Cornwall's Hidden History Blog
A small granite cross stands entirely alone on an isolated slope of Bodmin Moor. Just three feet high somehow it manages to dominate the landscape, easily spotted by the few that might find themselves walking out there on this peaceful part of the moorland. But sadly this little cross doesn’t mark the site of some […]
Read More
The 22nd item on the running order of ITV’s News At Ten on the 10th December 1969 was a little odd to say the least. The news anchor, Reginald Bosanquet, who had been presenting the programme since it began two years earlier, introduced the story – it was about the elaborate funeral of a dog […]
Read More
When most people think of a Cornish connection to the infamous mutiny on the Bounty they usually think of the unfortunate Captain William Bligh whose family was from St Tudy, near Bodmin. Very few realise that one of the main ring-leaders of those notorious events was also a Cornishman – Matthew Quintal. I first came […]
Read More
Hidden amongst trees down a narrow dead-end lane is what remains of St Ruan Major Church. Once a grand building described as “one of the most curious and interesting” of Cornwall’s churches it is now a shadow of its former self. A atmospheric shell, open to the sky. When I first came across the ruin, […]
Read More
In August 1797 Rev. Richard Polwhele preached a sermon to his congregation in Manaccan concerning two rather “melancholy events” that had recently taken place in the parish. One was a destructive storm of near biblical proportions, the other was a murder. I first came across Richard Roskruge’s story while on the hunt for unusual epitaphs […]
Read More
There was a time when people whole-heartedly believed in miracles. A time when they thought that visiting a religious relic, saying prayers in a certain church or drinking from a sacred well would bring them what they so desperately needed, whether that was good health, fertility or salvation. St Michael’s Mount was one of those […]
Read More
The historian Charlotte MacKenzie’s latest book brings together a collection of mysterious tales from Cornish history. From folklore and the supernatural to early healthcare and unexplained disappearances – this book is filled with meticulously researched stories from Cornwall’s often peculiar past. ‘Cornish Mysteries’ complements her previous work, which includes Cornish Legends, Women Writers & Georgian […]
Read More
When Charles Dickens visited Cornwall in the mid-19th century he spent some time walking around the Lizard “knapsack on shoulder and stout boots on feet”. He felt that it was the only way to truly experience this isolated corner of Cornwall. Just outside Gunwalloe he made the acquaintance of a man he called “Old Cuttance” […]
Read More
Just beyond a deep bend in the tidal reaches of the River Tamar and close to the picturesque grounds of Pentillie Castle is a quiet, forgotten quay. Once a hive of activity Halton Quay now seems to idle in peace and tranquillity, especially when the water is high, lapping gently at the granite walls and […]
Read More
The Cornish coast is well known as a graveyard for ships, dramatic tales of shipwreck and rescue were once very much a daily part of local lives. And, of course, these disasters were rarely without victims. But what happened to the unidentified drowned was not something that was or is comfortable to talk about. Until […]
Read More