Cadgwith
Cadgwith
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Location within Cornwall | |
OS grid reference | SW721146 |
Civil parish | |
Unitary authority | |
Ceremonial county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | HELSTON |
Postcode district | TR12 |
Dialling code | 01326 |
Police | Devon and Cornwall |
Fire | Cornwall |
Ambulance | South Western |
UK Parliament | |
Cadgwith (
History
The village has its origins in
Geography
Cadgwith has two beaches separated by a promontory called "The Todden", thought to mean laying ground in Cornish.[6] To the north-east is the larger beach, made mostly of shingle with a shallow slope, referred to as Cadgwith Cove, Big Beach, The Cove, Fishing Beach, or the Working Cove; all the fishermen work from this beach. The other smaller beach on the south-west side is a mixture of sand and large boulders and is called Little Cove, Cadgwith Cove or Little Beach and used as the swimming beach by locals and holiday-makers. The Todden, maximum height about 9m above sea level, provides a view of the beaches and the village. There is a natural passage through The Todden which connects the beaches. Pointing seaward from The Todden are two rocks called The Island and The Mare. At low tide the beaches are connected by a strip between the Todden and The Island. Cadgwith is sheltered from prevailing winds from the south-west or west, but easterly or south-easterly winds can produce rough seas and swells. During stormy weather waves can break over The Island. Rough seas can reach the low-lying buildings and homes. The sea has eroded large areas of The Todden and access to the promontory by a narrow pathway has been preserved by sea wall defences funded by Cornwall Council and The Tham Trust.
Cadgwith lies within the
Fishing
Cadgwith owes its existence to the fishing industry.
Wrecks
The
Lifeboats
Lifeboat services throughout the British Isles are run as a charity and manned by volunteers organised by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).
The RNLI stationed a
History of the Cadgwith lifeboats
The first lifeboat was Western Commercial Traveller. She was 33 ft long (10 m) and 8 ft 1 in (2.46 m) wide. She had a crew of thirteen and was rowed by ten oars. She cost £290 and was built by Woolfe and Shadwell. In 1878, the Western Commercial Traveller was renamed Joseph Armstrong after the late Chief Superintendent of the locomotive and carriage developments of the Great Western Railway. A replacement lifeboat, also named Joseph Armstrong, came on station in June 1887. She was 37 ft long (11 m) and 8 ft wide (2.4 m). With twelve oars and fifteen crew, she cost £454 and was built by Forrest Limehouse.
In 1898, a new lifeboat named Minnie Moon arrived in Cadgwith. She was 39 ft long (12 m) and 9 ft 6 in (2.90 m) wide, with twelve oars and fifteen crew. She cost £798 and was built at Thames Ironworks, Blackwall. She holds the record for the greatest number of lives saved from one rescue: 227 lives were saved from the SS Suevic on the night of 17/18 March 1907 which was wrecked in fog and gales on The Stag Rocks on the Maenheere Reef, off Lizard Point.[10] Two silver RNLI gallantry medals were awarded to members of the Cadgwith lifeboat crew: Edwin Rutter, Coxswain Superintendent and Rev. ‘Harry’ Vyvyan, Honorary Secretary.[11] Other lifeboat crews involved in the rescue included The Lizard, Coverack, and Porthleven. The centenary of the rescue was commemorated on 17 March 2007.[12]
The Herbert Sturmey arrived on station in 1932. She was 37 ft long (11 m) and 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) wide, with twelve oars and fifteen crew. She cost £2000 and was built by Summers and Payne of Cowes.
The last Cadgwith lifeboat was the
Tourism
Tourism is the major source of income in the village nowadays, due to the decline in the fishing industry, and many of the houses are let as holiday accommodation. Cadgwith has long been popular as a holiday destination, especially during the summer when there are numerous local events:
References
- ^ Place-names in the Standard Written Form (SWF) Archived 15 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine : List of place-names agreed by the MAGA Signage Panel Archived 15 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Cornish Language Partnership.
- ^ "Must see fishing villages in Cornwall". Travel Daily News. Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ISBN 978-0-319-23149-4
- ^ Weatherhill C. (2007) Cornish Place Names and Language. Ammanford: Sigma Press.
- ^ "Cadgwith, the Lizard, Cornwall". Thelizard.info. Archived from the original on 10 June 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
- ^ "An Index to the Historical Place Names of Cornwall". Chris Bond. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
- ^ "Lizard and Cadgwith: History". RNLI. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
- ^ ISBN 0-906294-43-6.
- ^ Denton, Tony (2009). Handbook 2009. Shrewsbury: Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 18–19.
- ^ "Article in The Life-Boat publication regarding the SS Suevic rescue" (PDF). The Life-Boat, RNLI. 1 November 1907. pp. 285–286. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 17 June 2008.
- ^ "The greatest-ever rescue remembered". Lizard-lifeboat.co.uk. Archived from the original on 31 October 2007. Retrieved 17 June 2008.
- ^ "Biggest RNLI rescue is remembered". BBC News. 11 March 2007. Retrieved 17 June 2008.