'Penzance' () is a town,
civil parish, and
port in the
Penwith district of
Cornwall,
England,
UK.
Granted various
Royal Charters from
1512 onwards and
incorporated in
1614,
[1] it has a population of 20,255
people and is currently
Penwith's principal town.
Situated in the shelter of
Mount's Bay, the town faces south-east onto the
English Channel, is bordered to the west by the
fishing port of
Newlyn and to the east by the civil parish of
Ludgvan. The town's location gives it a
temperate climate that makes it warmer than most of the rest of
Britain.
Although commonly perceived as the southernmost town on the UK mainland, Penzance is the second most southerly, with nearby
Helston marginally taking this honour by only 3 kilometres.
Etymology
Penzance (Pensans), or "holy headland" in the Cornish language, is a reference to the location of the chapel of
St. Anthony that stood over a thousand years ago on the headland to the west of what became Penzance harbour. Until the
1930s this history was also reflected in the choice of
symbol for the town, the severed 'holy head' of St.
John the Baptist. It can still be seen on the civic
regalia of the
Mayor of Penzance and on several important
landmarks in the town. The only remaining object from this chapel is a carved figure which is now largely eroded known as 'St. Raffidy' which can be found in the church yard of the parish church of Penzance St. Mary's near the original site of the chapel.
History
Bronze and Iron Ages
Evidence of
Iron Age settlement can be found in Penzance in a number of sites including
Lescudjack Castle, an Iron Age settlement within the current Penzance parish boundaries.
Middle Ages
Evidence of historical settlement from this period can be found in the St Clare area of the town, where a chapel not unlike St Anthony's existed dedicated to St. Clare or Cleer. Throughout the period prior to Penzance gaining Borough status in 1614 the village and surrounding areas fell within the control of the
Manor of Alverton and was subject to the taxation regime of that manor.
Although the first historical mention of Penzance (as a place for landing fish) was in 1322 in local manorial records,
[2] the town was, until the 17th century, overshadowed by its near-neighbour
Marazion. (Marazion was recorded in the
Domesday Book of 1088 and is the oldest chartered town in Britain, having been granted this status by
King Henry III in 1257.) In medieval times and later Penzance was subject to frequent raiding by
Turkish pirates.
[3] The name of one of Penzance's oldest buildings 'The Turk's Head' pub is said to be a reference to these incidents, however there is no written evidence to this effect.
Tudor and Stuart period
Plague
In the summer of 1578 Penzance was visited by the
plague. The burial registers of Madron (where all Penzance births, deaths and marriages were recorded) shows a massive increase in deaths for 1578, from twelve the previous year to 155. This is estimated to be about 10% of the population of the village at the time. The plague also returned in 1647 and the registers again show an increase of from 22 burials to 217 in one year.
[4]
Spanish raids
Being at the far west of England, Penzance and the surrounding villages have been sacked many times by foreign fleets. On July 23rd 1595,
[5] several years after the
Spanish Armada of 1588, a Spanish force under
Don Carlos de Amesquita, which had been patrolling the channel, landed troops in
Cornwall. Amesquita's force seized supplies, raided and burned Penzance and surrounding villages, held a mass, and sailed away before it could be confronted. A detailed description of the Spanish raid of 1595 can be found
here.
Penzance as a town since 1614
The reason for Penzance's relative success probably stems from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries when
Henry IV of England granted the town a Royal Market.
[6] Henry VIII later granted the right to charge harbour dues,
[7] and
King James I granted it the status of a borough.
During the
English Civil War Penzance was sacked by the forces of
Sir Thomas Fairfax apparently for the kindness shown to
Lord Goring and
Lord Hoptons troops during the conflict
[8]
Penzance borough council undertook several major projects, including the building of the Market House (which was the home of the corn exchange and the then guildhall), and the harbour, the first pier of which was built in 1512.
[9] The southern arm of the pier was built in 1766 and extended in 1785.
[10]
Civil improvements in this period included the construction in 1759 of a reservoir which supplied water to public pumps in the streets.
[11]
Penzance has a long-standing association with the local parish of
Madron. Madron church was in fact the centre of most religious activity in the town until 1871,
[12] when the church of St. Mary (prior to this period a
Chapel of ease) was granted parish status by church authorities.
In 1755 the
Lisbon earthquake caused a
tsunami to strike the Cornish coast over 1,000 miles away. The sea rose eight feet in ten minutes at Penzance, ebbed at the same rate, and continued to rise and fall for 5 hours.
[13]
Nineteenth century
At the start of the nineteenth century (1801), the town had a population of 2,248. The census, which is taken every ten years, recorded a peak population in 1861 of 3,843, but it then declined, as in most of Cornwall, through the remainder of the century, being just 3,088 in 1901.
[14]
By the time
Queen Victoria came to the throne, Penzance had established itself as an important regional centre. The Royal Geological Society of Cornwall was founded in the town in 1814
[15] and about 1817 was responsible for introducing a miner's safety tamping bar, which attracted the
Prince Regent to become its patron.
The pier had been extended again in 1812 and John Matthews opened a small dry dock in 1814, the first in the South West. In 1840 Nicholas Holman of
St Just opened a branch of his foundry business on the quayside.
[16] These facilities proved valuable in supporting the steamships that were soon calling at the harbour in increasing numbers.
Gas lighting was introduced in 1830 and the old Market House was demolished in 1836. Its replacement, designed by W Harris of Bristol, was completed at the top of Market Jew Street in 1838. The church of St Mary's, another prominent feature of the Penzance skyline, was completed in 1836, while a Roman
Catholic church was built in 1843. Another familiar building from this period is the eccentric ''Egyptian House'' in Chapel Street, built in 1830. The first part of the Promenade along the sea front dates from 1844.
After the passing of the
Public Health Act (1848), Penzance was one of the first towns to petition to form a
local board of health, doing so in September that year. Following a report by a government inspector in February, the Board was established in 1849 which led to many facilities to enhance public health. The report
[11] shows that most streets were
Macadamised or sometimes paved, and the town was lit by 121 gas lamps from October to March each year, although they were not lit when there was a full moon. Water was supplied from 6 public pumps, and there were a further 53 private wells. There were no sewage pipes at the time, waste being collected from the main streets by a refuse cart.
Penzance railway station, the terminus of the
West Cornwall Railway, opened on
11 March 1852[ The West Cornwall Railway, , RC, Langley, Oakwood Press, , ISBN 0-85361-589-6 ] on the eastern side of the harbour, although trains only ran to
Redruth at first. From
25 August 1852 the line was extended to
Truro, but the
Cornwall Railway linking that place with
Plymouth was not opened until
4 May 1859. Passengers and goods had to change trains at Truro as the West Cornwall had been built using the
standard gauge, but the Cornwall Railway was built to the
broad gauge. The West Cornwall Railway
Act included a clause that it would be converted to broad gauge once it had been connected to another broad gauge line, but the company could not raise the funds to do so.
The line was sold to the
Great Western Railway and its "Associated Companies" (the
Bristol and Exeter Railway and
South Devon Railway) on
1 January 1866. The new owners quickly converted the line to
mixed gauge using three rails so that both broad and "narrow" trains could operate. Broad gauge goods trains started running in November that year, with through passenger trains running to
London from
1 March 1867.
[18] The last broad gauge train arrived at 8.49pm on
20 May 1892, having left
London Paddington station at 10.15 that morning. The two locomotives, numbers
1256 and
3557, took the carriages away to
Swindon railway works at 9.57, and all trains since have been standard gauge.
[19]
The ability of the railway to carry fresh produce to distant markets such as
Bristol, London and
Manchester enabled local farmers and fishermen to sell more produce and at better prices. The special "perishable" train soon became a feature of the railway, these being fast extra goods trains carrying
potatoes,
broccoli or fish depending on the season. In August 1861 1,787 tons of potatoes, 867 tons of broccoli, and 1,063 tons of fish were dispatched from the station.
[ The Great Western Railway in West Cornwall, , Alan, Bennett, Runpast Publishing, , ISBN 1-870754-12-3 ] Fruit and flowers were also carried, the mild climate around Penzance and on the
Scilly Isles meant that they were ready for market earlier and could command high prices.
The completion of the railway through Cornwall made it easier for tourists and invalids to enjoy the mild climate of Penzance. Bathing machines had been advertised for hire on the beach as early as 1823,
[9] and the town was already "noted for the pleasantness of its situation, the salubrity of its air, and the beauty of its natives".
[21] The first town's first official guide book was published in 1860 and the Queens Hotel opened on the sea front the following year. It was so successful that it was extended in 1871 and 1908.
At the same time as the railway was being built more improvements were being made to the harbour, with a second pier on the eastern side of the harbour, the Albert Pier, completed in 1853 to provide even better shelter for shipping,
[10] and a
lighthouse built on the Old Pier in 1855. The Scilly Isles Steam Navigation Company was founded in 1858 and placed in service the first steam ship on the route, ''SS Little Western''. In 1870 the new
West Cornwall Steam Ship Company joined the route, taking over the Scilly Isles company the following year.
[23]
Penzance, with its dry dock and engineering facilities, was chosen as the western depot for
Trinity House that serviced all the lighthouses and
lightships from
Start Point to
Trevose Head. It was opened in 1866 adjacent to the harbour and the
Buoy Store became the Trinity House National Lighthouse museum until 2005 when Trinity House closed the museum.
Inside the new station
In 1875 a local newspaper described the railway station as ''a large dog's house of the nastiest and draughtiest kind''
[ The Great Western Railway in West Cornwall, , Alan, Bennett, Runpast Publishing, , ISBN 1-870754-12-3 ] but a series of works improved this part of the town during the 1880s. The original station was rebuilt with the present buildings and
train shed over the platforms (1880). The lower end of Market Jew Street was widened and a new road was built to link the station with the harbour over the Ross
swing bridge (1881), allowing the construction of proper sewers beneath. A larger dry dock replaced Matthews' original facility (1880), and a floating harbour was made (1884) with
lock gates to keep in the water at low tide.
Around the headland, public baths were opened on the Promenade in 1887 and the Morrab Gardens with its sub-tropical plants was opened two years later. A bandstand was added to the gardens in 1897.
[ The Great Western Railway in West Cornwall, , Alan, Bennett, Runpast Publishing, , ISBN 1-870754-12-3 ]
Twentieth century
Penzance Harbour
In 1901 the town had a population of 3,088 The census taken every ten years recorded a continuing decline in population until 1921, when just 2,616 people were recorded, after which it climbed rapidly to 4,888 (1931) then 5,545 (1951) - the population had more than doubled in twenty years and was now larger than at any time in the past.
[24] (The census boundaries changed in 1981 so these figures do not directly compare with those stated for the current population)
A proposed electric
tramway along the Promenade to
Newlyn, which would then have continued as a
light railway to
St Just, failed to gain authorisation in 1898, instead
motor buses were put into service on
31 October 1903.
[25] These linked Penzance with
Marazion and were operated by the
Great Western Railway, being introduced only 11 weeks after the railway's pioneering service between
Helston and
The Lizard. They were considered a success, carrying 16,091 passengers by the end of the year, so were followed the next spring by further routes to
Land's End and St Just. These services developed into the
First Devon and Cornwall bus network that stills serves the area and is still centred on a terminus alongside
Penzance railway station.
The dry dock was sold on
25 August 1904 to N Holman and Sons Limited, the engineering business that had been trading in Penzance since 1840. New workshops were built during the 1930s and the facility continued to provide facilities for the Scilly ferries and other merchant ships, as well as Trinity House, the
Royal Navy and
Royal Maritime Auxiliary Service. In 1951 a new vessel for the
King Harry Ferry on the
River Fal was launched, built on the keel of an old
landing craft. In 1963 they even built a steam tug, the ''Primrose''.
[16]
Land was reclaimed beside the Albert Pier in the 1930s to allow the railway station to be further enlarged at a cost of £134,000.
[ The Great Western Railway in West Cornwall, , Alan, Bennett, Runpast Publishing, , ISBN 1-870754-12-3 ] The 1880 building was retained but extra platforms and sidings were provided to enable it to handle more perishable goods, and also the increasing numbers of tourists travelling to the area.
In 1905 a new bandstand had been built on the Promenade opposite the Queens Hotel, and the Pavilion Theatre opened nearby in 1911, complete with a roof garden and cafe.
[27] Travel to Penzance was easier than ever, with the Great Western Railway introducing the ''
Cornish Riviera Express'' on
1 July 1904, which left
London Paddington at 10:10 and arrived in Penzance just 7 hours later, two hours faster than the previous quickest service.
[28] (In 2007 it leaves Paddington at 10:05 and takes 5 hours and 5 minutes.) The railway actively promoted local tourism with the production of postcards that were sold at its stations, and the annual publication of a guide book, ''
The Cornish Riviera'', in which
SPB Mais described it as "a suburb of Covent Garden, and a great fishing centre ... there is always something going on in its harbour".
[29]
1923 had seen a new road link the harbour area and the Promenade, and in 1933 the St Anthony Gardens were built, followed two years later by the Jubilee Bathing Pool opposite. Tourists could now make full use of the whole sea front between Penzance and Newlyn harbours.
Transport
Penzance is located approximately 5 miles (8 kilometres) from the end of the
A30 road and 286 miles (460 km) or 6 hours
[30] by car from
London.
Penzance railway station is situated at the bottom of Market Jew Street and close to the harbour. It is the western terminus of the
Cornish Main Line which runs above the beach to Marazion, affording passengers good views of St Michaels Mount and Mounts Bay. Most services
[31] are operated by
First Great Western, both local services to
St Erth,
St Ives,
Hayle,
Camborne,
Redruth, and
Truro, and direct trains linking Penzance with
Plymouth,
Exeter St Davids,
Bristol Temple Meads,
Reading and
London Paddington. The ''
Night Riviera'' train offers an overnight
sleeping car service to and from Reading and London. Journey time to Plymouth is typically under 2 hours; to Bristol around 4 hours, and London less than 5½ hours.
Virgin Trains run a small number of services (departing in the morning, returning in the evening) via Bristol and
Birmingham New Street to
Glasgow Central via
Preston and
Carlisle, also to
Dundee via
Leeds,
York,
Newcastle and
Edinburgh Waverley. The journey time to Birmingham is just under 5½ hours, and nearly 10 hours to Glasgow.
The bus and coach station is adjacent to the railway station from where
National Express operates coach services to
London Victoria (taking around 9 hours) via
Heathrow Airport. Local bus services run by
First Devon and Cornwall connect Penzance with most major settlements in
Cornwall, including
Truro,
St Ives,
St Just,
St Buryan,
Land's End, and also
Plymouth in
Devon.
Sikorsky S-61N ''Echo Bravo'' departing Penzance Heliport for the Isles of Scilly during August 2006
A ferry service is operated between Penzance harbour and the
Isles of Scilly by ''The
Scillonian III'', carrying both foot-passengers and cargo. Sailing time is approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes. Alternatively, a passenger
helicopter service operates from
Penzance Heliport to the
Isles of Scilly[32] run by
British International Helicopters. Flying time is approximately 20 minutes. A bus service run by the Skybus Airline service connects with
Land's End Airport for fixed wing flights (15 minutes) to the Isles of Scilly. This service operates from the railway station, near the
taxi rank, rather than the bus station.
Newquay Airport[33] is 41 miles (66 km) away and offers flights to
Gatwick,
Stansted Dublin and Cork airports.
Plymouth Airport[34] is 77 miles (124 km) away has services to Gatwick,
Bristol,
Dublin and
Manchester airports.
Politics and government
Common seal of the borough of Penzance, used in lieu of a
coat of arms 1614 - 1934 now the Mayoral
Seal
Until 1934 the
borough of Penzance referred only to the town, but has since been extended to include the nearby settlements of
Newlyn,
Mousehole,
Gulval and
Heamoor. The
Civil parish of Penzance was further extended in 2004 under District of Penwith (Electoral Changes) Order 2002
[35] to include Eastern Green, formerly part of the
Ludgvan civil parish area.
In
1974 the Penzance borough was abolished and replaced, first by the Penzance
Charter Trustees and then from
1980 by Penzance
Town Council. The principal local authorities in the area are now
Penwith District Council and
Cornwall County Council. For the purposes of election to the Cornwall County Council, Penzance returns 3 councillors to the Penzance Electoral Division.
Penzance Town Council does not have in place a system of political registration so councillors do not form groups of any kind and technically act independently, however the current political composition of the council (as of
3 May 2007) is as follows: independent 8,
Liberal Democrats 7,
Mebyon Kernow 5. There are three new councillors [2 Liberal Democrat and 1 independent]. Nine won by election and 11 were elected unopposed.
Penzance also elects a
mayor every year in May from the members of Penzance town council. Although mayors have a political affiliation this position is largely ceremonial.
The current mayor is Frank Granger and the deputy mayor is Richard Clark both of
Mebyon Kernow
Economy
Penzance Harbour and surrounding area as seen from the air
The economy of Penzance has, like many Cornish communities, suffered from the decline of the traditional Cornish industries of fishing, mining and agriculture. Penzance now has a mixed economy consisting of light industrial, tourism and retail businesses. However, like the rest of
Cornwall, housing remains comparatively expensive, wages low and unemployment high within the parish area. House prices have risen 274% in 10 years the fastest rise in the UK.
[36] The fishing port of
Newlyn, which falls within the parish boundaries, provides some employment in the area, but has also been greatly affected by the decline in the fishing industry over the last 30 years. In the 2004 index of deprivation Penzance is listed as having 3 wards within the top 10% percent for employment deprivation, Penzance East (125th most deprived in England) Penzance West (200th most deprived in England), Penzance Central (712th most deprived in England)
[37] 18-31% of households in the parish being described as "poor households".
[Bristol University regional poverty files - West Cornwall] The Penzance East Ward also has one the highest unemployment rates in Cornwall stated as 15.4%.
[Bristol University regional poverty files - West Cornwall]
Mining
Following
Sir Humphry Davy’s contribution to the mining industry,
The Miners' Association began
mining classes in Penzance. As mining in the area became more complex the Penzance Mining and Science School was founded in
1890. The school continued to teach mining until
1910 when it was amalgamated with Camborne and Redruth Mining School forming the
School Of Metallipherous Mining in Camborne, which is now known as the
Camborne School of Mines. This institution has now moved to the
Combined Universities in Cornwall campus at
Tremough,
Falmouth. Penzance from 1663
[38] was a
coinage town, responsible for the collection of tin taxation on behalf of the
Duchy of Cornwall it held this status for 176 years.
[39] According to William Pryce in his 1778 book ''Mineralogia Cornubiensis'' Penzance coined more tin than the towns of
Liskeard,
Lostwithiel, and
Helston put together. Penzance also had its own sub-marine mine situated off the coast of the town next to the area known as
Wherrytown. The mine known as 'Wheal' Wherry was worked from the period 1778 to 1798 and again from 1836 to 1840.
[40] Founded by "a poor 57 year old miner" named Thomas Curtis, the mine was said to be "very rich at depth" and was connected to the shore by a wooden bridge; the ore being transported by
Wherry boat. The mine suffered considerable damage in 1798 when an American ship broke anchor off nearby
Newlyn and smashed into the bridge and head gear. Later attempts at mining were not as profitable.
[41] During the 19th century and until 1912, Penzance had the largest tin
smelting house in Cornwall, operated by the Bolitho family. The smelting works were situated at
Chyandour.
[42] As a consequence of this concentration of mining wealth Penzance also became a centre for commercial banking. The Bolitho bank (now part of
Barclays Bank)
[43] and the Penzance Bank were two of the largest, although the latter collapsed in 1896.
Cityscape
The Humphry Davy Statue and the Penzance Market House.
Large sections of the Penzance Parish are classified as conservation areas under the Penwith local plan
[44] and are subject to special planning laws. The current
conservation area forms most of the core of the town of Penzance and the historic harbour areas of Newlyn and Mousehole.
[45]. A number of Georgian and Regency buildings are present in the town. However, the majority of developments in the town centre itself are of mixed date, including several 20th century buildings - one of which, the former Pearl Assurance building (now the Tremenheere
Wetherspoons pub), was subject to comment by
Sir John Betjeman[46] who wrote, in 1963:
There are three large residential
council estates in Penzance: Penalverne,
Treneere (both built in the 1930s) and the Princess Royal estate at Alverton (built in the early 1950s). Much of the housing with this area is owned and operated by
Penwith Housing Association. The sub-tropical
Morrab Gardens, which has a large collection of tender trees and shrubs, many of which cannot be grown outdoors anywhere else in the UK.
Penzance
Regency and
Georgian terraces and houses are common in some parts of the town.
Penzance's former main street Chapel Street has a number of interesting features including the Egyptian House, The Union Hotel (including a Georgian
theatre which is no longer in use) and The Branwell House, where the mother and aunt of the famous
Brontë sisters once lived.
Jubilee Pool, Penzance
Also of interest is the seafront with its
promenade and the open-air seawater Jubilee
Bathing Pool (one of the oldest surviving
Art Deco swimming baths in the country), built at the beginning of the 20th century during Penzance's heyday as a fashionable
seaside resort. The pool was designed by Captain F. Latham, the Penzance Borough Engineer and opened in 1935, the year of
King George V's
Silver Jubilee.
[47] Penzance promenade itself has been destroyed in parts several times by storms. The most recent example was on the 7 March 1962 (Ash Wednesday), when large parts of the Western end of the promenade, the nearby Beford Bolitho Gardens (now a play park) and the village of Wherrytown suffered severe damage.
[48]
Geography
Penlee quarry which is within the boundaries of the Penzance parish is a geological
SSSI.
Education
Penzance is home to two state run
comprehensive schools (Mount's Bay and Humphry Davy) and one
Church of England independent school (Bolitho school). Bolitho school was founded in the early 1990s following the financial collapse of the former School of St Clare. Post 16 education is catered for by Penwith College, founded in 1981 from the sixth form departments of the former Penzance Girls
Grammar school and the Humphry Davy grammar school.
[49] Throughout the Penzance parish there are 8
primary schools including the newly created Pensans primary school which was formed in 2006 from the former Penzance
Junior school and the Lescudjack infants school. There is also a special educational needs school within the parish boundary named Nancealverne.
Culture
Festivals
Mayor and
Mock Mayor speeches at the Golowan Festival 2005
Every June since 1991, the
Golowan Festival (which includes
Mazey Day) has been held in the town.
Before the 1930s Penzance was the scene of large
May Day celebrations, which saw local children making and using tin 'May horns' and 'May whistles'. The
Feast Day of
Corpus Christi was also celebrated in Penzance. The Corpus Christi fair has been a long standing event in the town, and is currently undergoing attempts to revive it in a more traditional format.
Allantide, a Cornish version of Halloween, was also a popular activity in the town. Many of these customs were recorded by local antiquarian
M. A. Courtney and have influenced historical views of traditional Cornish cultural activities.
Music and theatre
Penzance is the home of the
pirates in
Gilbert and Sullivan's opera ''
The Pirates of Penzance''. At the time the libretto was written,
1879, Penzance had long been a peaceful town, so the very idea of it being overrun by pirates was amusing.
Penzance is home to the Acorn Theatre sited within a former Methodist Chapel. The theatre provides a mixture of theatre film dance music and cabaret and is partially public funded. The Savoy is an independent cinema located in the Town opened in 1912 and originally named the Victoria Hall music hall, The Savoy is one of the locations of performances sponsored by the Penwith film society (an arts cinema society based in the Penwith area). It is reputedly the oldest continuously used cinema in Britain. Prior to World War II Penzance was also home to a further 3 cinemas and at least 2 theatres, one of which the Pavilion Theatre is now home to an amusement arcade.
Musician
Patrick Wolf has a song entitled Penzance.
Art galleries
Penzance will be home to the new
Newlyn Art Gallery establishment "the exchange" which will open in 2007. Penzance is also the home of
Penlee House, an
art gallery and
museum notable for its collection of
paintings by members of the
Newlyn School. Within Penzance town centre there are a growing number of commercial art galleries.
Religion
Like other Cornish towns
Methodism is the predominant Christian denomination. Prior to the 1980s Penzance had six methodist churches, but this number has now been reduced to three. Penzance is also home to a
Salvation Army citadel, a Roman Catholic Church, two
Church of England parish churches (formerly three), a
Christadelphian meeting hall,
[50] two
Evangelical independent churches, the Penwith
pagan moot, an independent
Baptist church and a
Buddhist meditation group.
Sport
Penzance was, until recently, the home of Cornwall's most successful rugby team, the Penzance Pirates (Penzance and Newlyn RFC). The National Division 1 side relocated to Truro in 2005 in a bid to reach the Premiership and was renamed as the
Cornish Pirates. In 2006 the side relocated again this time to the home ground of
Camborne Rugby Club. Penzance is also home to
Mount's Bay RFC a new Rugby club founded in 1999.
Former
England and
Surrey cricketer
Jack Richards (born Clifton James Richards) was born in Penzance. Although he only played 8
test matches, Richards was the
wicket keeper during England's
Ashes win in
1986.
The
Mini Transat 6.50 transatlantic yacht race started from Penzance (hosted by
Penzance Sailing Club) from its conception in 1977 to the fourth edition of the race in 1983.
Media
The local newspaper is
The Cornishman, published weekly. Both
ITV television (
Westcountry Television) and
BBC Radio Cornwall have small news studios in the town.
Notable residents past and present
The celebrated scientist Sir Humphry Davy
Penzance has been home to numerous persons of note over the years including model
Jean Shrimpton and cricketer
Jack Richards (For a full list see
List of notable residents of Penzance) Arguably Penzance's most famous son,though, was
Sir Humphry Davy.
Sir Humphry Davy
Main articles: Sir Humphry Davy
Penzance was the birth place of the famous chemist Sir
Humphry Davy. Davy was President of the
Royal Society and invented the process of
electrolysis, was the first person to isolate
sodium, as well as proving (with
Michael Faraday) that diamonds are made of pure carbon. Today he is possibly best known as the inventor of the Miner's Safety Lamp, or
Davy lamp. There is a statue of Davy at the top of Market Jew Street, near the house in which he was born. One of Penzance's secondary schools is also named after the scientist
[8].
Twinning
Penzance is
twinned with the following towns
[51]
★
Concarneau,
Brittany
★
Bendigo,
Australia
★
Nevada City,
California
From 1967 to 1974 Penzance was twinned with
★
Cuxhaven,
Germany
This twinning arrangement was passed to the
Penwith District in 1974.
See also
★
HMS Penzance
★
List of topics related to Cornwall
★
The Pirates of Penzance
References
1. Penzance Charter of Incorporation dated 9 May 1614, held by Penzance Town Council
2. Extent of the property held by the Manor of Alverton and accounts transcribed by Mr Paul Brand from the original held in the National Archives
3. Canon Diggens Archive 1910
4. Notes on the Madron Parish Registers -Canon Jennings
5. A History of the Church in Paul Parish by G. M. Trelease
6. Grant of Market to Thomas Lord Berkley 8 April 1404
7. Grant of harbour dues Henry VIII 16 March 1512
8. Topographical Dictionary of England—1831
9. Cornwall in the Age of Steam, , A, Guthrie, Tabb House, , ISBN 1-873951-16-7
10. Cornwall's Maritime Heritage, , Alan, Kittridge, Twelveheads Press, , ISBN 0-906294-15-0
11. Cornwall Through the Mid Nineteenth Century, , Alan, Bennett, Kingfisher Railway Publications, , ISBN 0-946184-26-7
12. The online parish clerk
13. [1] Sources of Cornish History - The Lisbon Earthquake
14. UK & Ireland Genealogogy - Penzance
15. Murray's Handbook of Devon and Cornwall, , , , John Murray, ,
16. If it's metal take it to Holman's, , Clive, Carter, Archive,
17. Cornwall Through the Mid Nineteenth Century, , Alan, Bennett, Kingfisher Railway Publications, , ISBN 0-946184-26-7
18. History of the Great Western Railway, Vol. 2 1863 - 1921, , ET, MacDermot, Great Western Railway, ,
19. The Last Broad Gauge Train, , Geof, Sheppard, Broadsheet,
20. Cornwall in the Age of Steam, , A, Guthrie, Tabb House, , ISBN 1-873951-16-7
21. Excursions in the County of Cornwall, , FWL, Stockdale, Simpkin and Marshall, , (Reprinted by D Bradford Barton, Truro, 1972)
22. Cornwall's Maritime Heritage, , Alan, Kittridge, Twelveheads Press, , ISBN 0-906294-15-0
23. Railway and Other Steamers, , CLD, Duckworth, T Stephenson, ,
24. [http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/Cornwall/Penzance/index.html#Population UK & Ireland Genealogogy - Penzance
25. Road Vehicles of the Great Western Railway, , Philip J, Kelley, Oxford Publishing, , ISBN 090288-12-9
26. If it's metal take it to Holman's, , Clive, Carter, Archive,
27. The Great Western Railway in West Cornwall, , Alan, Bennett, Runpast Publishing, , ISBN 1-870754-12-3
28. The West Cornwall Railway, , RC, Langley, Oakwood Press, , ISBN 0-85361-589-6
29. The Cornish Riviera, , SPB, Mais, Great Western Railway, ,
30. Market Jew Street to Trafalgar Square, calculated using The AA Route Planner
31. Penzance railway station live departure information
32. [2] Isles of Scilly helicopter homepage
33. [3] Newquay airport
34. [4] Plymouth airport
35. http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2002/20022593.htm
36. BBC article 27th of October 2007, House price report
37. 2004 indices of deprivation - Employment deprivation index
38. Coinage charter granted by Charles II 18 August 1663
39. PAS Pool History of the Borough and Town of Penzance 1974 page 74
40. Mines and Miners Of Cornwall Vol 4. pages 17-21
41. Mindat.org mine information [5]
42. PAS Pool history of the town and Borough of Penzance 1974
43. Company History Barclays PLC Website
44. http://www.penwith.gov.uk/local_plan_penwith/maps/i01c.htm
45. List of Penwith conservation areas from PenwitH Council Website [6]
46. The History of the Town and Borough of Penzance 1974 PAS Pool - Review of Architecture
47. Janet Smith
Liquid Assets - the lidos and open air swimming pools of Britain ISBN 0954744500
48. History of the town and Borough of Penzance
49. West Penwith Resources Schools [7]
50. Find your Local Christadelphians: Penzance
51. Information supplied by Penzance Concarneau Twinning Assocciation Chair Mrs D Cotton and The Penzance, Bendigo and Nevada City Twinning Association
External links
★
Penzance - Wikitravel
★
Morrab Library
★
Penzance OCS
★
Penzance Online
★
Official Website of the Golowan Festival
★
Penzance & Newlyn RFC
★
Mounts Bay RFC
★
Postcards of the Penzance Area
★
Penzance Town Council
★
Cornwall Record Office Online Catalogue for Penzance
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