Fowey

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fowey (pronounced /ˈfɔɪ/ ( listen) (FOY) ; Cornish: Fowydh) is a small town, civil parish and cargo port at the mouth of the River Fowey in south Cornwall, England, UK. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,273.

Coordinates: 50°20′04″N 4°37′58″W / 50.334327°N 4.632891°W / 50.334327; -4.632891

Fowey
Cornish: Fowydh
Fowey shown within Cornwall
Population	2,273 (Census 2001)[1]
OS grid reference	SX126516
Parish	Fowey
Unitary authority	Cornwall
Ceremonial county	Cornwall
Region	South West
Constituent country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	FOWEY
Postcode district	PL23
Dialling code	01726
Police	Devon and Cornwall
Fire	Cornwall
Ambulance	South Western
European Parliament	South West England
UK Parliament	South East Cornwall
List of places: UK • England • Cornwall

Contents 1 History 2 Governance 3 Geography 4 Economy 5 Transport 6 Education 7 Religious sites 8 Sports 9 Public services 10 Notable people 11 Culture 12 References 13 Further reading 14 External links

[edit] History

The Domesday Book survey at the end of the eleventh century records manors at Penventinue and Trenant, and a priory was soon established nearby at Tywardreath. Circa 1300 the prior granted a charter to people living in Fowey itself. This medieval town ran from a north gate near Boddinick Passage to a south gate at what is now Lostwithiel Street; the town extended a little way up the hillside and was bounded on the other side by the river where merchants had their houses backing onto the waterfront. The natural harbour allowed trade to develop with Europe and local ship owners often hired their vessels to the king to support various wars, although the town also developed a reputation for piracy, as did many others at this time. In the fourteenth century the harbour was defended by 160 archers; after these were withdrawn, two blockhouses were built on either side of the harbour entrance. Despite these defences the town was attacked by French forces in 1457. A small castle was built on St Catherine’s Point, the western side of the harbour entrance, around 1540. The defences proved their worth when a Dutch attack was beaten off in 1667.^[2]

The people of Fowey generally sided with the Royalists during the English Civil War, but in 1644 the Earl of Essex brought a Parliamentarian army to Lostwithiel and occupied the peninsula around Fowey. In August a Royalist army surrounded Essex’s troops and King Charles I himself viewed Fowey from Hall Walk above Polruan, where he came close to being killed by a musket shot. On 31 August the Parliamentarian cavalry forced their way through the Royalist lines and retreated towards Saltash, leaving the foot soldiers to be evacuated by sea from Fowey. Essex and some officers did indeed escape, but the majority of the force surrendered a few days later near Golant and were then marched to Poole, but most died before reaching there.^[2]

The fortunes of the harbour became much reduced, with trade going to Plymouth and elsewhere instead. Fishing became more important, but local merchants were often appointed as privateers and did some smuggling on the side. Tin, copper and iron mines, along with quarries and china clay pits became important industries in the area which lead to improvements at rival harbours. West Polmear beach was dug out to become Charlestown harbour circa 1800, as was Pentewan in 1826.^[3] Joseph Austen shipped copper from Caffa Mill Pill above Fowey for a while before starting work on the new Par harbour in 1829.^[4] Fowey had to wait another forty years before it saw equivalent development, but its natural deep-water anchorage and a rail link soon gave it an advantage over the shallow artificial harbours nearer to the mines and china clay works. Meanwhile, a beacon tower was erected on the Gribben Head by Trinity House to improve navigation into Fowey and around Par bay.^[3]

The Fowey Harbour Commissioners were established by an Act of Parliament in 1869 to develop and improve the harbour.^[3] On 1 June in that yaer the 7 ft 0+¹⁄₄ in (2,140 mm) broad gauge Lostwithiel and Fowey Railway was opened to new jetties situated above Carne Point, and in 1873 the 4 ft 8+¹⁄₂ in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Cornwall Minerals Railway (CMR) opened a line from Newquay and Par to further jetties between Caffa Mill Pill and Carne Point. Both of these railways initially carried just goods, but on 20 June 1876 a passenger station was opened on the CMR on land reclaimed from Caffa Mill Pill. The Lostwithiel line closed at the end of 1879 but was reopened by the CMR as a standard gauge line in 1895, and the short gap between the two lines at Carne Point was eliminated. Passenger trains from Par were withdrawn after 1934 and from Lostwithiel in 1965. The Par line was subsequently converted to a dedicated roadway for lorries bringing china clay from Par after which all trains had to run via Lostwithiel.^[5]

[edit] Governance

Fowey elected two members to the unreformed House of Commons until the Reform Act 1832 stripped it of its representation as a rotten borough, it having lost its borough corporation a few years before.^[6] It was restored as a municipal borough in 1913, and then was merged with the nearby and much larger St Austell in 1968 to form the borough of St Austell with Fowey. This was itself in 1974 replaced with the Restormel Borough, which was relaced by Cornwall Council in 2009. Fowey now constitutes a civil parish.^[7]

[edit] Geography

Fowey is in the South Coast (Eastern Section) of the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It lies at the end of the Saints' Way and has ferries across the river to Polruan (foot) and Bodinnick (vehicle). There are many historic buildings in the town, including the ruins of St Catherine's Castle, while Readymoney Cove possesses a local beach.

[edit] Economy

Fowey has thrived as a port for hundreds of years, initially as a trading and naval town, then as the centre for china clay exports. Today Fowey is busy with trawlers and yachts.

[edit] Transport

First Devon and Cornwall operates a regular daily service number 25 between Fowey, Par railway station and St Austell. From St Austell Bus Station connecting buses operate to other locations in Cornwall. Town Bus is a frequent and regular service running from outside the church in the town centre to the main car park on Hanson Drive.

Both vehicle and foot ferry services cross the river to Bodinnick and Polruan. A ship to shore water taxi service operates from Easter until the end of October and a foot ferry to the fishing village of Mevagissey runs fom 1 May to 1 October (weather permitting).

Although Fowey railway station closed to passengers in 1965, the Lostwithiel to Fowey branch line remains open for goods traffic, carrying bulk china clay to the jetties at Carne Point. The nearest passenger station is at Par from where there are trains to Penzance, Newquay, Plymouth, Bristol, and London Paddington.

[edit] Education

Fowey has two schools: Fowey Primary School and Fowey Community College, both of which are in Windmill Road.

[edit] Religious sites

Popular legend has it that Jesus visited Fowey as a child, along with Joseph of Arimathea who was a merchant visiting local tin mines in which he had a commercial interest. At the entrance to the River, on the eastern side below the cliffs to the south-west of St Saviour's Point, there is a cross to commemorate this supposed visit. This cross is marked on very early charts and was maintained by monks from Tywardreath. The cross is known locally as "Punches Cross", supposedly derived from the name of Pontius Pilate.

A hundred yards west of the lighthouse on the west of the harbour entrance, about thirty feet below the top of the cliff edge and broadly concealed, is a small grass area known as "Johnny May's Chapel". This name is believed to be that of a Methodist preacher at the time when non-Conformism was persecuted.

[edit] Sports

The surrounding coastline of Fowey is popular with fishermen and spear-fishermen. Many sea creatures can be seen all around the Cornish shoreline, including mullet, bass, mackerel, lobsters and cuttlefish. Many of the species can be seen in the Fowey Aquarium in the heart of the town, which includes a very rare Albino Bull Huss. The seafood served in many of Fowey's restaurants comes from the Fowey estuary, or the sea just outside it. The Royal Fowey Yacht Club is based on the harbour front.^[8]

[edit] Public services

[edit] Notable people

Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch (1863-1944) settled in Fowey in 1891 and remained there for the rest of his life^[9]. Quiller-Couch was an author and professor of English literature: other local residents such as Daphne du Maurier (1907-1989) and Kenneth Grahame (1859-1932) also wrote works of fiction which remain popular.

Mary Bryant (1765 - ?) was born in Fowey before being transported as a convict to the colony of New South Wales, where she became one of the first escapees.^[10]

A number of wealthy entertainers have second homes around the town, which pushes up house prices to a level that local people cannot afford.^[11] These include married couples Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan^[11] and Lenny Henry and Dawn French (who paid around £2 million in October 2006 for a mansion at Readymoney Cove),^[11][12] Gloria Hunniford,^[13] and former Blue Peter presenter Janet Ellis,^[11]

[edit] Culture

Fowey has been the inspiration for many authors including Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch ('Q'), Daphne du Maurier and Kenneth Grahame. Fowey was Quiller-Couch's main residence from 1892 onwards and a number of his novels are set in Fowey which he denotes by the name 'Troy Town'.

The Daphne du Maurier [1] Festival of Art and Literature [2] is held every May, this being her birth month and a regatta is held in the third week of August every year. The town has held a Christmas Market since 2005, while the Fowey Fringe Festival started in 2007. This is an acoustic musical festival and takes place in the pubs, restaurants, sailing clubs and streets in the town of Fowey. Being situated in close proximity to the Sawmill Studios in Golant, Fowey often plays host to many musicians.

[edit] References

[edit] Further reading

• Henderson, Charles (1935) Fowey. In: Essays in Cornish History edited by A. L. Rowse and M. I. Henderson; pp. 26–43

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Fowey

• Fowey to Mevagissey summer passenger ferry
• Restormel Council
• Fowey Market
• Pictures of Fowey
• Fowey Fringe Festival
• Fowey Tourist Information
• Visit Fowey

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