From "Notes on the Parish of Mylor", published by Hugh Pengelly Olivey 1907

Beware, Ongoing work - This is First Draft Only and like to contain typographic errors

Section 2

Climate, Place-Names.

MYLOR is noted as being one of the most sheltered and healthy spots in the County of Cornwall. The air is pleasant and genial. The summers are usually cool, and the strong winds which frequently blow from the Atlantic have a purifying and health-giving influence. The winters are mild, and snow seldom lies more than two or three days. A very dry summer is a very rare thing, and when other parts of England are suffering from drought, this part of Cornwall has no reason to complain. The saltness of the air, caused by the sea surroundings, is unfavourable to some trees and shrubs, particularly near the shore and having a western aspect ; on the other hand, others like it, such as euonymus, escallonia macrantha, etc., and flourish well. Sub-tropical plants do well, and dracaenas, eucalyptus, geraniums, calceolarias, solanums, etc., survive the winters and grow to a great height. The town of Flushing in particular is highly favoured in this respect, and has gained the title of the English Riviera.⁽¹⁾. Polwhele notes the longevity of the inhabitants, and adds : " John Allen died in 1799, aged 98, and Henry Short in 1803, aged 96." Many other instances of longevity, are found in the parish registers.

The same author, speaking of the climate of Cornwall generally, comments on some of the lines of the following from Armstrong's Art of Preserving Health, which, being applicable here, is given more fully.

" In quest of sites avoid the mournful plain
Where osiers thrive and trees that love the lake;
Where many lazy, muddy rivers flow;
Nor for the wealth of all the Indies roll,
Fix near the marshy margin of the main
For from the humid soil and wat'ry reign
Eternal vapours rise.
Skies such as these let every mortal shun
Who dreads the dropsy, palsy or the gout,
Tertian, corrosive scurvy, or moist catarrh."

He proceeds : " But the Cornish need not fear the miasmata of 'mournful plains or marshes.' Whatever may be said of ' the dropsy or the gout,' our situation exempts us in a great measure from the ague."

Notwithstanding this panegyric of Mr. Polwhele, although ague may now be a thing of the past, it does not appear to have been entirely absent from Mylor, and may probably have lingered about the vicinity of the river at Mylor Bridge, for we find in an old overseer's book of workhouse charges for the year 1798: "To cash to buy Brimstone and Treacle to do for the Ague 2d." The grand specific for malarial diseases, namely, the cinchona bark, and from it, quinine, was not then known.

The same didactic poet (Armstrong) further says (B. I, p. I 19)

Ye who amid this feverish world would wear
A body free from pain from cares of mind ;
Fly the rank city, shun its turbid air;
Breath not the chaos of eternal smoke
And volatile corruption from the dead,
The dying, sick'ning and the living world
Exhal'd to fully heaven's transparent dome
With dim mortality. It is not air
That from a thousand lungs reeks back to thine,
Sated with exhalations rank and fell,
The spoil of dunghills, and the putrid thaw
Of nature when from shape and texture she
Relapses into sighing elements ;
It is not air, that floats a nauseous mass
Of all obscene, corrupt offensive things.
Fly if you can those violent extremes
Of air, the wholesome is nor moist nor dry;"

PLACE-NAMES

"The names of places are chiefly Cornish, and amongst them we have some evidence of Saxon occupation. " Carsausen," meaning the Saxoncastle, just as a part of the shore of Helford harbour is called " Porth-Saussen," which indicates the harbour of the Saxons, besides which there are various others in this part of the county, as " Tresaussen," the dwelling of the Saxons, in Lanreath ; " Tresaussin," in Probus ; " Bosausack," the house of the Saxons at the creek in Constantine, etc. It is always somewhat dangerous to guess at the meaning of names, but there are very many the meaning of which is clear and well established in the opinion of Cornish scholars. The interpretations which are given are from the best authorities which it is possible to consult. In the meanings which are given of these names we shall find there is great significance, and many places give also names to families, which has been the custom in Cornwall for ages past. These mostly consist of two substantive nouns, one of which has the force of an adjective and qualifies the other. The names often denote a site either on high or low ground, their relative situations, their vicinity to rivers or sea, from the form of the place and its qualities, from woods or particular trees, and from various other circumstances, most of which appear to have a meaning, and in imposing these names the Cornish people showed a great degree of observation and precision.

The parish of Mylor and surrounding district has many such names, and which illustrate the old rhyme:
   " By Tre, Pol and Pen
   You may know the names of Cornishmen."

The " Tres " were the agricultural spots on plains; the "Pens " the more remarkable hill pastures.

And also another, rather more extended:
  " By Tre, Ros, Pol, Lan, Caer (or Car) and Pen
  You may know most Cornish men."

Tre means a town, a place, a gentleman's seat.
Ros or Res = a valley.
Pol = a pool, sometimes a top.
Lan = a church or an enclosure.
Caer or Car= a town or castle.
Pen= the head or top.

These are well known, and it will only be necessary to give a few examples of each.

Trelew = the dwelling by the pool or lake.
Trefusis = the walled or entrenched town.
Trenoweth or Tregoweth = the new town or dwelling.
Trevissom or Trevissan = the lower town.
Tresise =the place of corn.
Restronguet or Restrongas (res or ros, a valley ; tron, a nose ; gas, deep) = The valley with the deep promontory ; (or if gas or gus, woodwith the woody promontory).
Polglase, Polglaz =the green top or green pool (now "The Woodlands.")
Polscatha (scath, skath, skatha, a boat) = the pool for boats. (This from an old map is the name of the beach under the church field).
Lan-hay =the churchyard.
Lan-yon (Lan-eithon) =The furzy enclosure, the furzy croft.
Car-sausen = the castle of the Saxons.
Carvossa, Corvossa (voza and voran, pl. voz or vore, a ditch)=the entrenched castle or fort. (yore is a word used in ploughing).
Pengilly (Kelli) = the head of the grove or hazel grove.
Pentrelew or Pentrelooe =t he house at the head or above Trelew.
Penryn = the head of the river, channel, or promontory.
Pendennis = the head or chief man's castle.
Pen-werris, Penguares = the green or flourishing head.

Besides these examples there are many others distinctly Cornish in this parish, which will explain themselves as to situation, etc.
Crug or Cruc is a barrow or ancient burying place, hence Carclew, anciently Crugglew and Crucclew (clu, cluth, a ditch or fence), the enclosures by the barrows.
Cregoes on Trefusis=the barrows, the burial places. The position of old Mylor church town.
Crockagodna=the burial place of the chief.

Park (Parc, Pairc) is a field or an enclosure. It continually occurs in the names of Cornish fields. We have it in Carclew in combination with gwarra or wartha (higher), and gwalla or walla (lower).
Park-wartha=the higher field. Park-woolla=the lower field.
Park-coose =the field in the wood.
Park-an-hipple (?) otherwise the grass field.
On Carclew is a field called Croft Danger, probably from Danger or D'Angers, former owners.

We have also:
Park-an-hale = the moorfield.
Park morra=the field by the sea.
Park cover= with the brook or spring of water.

Comford (com-fort, coom-ford, cwm-fordh, cuum-vordh, cum-vor) = the great road or pass between the hills.
Bellair (?) =from beler, water-cresses.
Nantrelooe =the house in the valley by the pool or lake.
Darloe (from dar, oak) = the oak pool.
Nankersey =the winding valley.
Carvynack or Carvinack = the castle dwelling near the sea.
Penoweth =the head of the new town.
Tregoosreath =the wood town by the sand or sea-shore.
Trevithon =the town among the trees, the meadow town.
Trevethen =the bird's town.

Cosawsen =the Saxon's town.
Crownick =the dwelling at the cross.
Vycoose (wood)=the wood by the river.
Hallancoose moor =the wood by the moor enclosure.
Goonreath =the sandy downs.
Lawithick = the enclosure with trees by the creek.
Trengrouses tent= the smith's tenement.
Halwyn =the white or fair town.

Byssam = (? Bis-soe) = the birches or the bottom.
Portloe=the port or harbour by the pool.
Tregatreath =the dwelling on the sand or seashore.
Tresellick =the house with an open view.
Tregenna or Tregenow (Tregunwith) =the dwelling at the mouth or entrance.
Trelisick = a dwelling on the broad creek or the town on the enclosed water.
Landeria (? dar, an oak, pl. deru) = the enclosure of oaks.

In an old rate made in 1754 (see Appendix A), which appears to be made on the basis of one penny in the pound, most of the names mentioned are given. This was the usual way of making the assessment, and as many rates were collected as were necessary. This rate is also of interest as showing the position of the old church town, and gives the names of the occupiers at that period.

(1) In a reprint of articles now being given weekly in the Royal Comwall Gazette, entitled " A Hundred Years Ago," is the follow "The attraction of the mild winter enjoyed on the southern shores of Cornwall is rapidly extending. The effect is a considerable increase of visitors. It is no uncommon thing to meet with noblemen even at the assemblies of the little village of Flushing, which it must be confessed are always attended by elegant company."

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