January 2020

Home , Deviock, Landrake with St Erney, Landulph, Lanreath, Looe Mills, Menheniot

FROM YOUR OWN CORRESPONDENTS

AN UPDATE FROM CORNWALL ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY’S AREA REPRESENTATIVES

Any opinions or errors in these articles are those of the authors and must not be assumed to be those of Cornwall Archaeological Society.

JANUARY 2020

Issue 38

THIS MONTH’S FEATURES

 VANESSA BEEMAN  LOOE MILLS  TREKELLAND BRIDGE – HIT AGAIN!  ST TEATH CHURCHYARD

Photos: John Hanns

Everyone connected with Cornwall Archaeological Society was shocked and deeply saddened by the unexpected death of Rosy Hanns in January. Rosy was one of the most active Area Representatives the Society has ever had. Not only that, her enthusiasm and dedication won her the admiration of professionals and amateurs alike. Indeed, if we take the original meaning of ‘amateur’ as someone who does something for love, rather than reward or recognition, Rosy was the very embodiment of that word.

When Rosy began her role she took on a staggering 27 parishes in the south-east of Cornwall to monitor:

Antony, Botus-Fleming, Callington, Calstock, Deviock, Landrake with St Erney, Landulph, Maker with Rame, Menheniot, Millbrook, Pillaton, Quethiock, St John, Saltash, Torpoint, Morval, Pelynt, Lanreath, Lansallos, Lanteglos, St Dominic, St Mellion, St Germans, St Veep, St Winnow, Sheviock, Warleggan

Incredibly, she visited them all and submitted a huge number of reports to the Strategic Historic Environment Service and Historic England, enabling those officers to have an up-to- date and accurate record of the condition of many archaeological features. Without a network of volunteers to offer assistance to the tiny number of professionals, it would be impossible to know the state of Cornwall’s historic environment. Not only that, with people investigating their localities, the number of known features increases, details of which are then put on the Historic Environment Record. This record is the community’s record, a fundamental part of our identity; it tells us about our landscape and the lives that shaped it.

Rosy was an active participant in the society, attending lectures, walks and training events. Her thirst for knowledge was unquenchable and this enthusiasm proved infectious, as her husband John will testify.

Inspired by the work of Ian Thompson of the Milestone Society, Rosy visited and provided reports on every known milestone in the county - a truly massive undertaking – and had plans to research boundary stones, knowledge of which provides crucial evidence about historic landholding.

Photo: John Hanns 3

Rosy packed many archaeological adventures into a few years but her legacy will not only be the information that she amassed for our use and that of future generations but the no- nonsense, good humoured and joyous manner in which she did it – a spirit that will remain with all of us who knew her.

VANESSA BEEMAN

CAS has long had a network of Area Correspondents, or Representatives as they are now called. One of those was Vanessa Beeman who died in recently. For many years Vanessa had served as the CAS Area Representative for Constantine.

Vanessa had been Grand Bard of the Cornish Gorsedd. She took a great interest in Cornish archaeology and was a champion of the Cornish language.

LOOE MILLS

Brian Oldham has provided this report of the restoration of a medieval mill:

Area Reps Iain Rowe and Brian Oldham were invited by the owners of Looe Mills to view their progress in restoring their home, first mentioned in 1275 when Edmund Earl of Cornwall granted "Lowmill with very few acres to the Borough of Liskeard", to its former medieval glory. The Corn Mill is mentioned several times in the Borough records, including in 1587 when Elizabeth I's Charter confirmed "the Western Boundary of the Borough is the river at Looe Mills". A search at Kresen Kernow has revealed that 27 items are held in Redruth concerning the mill and Brian, in return for the owners' hospitality, has offered to examine these, looking for additions to the research they have already undertaken.

The mill-house Photo: Brian Oldham

Ground floor internal wheel Photo: Brian Oldham

Millstone set in floor Photo: Brian Oldham

First-floor ceiling Photo: Brian Oldham

Reservoir fed by leat from East Looe river Photo: Brian Oldham

Sluice from reservoir, looking towards wheel-pit Photo: Brian Oldham

The only remaining wheel Photo: Brian Oldham

Bench saw discarded on the adjacent Liskeard & Caradon Railway track bed

Photo: Brian Oldham

Report by Brian Oldham

TREKELLAND BRIDGE – HIT AGAIN!

Unfortunately this is becoming a regular feature. On 6th January Peter Crispin reported another incident which caused extensive damage to a structure described by Heritage Gateway as one of the best preserved and most beautiful of Cornish bridges, possibly constructed in c1504:

A mini-bus/lorry (conflicting reports) ran off the road, demolishing the downstream (west side) balustrade comprehensively. This was not a case of crossing the bridge carelessly (as is the usual cause of damage) but an accident where the vehicle, presumably approaching the bridge from the western end, left the road. Fortunately there were few minor injuries.

Photo: Peter Crispin

Trekelland Bridge spans the River Inny and is partly in Lewannick parish (SX 3004 7984). It is a Grade II* Listed Building.

ST TEATH CHURCHYARD

Joe Parsons has reported that a tree growing very close to a four-hole ornamented churchyard cross at St Teath (SX 0637 8063) has been trimmed.

Photo: Joe Parsons Photo: Joe Parsons

Churchyard trees are a delight but require management. In this case branches were rubbing against the cross and if this had continued damage to carved features would have occurred. Now the cross can be seen and admired.

Photo: Joe Parsons 9

Area Representatives would love to hear from fellow CAS members, and the general public, about any feature of the historic environment in their parishes, whether a new discovery, something causing concern, or even just to answer queries. If you have any concerns, or new information, about any archaeological feature, please contact the Area Representative for the parish. If you do not know who that is, just look at the inside back cover of the latest journal, Cornish Archaeology 56, or send an email to [email protected] .

Roger Smith, 16th February 2020