Perranarworthal

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Perranarworthal is a village and civil parish in the district of Carrick, Cornwall in England, UK. It is bounded on the north by Kea, on the east by Restronguet Creek and Mylor, on the south by St Gluvias and Stithians, and on the west by Gwennap. The name of the village derives from the Manor of Arworthal. It has had a number of spellings throughout history including - Hareworthal - 1187, Arwoethel and Arwythel. By the 18th century two names appear on maps “Perran Arworthal” meaning St Piran’s by the creek or estuary. The part of the parish near the creek operated as a wharf and was known as "Perran Wharf". William Peneluna described the settlement in 1838 [1].

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[edit] Church

In 1884, the 15th Century Anglican church of Saint Piran was replaced by a building designed by James Piers St Aubyn.

[edit] Historic foundry

It was the home of the Perran Iron Foundry[2], an innovative concern, run by the Fox family of Falmouth and other Quaker business families. It was set up on the site of a tin smelting works in 1791. The foundry was later operated in partnership with Williams family, and in 1858, it was sold to them. The creek serving the factory silted up and mining in Cornwall declined. The wharf had been used to import timber for the mining industry from Scandinavia. The slump in the mining industry during the 1870s hit Perran Foundry badly and it closed in March 1879 with the loss of 400 jobs, causing great distress in the parish. In April 1879, the 'Royal Cornwall Gazette' reported that a soup kitchen had been open since January: '793 people had attended and 1,240 quarts of soup were distributed'. The buildings including Manor Mill on the opposite side of the road were later adapted by the Edwards Brothers for the milling and storage of grains and animal foods, and also cloth dyeing; another waterwheel was added. Over the past few years there have been ambitious plans which have come and gone, but little has changed at the foundry site apart from the gradual deterioration of the buildings. [3].

[edit] Foundry site redevelopment

The site has been used for various purposes since but closed in 1986. In 2005, the owners, North Hill Estates Ltd., applied for planning permission to redevelop the site. The proposal is for a mix of live/work units and residential accommodation. Further consultation on their proposal is ongoing (2007)[4][5][6].

[edit] Current businesses

The Norway Inn [7] provides hospitality. Known originally as the Norway Hotel, its name is derived from the Norwegian vessels which once brought loads of timber to Perran Wharf [8], largely for use in the mines. The timber would be seasoned by being 'pickled' for several months in shallow tidal ponds. The Norway Inn was built in 1828/1829 at the same time the main Falmouth to Truro road was rerouted to cross the Carnon River on an embankment just above the village of Devoran [9].

Cosawes Park Homes[10]have a campsite.

[edit] Tullimaar: notable residents and visitors

In 1870 the Rev. Francis Kilvert spent nearly 3 weeks on holiday in Perranarworthal. His base was at Tullimaar, a mansion just east of Perranarworthal Church. Although not visible from the main A39 Falmouth to Truro road, the house stands in private grounds .

It was built in 1828 by Benjamin Sampson, born in 1770, who was originally a Bal Carpenter and became founder of the gunpowder works at Kennal Vale. He also held the post of Manager and shareholder in the Perran Foundry, and was an Adventurer in Tresavean Mine, from which he derived a large fortune. He built Tullimaar and resided there until his death 12 years later in 1840. He was buried at Gwennap [11].

Tullimaar was occupied by American troops during the latter part of World War II and General Eisenhower stayed at the house for two weeks in the run up to D-Day in 1944.

It was reported that General Eisenhower was also co-organising the planning for the D-Day landings. These were being organised at Tullimaar in Perranarworthal. These troops brought all their stores with them and when they eventually left on D-Day, all the packing cases, some of which were not even opened, were dumped in Rosemanowes Quarry.

Marthe Bibesco, the Franco-Romanian writer, lived here, after purchasing Tullimaar in 1958 for a while after the Second World War.

In recent years the house was home to Nobel Prize-winning novelist Sir William Golding who lived there from 1985 until his death in June 1993[12].

[edit] References

  1. ^ An Historical Survey of the County of Cornwall, Etc.: In Two Volumes By W. Penaluna Volume 2, pages 157-158. Google Books - Harvard copy, formerly owned by Davies Gilbert.
  2. ^ Cornish Mining History website article on Perran Foundry and Cornwall Industrial Settlements Initiative Report: Perranarworthal
  3. ^ Barton, D.B. (1968). The Cornish beam engine, 2nd edn., Truro, Cornwall: D. Bradford Barton, 152 – 159. 
  4. ^ "Further consultation on foundry scheme" article by Melanie Jago in The West Briton July 12, 2007, page 33.
  5. ^ Carrick District Council Planning Application PA16/2574/05/M [1]
  6. ^ West Briton 27 Sepember 2007, page 30 "Foundry go-ahead".
  7. ^ Norway Inn website
  8. ^ Perran Wharf photographs
  9. ^ The Village of Devoran
  10. ^ Casawes Park Homes website
  11. ^ In his book, Cornish Explosives, (2nd edition, 2006) pages 33-4, Bryan Earl asserts that the Gunpowder works was a subsidiary of the Fox family's Perran Foundry. In the Journal of the Trevithick Society, Volume 28: 2001. Ken Sampson has challenged this assertion and made it clear that Benjamin Sampson was the principal share-holder. ("Benjamin Sampson 1770-1840"; p.31-36.)
  12. ^ "William Golding Is Dead at 81; The Author of 'Lord of the Flies'", New York Times, June 20, 1993. Retrieved on 2007-09-06. 
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Civil Parishes of Carrick District