern at the loss of life.

The following documents are  held at Cornwall County Record Office in Truro and  provide a snapshot of a village (transcribed by me).

Harvest Tea 1872 names of all those eligible to receive free tickets for tea on the occasion of Harvest Thanksgiving Sept 12 1872

Randall charity 1871 to 1879 names  - a list of all those receiving money from the Mismeer or Randall Charity for Widows and Fatherless children.  There is a picture here of the memorial.

St Minver Mines  During the 1850s, there was a rise in the number of men calling themselves 'miner' at their child's baptism.  Many of them were 'incomers' who had married local women.  Sadly, when the mines closed, they moved on with their new families, many down towards the Camborne/Redruth/Gwennap district, some to Devon. 

Extracts from the transcriptions of the West Briton Newspaper are available.  The extracts give a sense of the life for some of the inhabitants in 19th century St Minver.  The entries would have been submitted by a local agent for the newspaper.

St Enodoc Lowland North Churchwarden accounts.  These begin in 1816 and from 1821 onwards a selection of one account per decade up to 1871 has been transcribed.  It is interesting to see how the salaries for sexton and clerk increased over the years, and the regular upkeep payments for this beautiful little church on the dunes.  Some names of local craft/tradesmen are given. 

Return to the top

Page created August 2006, updated January 2009