A Dame School (Thomas George Webster 1800-1886) By Tony Mansell Prior to the Elementary Education Act of 1870, 1 the state took no responsibility for schooling and those who wanted their children to receive lessons had to rely on charity or private arrangements. There appears to have been many small schools offering such a service…Continue Reading “Dame Schools as a part of the Cornish Education System”
By Tony Mansell Cornwall once had many railway branch lines but, sad to say, only a few remain. One that still operates is the Looe Valley Line but without the the need to transport minerals from Caradon to quayside, it would never have been built. Perhaps that statement is not entirely true: who knows whether…Continue Reading “Caradon to Looe Railway”
By Tony Mansell No story of Truro could be told without reference to its rivers and their role in its development. Sailing ships and then steam ships were a common sight as they made their way from Falmouth Haven, along what we now know as Carrick Roads, the River Fal and into Truro River…Continue Reading “Truro’s Rivers”
A Cornish Dialect series by Tony Mansell “Tis right nuff Pard, I was attacked an I consider meself lucky to ave escaped with me life: I can still remember his crazed look as ee swooped down. I knew I musn look’n the eyes otherwise I’d have been glued to the spot, transfixed like. Now,…Continue Reading “The Life and Times of Sidney Zacharius Penpraze – The White Winged Chough”
Cornish Religious Revivals By Tony Mansell The chapel was packed: every seat filled, every corner occupied. The response was huge and they now listened intently to the impassioned pleas of the revivalist preacher. Soon, he would have them in the palm of his hand. Soon, there would be no turning back. It will be just…Continue Reading “Cornish Religious Revivals”
It is a pleasure and a privilege to write about someone who has brought credit to both their name and to their community. Sister Jessie Edith Borlase certainly did that and this article is an attempt to record aspects of her life which may not be fully appreciated. I will start by saying that it…Continue Reading “A Helston Heroine”