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”

Port Penzance A short strategic and operational history by Professor Neil Hawke LL B, Ph D, FRSA Beginnings This is an illustrated strategic and operational history of the port of Penzance as seen through press coverage and other written sources over the years since Penzance was first regarded as a ‘haven’. Penzance received its first…Continue Reading “Port Penzance”

Paul Caruana discusses the benefits of Social Media in raising awareness of local nostalgia and heritage. Can Social Media really have an effect on the way we both learn and teach our local history? Is It the correct medium to utilise if we wish to maximise exposure and reach out to the masses? Is there…Continue Reading “Social Media, Nostalgia and Local History/Heritage”

General Strike of GWR workers

Veronica Kelly returns with the final part of a three-part series looking at the history of the two Great Western Railway housing estates, ‘Little Moscow’ and ‘Moscow Row’ in Cornwall. You can find part 2 here. The first time Green Close tenants took industrial action as a community was in the 1926 General Strike. Four months after both…Continue Reading “Little Moscow and Moscow Row: Part 3”