Bob Keys shares local history and memories of West Indian and Black American troops being stationed in south-east Cornwall during the First and Second World War. A number of local memories concerning Black American troops stationed at Tregantle Fort before D-Day still circulate around Rame, particularly in relation to their musical talents and accomplishments, their…Continue Reading “Black History Month”
Madeleine Midgley writes about her forthcoming publication exploring the visit to Penzance in 1925 by J.A. Rogers, the prominent African-American writer, that is being launched in October this year by Cornish Story as part of Black History month at the Institute of Cornish Studies. Joel Augustus Rogers, more widely known as J.A. Rogers (1880-1966) was a…Continue Reading “J.A. Rogers in Penzance”
Two new biographies of the Brontës’ mother Maria and aunt Elizabeth Branwell create divergent impressions of their childhood home and family in Penzance. Neither woman had previously been the subject of an individual biography despite their formative role in the lives of the Brontë sisters. With journalistic flair Sharon Wright sets out Maria Branwell’s literary,…Continue Reading “Penzance and the Brontës”
As we commemorate the bicentenary of Peterloo on 16 August this year the reactions of people in Cornwall at the time merit consideration. What were the opinions of people in Cornwall on political reform? How did they respond to news of the deaths and injuries sustained by individuals congregating as a crowd to hear the…Continue Reading “Cornwall and Peterloo”
This is the second of two linked articles and focuses on the life and Cornish connections of the poet Ann Batten Cristall. You can find the previous article on Eliza Fenwick here. Ann Batten Cristall’s mother Elizabeth was the daughter of the Penzance merchant John Batten and his wife Anne whose brother Christopher Nichols was…Continue Reading “Cornish connections with 1790s radical and literary circles: Part 2”
This is the first of two linked articles focussing on the life and Cornish connections of the novelist and childrens’ book writer Eliza Fenwick. Two women writers who were part of Mary Wollstonecraft’s circle had family connections with Cornwall. The fact that Maria and Elizabeth Branwell, the mother and the close aunt of the Bronte…Continue Reading “Cornish connections with 1790s radical and literary circles: Part 1”