Excursions in the County of Cornwall / Comprising a Concise Historical and Topographical Delineation of the Principal Towns and Villages, Together With Descriptions of the Residences of the Nobility and Gentry, Remains of Antiquity, and Every Other Interesting Object of Curiosity

by Frederick Wilton Litchfield Stockdale

The population of the county, according to the returns of 1811, was 216,667, and 28,398 greater than it was 10 years previous; but by the late census, amounts to 261,000, the extraordinary increase of about 45,000 in the last 10 years.—It is divided into nine hundreds, 203 parishes, (of which 85 are Rectories, 100 Vicarages, and 18 Curacies,) 30 market towns, and now returns forty-two members to Parliament.

The climate of this county has long been noted for its mildness and salubrity. Its inhabitants in respect to longevity, are said to surpass every other county in England, and Carew says, “that 80 and 90 years is common in every place, and in most persons accompanied with an able use of the body and senses.” In the parish where he resided, an instance is mentioned of the decease of four persons, within 14 weeks space, whose united ages amounted to 340 years. Various instances of the longevity of the inhabitants of Cornwall, are also recorded by Borlase and other subsequent writers. As a proof of the mildness of the climate, even the most tender shrubs and plants, such as myrtles, hydrangea, geraniums, Balm of Gilead, &c. live and thrive the whole year in the open ground, and in many parts, grow to the greatest state of perfection. Notwithstanding so much rain falls in Cornwall, heavy showers are not, however, so frequent as in other counties.—The storms which occur, are very severe, but are considered extremely conducive to the healthiness of the inhabitants, by clearing the air of the pernicious vapours which exhale from the mines, leaving in their room, the vivifying qualities wafted by the genial breezes of the ocean.—The winters, in general, are very mild; frosts are of short duration; and snow seldom lies upon the ground more than three or four days. Mr. Worgan, the author of a work upon the Agriculture of Cornwall, says, “a kind of languid spring prevails through the winter, which brings forth early buds and blossoms, raising the expectations of agriculturists, to be too often disappointed by blighting north-east winds, in March, April, and even so late as May.”

The cause of such frequent rains in Cornwall is, that for three-fourths of the year, the wind blows from the intermediate points of the south and west, and sweeping over a vast tract of the Atlantic Ocean, collects large bodies of clouds, which being intersected in their passage by the hills, descend in frequent showers. Notwithstanding the salubrity of the climate of Cornwall, the harvests in general, are much later than in midland counties; but owing to the great improvements which have been made of late years in agriculture, the corn which it produces, is equal, if not superior, to any other.

The sterile and rugged aspect of many parts of the county, (especially the road from Launceston to Truro, which presents, excepting the town of Bodmin, almost nothing but extensive and waste moors,) impresses the minds of travellers with a very unfavourable opinion of the county; but the admirers of the picturesque will always be delighted with the beauty of its numerous valleys and more cultivated parts. On the other hand, Cornwall, from its maritime situation, and the numerous mines with which it abounds, possesses many advantages. To an antiquarian it will always be highly interesting, as few other counties contain so many Druidical and Roman remains. The mineralogist will always have an endless source for amusement in the great variety of mineral specimens which it presents to his notice.

The north and south parts of the county are divided by a ridge of barren and rugged hills, running from east to west, like a distorted back bone. The most remarkable hills are Brown-Willy, Roughton, and Henborough; the first being no less than 1,368 feet above the level of the sea.

The most considerable rivers in the county, are the Tamar, the Lynher, the Looe, the Fowey, the Fal, and the Camel or Alan.

The Tamar rises in the northern side of the county, in the parish of Moorwinstow, and with little variation, pursues a southerly direction, for nearly 40 miles, when it unites with the Lynher Creek, and ultimately forms the spacious harbour of Harmoaze, between Plymouth Dock and Saltash. The banks of this river, which is the most considerable in the West of England, are richly diversified with rocks and woods, and the scenery in many parts of its course is extremely beautiful.[^[2]]

The Lynher rises in the parish of Alternon, eight miles north-west of Launceston, and after running a circuitous course of 24 miles, spreads itself into the form of a lake, near St. Germains, (called Lynher Creek) and ultimately unites with the Tamar, about a mile below Saltash.

The Looe rises in the parish of St. Cleer, and taking a course of seven or eight miles, meets the tide at Sand Place, becomes navigable, and at the distance of three miles empties itself into the sea, between the towns of East and West Looe.

The Fowey rises from a well near Brown-Willy, one of the highest hills in Cornwall, between Lanson and Bodmin. It flows for some miles in a southerly direction, turns suddenly to the west, and pursues a course of some miles, till it meets the tide at Lostwithiel, and ultimately falls into the sea at Fowey. The scenery on the banks of the river from Lostwithiel to Fowey, is remarkably beautiful and picturesque.