Stithians
Encyclopedia
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It lies in the centre of the triangle bounded by Redruth
Redruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...
, Helston
Helston
Helston is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the northern end of the Lizard Peninsula approximately 12 miles east of Penzance and nine miles southwest of Falmouth. Helston is the most southerly town in the UK and is around further south than...
and Falmouth
Falmouth, Cornwall
Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,635.Falmouth is the terminus of the A39, which begins some 200 miles away in Bath, Somerset....
. Its population (2001) is 2,004.
The parish is mainly agricultural, located south of the Gwennap
Gwennap
Gwennap is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately five miles southeast of Redruth....
mining area and north of the quarrying areas of Rame and Longdowns
Longdowns
Longdowns is a village in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated on the A394 road approximately three miles west of Penryn.Longdowns is in an area of granite quarries, some active some disused. The village has a petrol station, a convenience store and a pub.John Spargo, the American socialist,...
. The River Kennall runs through the parish: in the 19th century, this river worked a flour mill and a number of gunpowder mills, machinery at a foundry, and a paper mill.
Parish church
The fine parish church is dedicated to St Stythian, but there is a considerable difficulty in identifying this saint. References to the parish in 13th and 14th century records show various spellings: Stethyana, Stediana, Stedyan, Stediane, and Stidianus. Rev Sabine Baring-GouldSabine Baring-Gould
The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould was an English hagiographer, antiquarian, novelist and eclectic scholar. His bibliography consists of more than 1240 publications, though this list continues to grow. His family home, Lew Trenchard Manor near Okehampton, Devon, has been preserved as he had it...
's "Cornish Dedications" (1906) makes a connection with St Etaine of Tumna in Ireland, while Rev Michael Warner (Vicar of Stithians 1983-1993) suggests St Stephen http://stythian.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10&Itemid=1. The saint's feast day is the Sunday closest to 10 July, and Stithians Show is held on the Monday following Feast Sunday.
There has been a church on the site since the 6th century, but the oldest part of the current church is 14th century; and the imposing tower was added in the 15th century. The former ecclesiastical parish of Carnmenellis
Carnmenellis
Carnmenellis Hill gives its name to the area of west Cornwall between Redruth, Helston and Penryn. The hill itself is situated approximately three miles south of Redruth....
is now merged with Stithians parish.
Methodist churches
John WesleyJohn Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
visited Stithians in 1744-50 and brought Methodism to the parish. The Hendra Wesleyan Chapel was built in 1815 and after a division among the members, the Penmennor United Methodist Free Church was built in 1866 just a few yards away (Hendra Chapel closed in 1976).
Stithians Show
Stithians ShowStithians Show
Stithians Show takes place on the day after Feast Sunday in the village of Stithians, Cornwall...
is one of the largest one-day agricultural show
Agricultural show
An agricultural show is a public event showcasing the equipment, animals, sports and recreation associated with agriculture and animal husbandry. The largest comprise a livestock show , a trade fair, competitions, and entertainment...
s in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
: the show is held annually in July and the attendance is in excess of 20,000. Established in 1834, it has been held continuously since then (except for three years during World War I, and five years during World War II; and there was no show in 2001 due to the nationwide outbreak of foot and mouth disease). Up until 1992, the Show was sited on fields in the centre of the village. Then the threat of rental increases as well as the show's increasing size encouraged the Agricultural Association to purchase its own land at Kennall Farm and establish a site there.
Musical ensembles
Music has always played a large part in village life. St Stythians Band (formerly St Stythians Silver Band) was founded in 1928 and became very successful in competitions in the 1960s and 1970s; during the summer months it gives weekly concerts at the Gyllyngdune Gardens in Falmouth. St Stythians Male Voice Choir was formed in 1919, only to be closed in 1926; but it was reformed in 1947 and since then has thrived, performing concerts throughout Cornwall and further afield. Stithians Ladies Choir was formed in 1966 and quickly established a high reputation. The band and choirs have made a number of successful recordings.Philanthropy and recreation
Albert Collins (1859–1937) from Stithians travelled to South Africa in 1880 with his friend William Mountstephens from Falmouth; there their building business prospered and they contributed to many charitable institutions. In 1934, Albert Collins paid for the Playing Field, opposite the school in the centre of the village, which is still enjoyed by the children of Stithians today. The men also set up a Trust Fund under the control of the Methodist Church in South Africa, which was used to build a school in Johannesburg; the school, known as St Stithians CollegeSt Stithians College
St Stithians College is a Methodist church school situated on the border of Randburg and Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa. It follows a co-ordinate educational model within a village of schools consisting of boys' and girls' colleges, boys' and girls' preparatory schools, and a junior...
, opened in 1953.
Stithians Dam was completed in 1964 to create a 270 acres (1.1 km²) reservoir
Stithians Reservoir
Stithians Reservoir is a reservoir situated just under a mile to the west of the village of Stithians, Cornwall, UK.-History:Work on the dam began on 19 July 1962, however work stopped shortly after due to excavations which revealed the site was over over a large area of soft kaolinised granite,...
to the west of the village, which supplies water to a large part of the west of Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
. It is a place for bird-watching, fishing and water sports. Stithians has two football teams: one playing rugby football (founded in 1890) and the other playing soccer in the Falmouth-Helston League.
Notable people
- John SpargoJohn SpargoJohn Spargo was a British-born American socialist political activist, orator, and writer who later became a renowned expert in the history and crafts of Vermont...
, Socialist and scholar, born in the parish but settled in the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Further reading
- Pearce, Susan, ed. (1980) Always Something Interesting: aspects of history in Stithians; compiled by members of Stithians Local History Group. [Truro]: Stithians Local History Group
- Pearce, Susan, ed. (1982) Always Something Iteresting: more aspects of history in Stithians; compiled by members of Stithians Local History Group. [Truro]: Stithians Local History Group