The Parochial History of Cornwall, Volume 1 (of 4)

THE

PAROCHIAL HISTORY

OF

CORNWALL.




J. B. NICHOLS AND SON, 25, PARLIAMENT-STREET.




THE

PAROCHIAL HISTORY

OF

CORNWALL,

FOUNDED ON THE MANUSCRIPT HISTORIES

OF

MR. HALS AND MR. TONKIN;

WITH ADDITIONS AND VARIOUS APPENDICES,

BY

DAVIES GILBERT,

SOMETIME PRESIDENT OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY, F.A.S. F.R.S.E. M.R.I.A. &c.
&c. AND D.C.L. BY DIPLOMA FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD.


_IN FOUR VOLUMES._

VOL. I.


LONDON:

PUBLISHED BY J. B. NICHOLS AND SON; AND SOLD BY

J. LIDDELL, BODMIN; J. LAKE, FALMOUTH; O. MATTHEWS, HELSTON; MESSRS.
BRAY AND ROWE, LAUNCESTON; T. VIGURS, PENZANCE; MRS. HEARD, TRURO; W.
H. ROBERTS, EXETER; J. B. ROWE, PLYMOUTH; AND ALL OTHER BOOKSELLERS IN
CORNWALL AND DEVON.

1838.




PREFACE.


Having read in the earliest portion of my life the small part of Mr.
Hals’ Parochial History published about the year 1750, I entertained
from that time a strong desire for seeing the remainder also in print;
this desire grew up with my years, increased perhaps by an
understanding that the manuscript had disappeared, no one seemed to
know in what way, and that it might possibly have been destroyed.

At last, the manuscript was recovered by the most justly celebrated
Mr. Whitaker, from a bookseller at Exeter, who had retained the papers
as a pledge for some debt; from Mr. Whitaker they have come to his
son-in-law Richard Taunton, Esq. M.D. who has with great liberality
placed them in my hands; mutilated, however, as to the histories of
several parishes, from want of care and of attention on the part of
the individual holding them as a deposit, although he must have deemed
them to be of pecuniary value.

Mr. Tonkin’s papers were preserved by his niece Miss Fosse, who died
more than fifty years ago, at a place that may now be termed, without
offence, the village of Michell. This lady must have been the last of
Mr. Tonkin’s near relations; for, although the property left at her
decease could not have amounted to anything of importance, the funeral
was attended by many scores of persons, claiming shares of whatever
could be found. Under such circumstances every moveable was soon
converted into money, and the manuscript of the Parochial History,
complete as Mr. Tonkin left it, got into the possession of Lord
Dunstanville, by whom it was instantly offered to me, on my preparing
to edit the Parochial History of Mr. Hals. And as Mr. Tonkin copied
largely from Mr. Hals, many of the lost parishes are at least
partially supplied.

The late Mr. Lysons got possession of a beautifully transcribed copy
of the whole that remains of Mr. Hals’ Parochial History; this was
purchased at the sale of his books by the Earl of Aylesford, who
without any personal acquaintance whatever, has had the liberality to
allow me the use of this splendid folio volume, during the whole time
of my work passing through the press.

Mr. Gregor has supplied me with an original copy of the last Heraldic
Visitation of Cornwall; and to Doctor Boase I am indebted for a
geological description of every parish.

Previously to my taking this task on myself, I endeavoured to preserve
the works of Mr. Hals and Mr. Tonkin for the public, by the more easy
expedient of advancing money in aid of the publication; but not having
obtained success, I at last adventured on what is now done, little
aware, however, of the pains, and time, required for editing the
histories of more than two hundred parishes; although I have to a
considerable extent relieved myself from the most irksome duty of
correcting the press, by obtaining the assistance of Messrs. Nichols
and Son, on the condition of their taking, what is very unlikely to
accrue, any profit arising from the publication, and my sustaining,
the more probable alternative, all the loss.

Mr. Hals’ work is given without alteration, except considerable
omissions of long histories, from the Bollandists and other writers of
legends, relative to obscure Saints, little known, or deserving of
being known; and in many cases owing their supposed connection with
Cornwall, entirely to the writer’s imagination; and in the opposite
extreme, of the lives of personages most worthy of being preserved and
studied in general history, of Apostles, of Emperors of Rome, and
Kings, but quite as irrelevant as the former, to a History of
Cornwall.

I have been also unable to retain the greater part of the derivations
assigned to the names of manors, families, or places; they are
generally referred to some word of a similar sound in modern English,
after a manner scarcely less ludicrous than the mock etymologies of
Dr. Swift.

Lastly, I have omitted various anecdotes, containing simple scandal,
without any thing illustrative of the age or country.

Other anecdotes of a public nature are retained; on a conviction that
events long passed by, and incapable from their very nature of being
suppressed,