Wikipedia

Porthleven

Porthleven(/ˌpɔːθˈlɛvən/) is a town,civil parishand fishing port nearHelston,Cornwall,England, United Kingdom. The most southerly port in Great Britain, it was aharbourof refuge when this part of the Cornish coastline was infamous forwrecksin the days of sail.[1]TheSouth West Coast PathfromSomersettoDorsetpasses through the town.[2]The population at the 2011 census was 3,059.[3][4]

Porthleven
Port
Porthleven Harbour
Porthleven is located in Cornwall
Porthleven
Porthleven
Location withinCornwall
Population3,059(2011 Census including Ashton and Balwest)
OS grid referenceSW6225
Civil parish
  • Porthleven
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHELSTON
Postcode districtTR13
Dialling code01326
PoliceDevon and Cornwall
FireCornwall
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Cornwall
50°05′02″N5°18′54″W/ 50.084°N 5.315°W/50.084; -5.315

History

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Methleighwas the site of a fair and annual market from the year 1066.[5][6]After the Norman Conquest, the Bishop of Exeter held the manor of Methleigh, but the Earl of Cornwall possessed the right to hold the fair. At the time of theDomesday Surveythere were 15 acres (6.1 ha) of arable land, 40 acres (16 ha) of pasture and 60 acres (24 ha) ofunderbrush.The population consisted of 15 villeins, 4 smallholders and 3 serfs.[7]

Until 1844 Porthleven was within the parish ofSithney.The parish Church of St Bartholomew was built in 1842. The name Porthleven is probably connected with StElwenor Elwyn, whose chapel existed here before 1270. It was rebuilt about 1510, but destroyed in 1549. There were also chapels at Higher Penrose and Lanner Veor (the latter founded in 1377) and a holy well at Venton-Vedna.[8]The Vicar of Porthleven in the 1850s was the Rev. Thomas Lockyer Williams, aTractarianwho introduced practices into the parish which provoked dislike in the Rev. CanonJohn Rogersof Penrose, Rector of Mawnan and a canon of Exeter.[9]

For local-government purposes, Porthleven was included within the nearby town ofHelston,until many years of growth gained it atown councilof its own. Its population at theUnited Kingdom Census 2001was 3,190.[10]

Porthleven's most recognisable building is the Bickford-Smith Institute next to the pier and harbour entrance. It was built on the site of the old Fisherman's Arms and was opened on 16 December 1884. Theclock toweron the west corner is 70 feet (21 m) high. The building originally had a reading room, a committee room, a curator's living room and two bedrooms.[11]The Institute wasgrade II listedon 18 March 1991 and currently houses the town council and a snooker club.[12]It featured (along with various other scenes from the town) as the incident room in an episode of the TV detective seriesWycliffe.A picture of the building against a large breaking wave sometimes appears in the background of BBC UK weather forecasts, particularly when windy conditions and rough seas are expected. The Institute has a plaque toGuy GibsonVC,leader of theDambuster Raid,on the wall facing the harbour. Gibson was born in India, but saw Porthleven – his mother's home town, where his parents were married – as a home town as well. He visited there while on leave during the war, sometimes attending the Porthleven Methodist Church. His name is marked on the community's war memorial (he was killed in 1944) and a street (Gibson Way) is named after him.[13]

The harbour

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Part of Porthleven's boat building history

William Cookworthyacquired leases on theTregonning Hillquarries and shippedchina clayto hisporcelainfactory in Plymouth.[14]In 1826, 150 tons of china stone and 30 tons of china clay were exported, and in 1838, 500 tons of china stone. By 1876, 970 tons were exported and in 1883, 1002 tons.[15][16]Granite was also exported, from the quarries atCoverack Bridgesand Sithney.[17]

Fifty-two fishing boats were built between 1877 and 1883, employing at times up to twenty people. They ranged in length from 22 feet (6.7 m) to 55 feet (17 m) and were built not only for Mount's Bay ports, but for others in the UK and in South Africa.[18]

Overnight on 12–13 December 1978, Police Constables Joseph James Childs and Martin Ross Reid ofDevon and Cornwall Policewere killed when their patrol car was swept into the harbour during a heavy storm. A stone memorial was erected on the south-facing harbour wall.[19]

Lifeboat

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Due to theprevailing westerly winds,it was easy for a ship under sail to be trapped inMount's Bayand wrecked nearby. TheRoyal National Lifeboat Institutionstationed alifeboatat Porthleven in 1863. A boat house was built at Breageside, from where the boat was taken to the water on a carriage. TheAgar Robarteswas replaced by theCharles Henry Wright(named after the donor) in November 1882.[20]A boat house on the west side of the harbour entrance was opened in 1894, with a slipway to ease launching. The station was closed in 1929, as the neighbouring stations atThe LizardandPenleehad been equipped with motor lifeboats that could cover the whole bay. The slipway was dismantled and the boat house used as a store for a while. It has since become the Shipwreck Centre museum.[21]

Protected areas

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Three of the fourSites of Special Scientific Interest(SSSI) close to Porthleven, and theGeological Conservation Review(GCR) sites are designated for their geological interest. They are Porthleven Cliffs SSSI, Porthleven Cliffs East SSSI, and Wheal Penrose SSSI. The Giant's Rock, within Porthleven Cliffs SSSI, is aglacial erraticof unknown origin and unknown means of arrival, is near the entrance of Porthleven harbour. Wheal Penrose SSSI is a disused lead mine 550 yards (500 m) to the south with "examples of typical leadzone mineralisation".[22][23][24]The fourth,Loe Pool,is Cornwall's largest natural lake, formed by abarrier beachknown as Loe Bar which dams theRiver Cober.[25]

Porthleven (like almost a third of Cornwall) lies within theCornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty(AONB).

Sport and leisure

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Porthleven has exploited its location and powerfulswellsto become one of Britain's best-knownsurfingspots, described as "Cornwall's best reef break". Waves often exceeding 6.6 feet (2 m) break on a shallowreefthat was shaped by blasting the harbour.[26]Kayaking is also popular. RNLI lifeguards patrol the beach in the holiday season.[27]The beach is separated from the harbour by a granite pier in front of the Porthleven Institute and clock tower. When thetideis out it is possible to walk about three miles east along Porthleven beach. There is also a coastal path with views of the beach below.

Porthleven Bowling Club is based at Methleigh Parc and affiliated to Bowls Cornwall and Bowls England. It was founded in 1959 and has lawn bowling and short-mat bowls facilities. The club and its members compete within Cornwall and nationally, and there are in-house competitions.

Porthlevenhas anon-league footballclub in theSouth West Peninsula League,which operates at levels 10 and 11 of theEnglish football league system.The club's home ground is at Gala Parc.

The traditional place forCornish wrestlingprize tournaments held in Porthleven in the 19th century was the "Wrestling Field", now marked by a plaque.[28]More recently tournaments have been held in the Recreation Ground.[29]

The restaurateurRick Steinopened a restaurant in the town, now taken over by fellow chef, Michael Caines.[30]

Twinning

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Porthleven istwinnedwithGuisseny(Gwiseni) inBrittany,France.[31]

Notable residents

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Porthleven was the birthplace of the Victorian theologianPender Hodge Cudlipand ofDavid Jewell,anindependent schoolheadmaster in the late 20th century.[32]

Porthleven was the home town of theDambusters' Commanding Officer,Guy Gibson.There is a road named in his memory. The Porthleven-bornmotor racingdriverChris Craftcompeted in the24 Hours of Le Mansrace for over a decade, including a third-placed finish in1976,as well as two races inFormula One.

References

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  1. ^"Cornwall Online – The Lizard Peninsula Guide".Lizard-peninsula.co.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 2 May 2016.Retrieved19 October2016.
  2. ^The Lizard(Map). Southampton: Ordnance Survey. 2015.ISBN978 0 319 24305 3.
  3. ^"Porthleven and Helston South – UK Census Data 2011".Ukcensusdata.Retrieved19 October2016.
  4. ^City Population site. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  5. ^"Cornwall | British History Online".British-history.ac.uk.Retrieved19 October2016.
  6. ^"Parishes: Botus-Fleming – St Burian | British History Online".British-history.ac.uk.14 October 2016.Retrieved19 October2016.
  7. ^C. Thorn, et al., eds.,Cornwall.(Domesday Book; 10.) Chichester: Phillimore, 1979; entry 2,2.
  8. ^Cornish Church Guide,Truro: Blackford, 1925, p. 185.
  9. ^H. Miles Brown,The Catholic Revival in Cornish Anglicanism.St Winnow: H. M. Brown, 1980, pp. 40–41.
  10. ^"Cornwall County Council - Districts - Kerrier - Parish Population Statistics - 2001".Archived fromthe originalon 25 May 2006.Retrieved2006-01-19.
  11. ^"Opening Of The Porthleven Institute".The Cornishman.No. 335. 18 December 1884. p. 5.
  12. ^"The Bickford Smith Institute and attached wall".Historic England.Retrieved4 August2020.
  13. ^December 2004. Lawrence Holmes,Guy Gibson and the Cornish Connection.
  14. ^"Tregonning Hill"(PDF).Germoe Parish Council.Retrieved26 April2018.
  15. ^"The china-clay and china-stone industries".The Cornishman.No. 243. 8 March 1883. p. 7.
  16. ^"Editorial".The Cornishman.No. 316. 7 August 1884. p. 4.
  17. ^"Editorial".The Cornishman.No. 178. 8 December 1881. p. 4.
  18. ^"Boat Building At Porthleven".The Cornishman.No. 258. 28 June 1883. p. 4.
  19. ^Moran, Mike (2013).Alpha 42 No Response.Cornwall.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  20. ^"Porthleven".The Cornishman.No. 229. 30 November 1882. p. 4.
  21. ^Leach, Nicholas (2006) [2000].Cornwall's Lifeboat Heritage.Chacewater: Twelveheads Press. pp. 37–38.ISBN0-906294-43-6.
  22. ^"Porthleven Cliff"(PDF).Natural England.27 June 1986. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 24 October 2012.Retrieved27 October2011.
  23. ^"Porthleven Cliffs East"(PDF).Natural England.1990. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 24 October 2012.Retrieved27 October2011.
  24. ^"Wheal Penrose SSSI"(PDF).Natural England.1993. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2 January 2014.Retrieved27 October2011.
  25. ^"Loe Pool"(PDF).Natural England.1986.Retrieved28 October2011.
  26. ^"Porthleven Spot Guide – Surf Forecast and Report".Magicseaweed.Retrieved19 October2016.
  27. ^"Porthleven Beach".Rnli.org.Archived fromthe originalon 14 October 2016.Retrieved19 October2016.
  28. ^The Cornish Telegraph - Thursday 28 July 1881.
  29. ^West Briton and Cornwall Advertiser, 29 July 1948.
  30. ^Smith, Steven."Rick Stein Porthleven to be taken over by Michael Caines".Falmouth Packet.Retrieved6 June2021.
  31. ^"Porthleven Sithney and Guisseny Twinning Association home Page".Archived fromthe originalon 3 October 2011.Retrieved2008-05-07.
  32. ^Bates, Stephen (13 July 2006)."Obituary: David Jewell".The Guardian.
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  • OpenStreetMap of Porthleven
  • Sunset behind Porthleven clock tower and overlooking Mount's Bay
  • Waves hitting the Pier
  • Porthleven Harbour
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Wikivoyage has a travel guide forPorthleven.
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