Tam Kernewek “ A bit of Cornish” Volume 28 Issue 4 Winter 2010 President‟s Message Gorsedd in St.Ives Dear Members, First, Thank you (Meur ras) to those who have sub- mitted responses regarding electronic delivery of the newsletter. We sincerely appreciate your input including all the additional suggestions and useful information. Recently our dedicated "mail" lady, Vivianne T. Bradley, who has folded, sealed, attached mailing labels, sorted and bundled by Zip codes, etc., has informed us she will be resigning from that job early in 2011. Viv has performed this chore for nine years in addition to serving CAHS as 2nd VP and then President. Other demands on her time make it necessary for her to give this up this volunteer job. We thank her for her dedication. There are many things to research and consider in arriving at decisions regarding any and all The 2010 Gorsedd was held in St. Ives on Saturday, changes. We will keep you informed. 4th September. Since my last message to you I have been on the go. As you read this TK you'll read about some of The sun was shining when the main procession of that. You'll note that Jean Ellis, Susan Pellowe and more than 300 Bards left the Guildhall through the I were in St. Ives for the 2010 Gorsedd in early narrow streets lined with many watching as they Sept. It was a marvelous event. processed to the Island where the ceremony took place. Some Bards had travelled from Australia You will read about Jean and the Twinning Com- and Susan Pellowe, Jean Ellis and Tommi mitte members in Camborne meeting and the sign- O‟Hagan came from the USA to attend. ing of official proclamations. Karen Willows of the World Heritage Site Project Bright sunshine, views of the beach below and a met for an interesting exchange of information high rocky outcrop which forms a natural stadium about that Project and discussion of mining sites in for spectators made The Island a perfect setting for North America. I came home with materials about this annual event. the Heritage Project and you'll be seeing and hear- ing more about that in the newsletter and at CAHS The Gorsedd was opened with the customary cry of events. peace. A purpose-made Joining Sword formed the Cornish AmericanHeritage Society centerpiece in this year‟s Gorsedh ceremony. Dele- gates were present from Wales and Brittany, and Continued next page the two halves of the „weapon‟ were symbolically 56 joined by the bards from the Cornish and Breton gorsedhs and presented to the Welsh „Mother Continued next page President’s message con’t: Gorsedd con’t: Jean and I had time for some personal family research at Gorsedh” as a sign of respect, peace and unity. Engraved the Cornwall Family History Society and the County Re- on the blade are the Cornish words for “sharp my blade cords Office; more news to report to our members who without fear of pain”, taken from a poem by bard Tim also belong to the CFHS as well as changes in personnel and administration of the Cornwall Global Migration Pro- Saunders. gramme! Very special for me was a weekend spent with cousins - descendants of my great grandmother's brother. A won- derful time of fellowship and 'reunion'. Liz Broekman had arranged with members of the London Cornish Association to meet with me for an early evening meal and conversation before my flight back to the States. We met at a London restaurant run by a fellow with roots in St. Ives and had a pleasant time over an excellent meal. Nice to see Catherine and Don Foster who are 'old' friends after several occasions when we've met in Cornwall and it was nice to finally meet Liz and other members whom I've only read about in the newslet- ters. After the Flower Dance and the offering of the Fruits of Upon return to Wisconsin, I addressed the Celtic Women the Earth by the Lady of Cornwall, the Deputy Grand International group of the Sheboygan area to talk about Bard read out the names of the deceased Bards. As a Cornwall. You know it was hard for me to keep to the symbol of continuity 16 new Bards, six of whom quali- time limit set for the presentation! We concluded with fied by examination in the Cornish language, were wel- samples of pasties and Figgy 'obbin. A very good eve- comed into the Gorsedd following which awards and ning in all ways. prizes were given out. Soon Bob and I were on our way to a Time Share near Butte, Montana and our first visit to that great mining city. You'll be hearing more about that soon. For now, those of you who may have research you'd like to do about family who were in Butte, check www.buttearchives.org to see what resources are avail- able there! Staff there will do look up information for a very reasonable fee. You can contact them at bsbar- [email protected] Time to again remind anyone interested in learning a bit of the Cornish language to visit the website of the Cor- nish Language Partnership at www.magakernow.org.uk. An English - Cornish Glos- sary in the Standard Written Form (SWF) has recently been added at the site. Explore the site for the many helpful things it offers. As the ceremony drew to a close, The Grand Pard called all Bards to the Omborth to place a hand on the shoulder Again, Please continue to send us your input and sug- of the Bard in front, and when all were linked to the gestions for delivery of Tam Kernewek. We need your Swordbearer, the oath of loyalty was given and the song involvement! "Old Land of our Fathers" was sung with passion in what was a memorable setting with the sea gently lapping the To all - "Nadelik Lowen !" (Merry Christmas) and "Bledhen Nowyth Da!" (Happy New Year) shore. Tommi In the evening a concert with Cornish music and songs all performed by people of St. Ives was held in the Guildhall. 57 Calumet, Michigan and Camborne, Cornwall Celebrate Their Ties On September 10, Mayor John Beare, Former Mayor Jean Charman, Mike Trott, Chair of the Camborne Twinning Committee, members of the Twinning Committee and delegates from Camborne welcomed Jean Ellis representing Calumet to a signing ceremony in the Town Council Chambers. Former Mayor Charman who championed the idea of Twinning signed the proclamation which had been formally adopted during her tenure. The two towns have a great deal in common. David Oates, a member of the Holman-Climax Male Voice Choir, remarked on their similarities during the Choir‟s 2001 visit to the Ke- weenaw. Both places have experienced the boom and bust cycles of many mining communities. Mining ceased in Calu- met in 1968 and in Camborne in 1998. Each community has struggled to develop a new identity and to remain an attrac- tive place to live. Both face the challenges of preserving heritage. Calumet is home to the Keweenaw National His- torical Park, charged with telling the story of a copper mining community; Camborne is part of the World Heritage Site They‟re not identical—Camborne is a lot larger than Calumet—but they certainly could be fraternal twins. Both hope to further their relationship through visits and other exchanges. Village President Tony Bausano will add his signature to the proclamation on October 18 at the Village Council meeting. ``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` Book Review THOUGH THE HEAVENS MAY FALL By E. V. Thompson I just finished this book and loved it! I‟ve read a number of Thompson‟s books and enjoyed them immensely, especially the Retallick series which offered such detailed descriptions of the lives of the miners in the 1850s- 70s. They increased my respect for our miner ancestors. But this book, published in 2007, is a mystery set in the 1850s. It centered on miners and smugglers and is a very well-told tale, one that keeps you wondering and wanting to read on. It‟s hard to put down, but I fin- ished it with regret. The upside is, I think he will take the main characters and write more about them. The hero is Amos Hawke, a Cornishman living in London and working as a detective for Scotland Yard. He is sent to Cornwall to work on a series of murders. I like the way Thompson, a Bard, develops his characters and weaves the mystery while dropping clues for the reader. Delightful book and one that vividly describes several parts of Cornwall so you can see where your ancestors roamed. Now I‟m waiting for the mailman to deliver Churchyard and Hawke which may be a sequel or, better yet, the continuation of a new series. Anyway, I recommend them to those who like reading about Cornwall and mysteries. By Nancy Heydt taken from the Cornish Crier Newsletter 58 CORRESPONDENCE FROM SOCIETIES, daughter, Edwina. Edwina married Bill Ferfusan (Ferguson?) and had 2 daughters, Karen and Sharon who would be about 70 years of age now. They in turn had twins—names unknown. In 1977 they were living MEMBERS AND COUSIN JACK WEBSITE at Tagus Ranch Motel, 26442 Freeway 99, Tulare, CA 95274. Phone:209-889-1521. From the Cornish Crier newsletter of the Cornish Heritage Society Please contact: East: Philip Jones at Helligan Mill, Hellandbridge, Twenty five Cousin Ginnies and Cousin Jacks met on Saturday Bodmin, Cornwall PL30 4QR June 5 in Wharton in time for our usual crowst of ANY ADVICE from any one in California?? Rocky‟s pasties and tea.