Cornwall

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Carnmenellis

The parish of Carnmenellis (Cornish: Karnmanalys) was created by Act of Parliament, and was gazetted on 9th January 1846. It was created from part of Wendron parish to meet the requirements of increasing population. The the parish is named after the Cornish for a rocky hill 'Carn' plus an unknown word. The hill rises to an altitude of 822 feet. On its summit is a pile of rocks, consisting of four flat thin stones; the upper one is circular, its diameter being about 19 feet. The pile is encircled with a row of stones and a trench about 36 feet in diameter. There are also two or three tumuli on the top of this hill, in which Roman coins have been found.

Carmenellis is situated on open moorland; it remains only at the centre of the area. The landscape was cleared of most woodland cover at an early date. Carnmenellis was also fairly densely populated in the Bronze Age, when the climate was much milder than it is today. Many settlements were probably abandoned about 1000 BC. Although there are many prehistoric field systems, most of the area was open grazing land and the history of the landscape since the later prehistoric times has been one of piecemeal enclosure and the exploitation of mineral resources.

During the 18th and 19th centuries this area was one of the foremost tin and copper producing areas in the world and a major centre of invention and engineering during the Industrial Revolution. The resultant wealth financed the growth of centres such as Redruth and many small mining villages in areas that were formerly open heath and moorland. In the mid- to late-19th century, however, foreign competition hit the Cornish mining trade hard and many mines were forced to close leaving their legacy of ruined buildings and waste tips in the landscape. Today, the parish is surrounded by patterns of both irregular older fields and the rectilinear enclosures of the 18th and 19th centuries. Groups of miners' cottages and ruined engine houses are dotted across the landscape and its bleak and exposed appearance only gives way to more sheltered sites in the south-east where there is land in arable and horticultural use. The most apparent reminders of the mining industry are in the north, towards Camborne and Redruth. Here there are the characteristic remains of mine engine houses, the rough ground of mine 'burrows' and old shafts, old tramways and scarred land. There is an unusually dense pattern of settlement, with haphazard mixes of farm cottages, short terraces of mining cottages and clusters at road junctions.

Penmarth, a nearby village within the parish, is sometimes referred to locally as Carnmenellis. The parish of Carnmenellis is now united with, and is part of, Stithians parish.

Cemeteries

• The Cornwall Family History Society have published Monumental Inscriptions for the Parish Church - 751 entries.
• A photograph of the cemetery is available.
• War Memorial inscriptions for Penmarth (1914-1918 and 1939-1945 Wars) are also available.

Census

Census information for this parish (1851 - 1901) is held in the Cornwall Record Office. The Cornwall Family History Society offers a census search service for its members. The Cornwall Family History Society have also published on-line census detail by surname on the FamilyHistoryonLine site.

Specific census information for this parish is available as follows:

• 1841. In the 1841 Census, Carnmenellis was enumerated as part of Wendron.
• 1851. The 1851 Census of Carnmenellis (HO107/1912), Enumeration Districts 2k, 2l, 2m, 2n, 2o and 2p, is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project.
• 1861. The 1861 Census of Carnmenellis (RG9/1570) is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project as follows
  • Enumeration Districts 10 to 12.
  • Enumeration Districts 13 and 14.
• 1871. The 1871 Census of Carnmenellis is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project as follows:
  • RG10/2300. Enumeration Districts 10 to 12.
  • RG10/2301. Enumeration Districts 13 to 15.
• 1881. The 1881 Census of Carnmenellis is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project as follows:
  • RG11/2321. Enumeration Districts 10 to 13.
  • RG11/2322. Enumeration Districts 14 and 15.
• 1891. The 1891 Census of Carnmenellis (RG12/1839), Enumeration Districts 9 to 13, is available on-line from the Cornwall Online Census project.

Church History

• Anglican. There were once two Anglican churches in Carnmenellis parish, which - itself - was formed out of Wendron parish..
  • The parish church was located in OS Grid Square SW702356, and was dedicated to the Holy Trinity. It was built in 1851 of granite in the Gothic style and consisted of a chancel, nave, vestry, organ loft, a south porch and a small bell turrett containing one bell. Holy Trinity Church was demolished in 1970 following a distastrous fire.
    The registers, which are in the CRO, date from 1851. Pictures of the churchyard remains are available on-line, as is a plan of the original church.
  • The Anglican church of St Andrews at Porkellis, was built as a chapel-of-ease in 1881; this church is still in use today.
    Details about the plans of the existing church are available on-line. By the beginning of the 21st century, the ecclesiastical parish of Carnmenellis no longer existed; it is now part of the Helston, Wendron and Porkellis ministry.
• Non-Conformist. There were separate chapels for the Wesleyan Methodists at Edgecumbe and Porkellis, and for the Bible Christians at Karn Kie (Carnkie).

Church Records

• The Cornwall Record Office holdings: Baptisms 1846-1967, Marriages 1851-1965, Burials 1851-1938.
• Baptisms. Baptisms 1846 to 1911 are available on-line through the OPC search Facility - (C-PROP).
• Burials.
  • Burials 1851 to 1882 are available on-line through the OPC search Facility - (C-PROP).
  • The OPC of Stithians has provided a list of some stray burials in Carnmenellis.

Civil Registration

The parish of Carnmenellis was originally in the Helston Registration District as part of Wendron; then there were sub-districts at Breage, Crowan, Helston, St Keverne and Wendron. It is now part of the Kerrier Registration District. Parishes in this registration district were: Breage, Crowan, Cury, Germoe, Gunwalloe, Grade, Helston, Landewednack, Manaccan, Mawgan-in-Meneage, Mullion, Ruan Major, Ruan Minor, St. Anthony in Meneage, St. Keverne, St. Martin in Meneage, Sithney, Wendron.

The address of the Registration Office is: The Willows, Church Street, Helston, TR13 8NJ.
Tel: 01326 562848.

Description & Travel

• ePodunk's Cornwall page - providing general, plus some historical and genealogical information, about Cornwall and its parishes, together with links (mainly relating to general sites and services, rather than ones that are specific to Cornwall or particular parishes).
• Photographs of Carnmenellis are available on-line.

Genealogy

OPC Assistance. The On-line Parish Clerk (OPC) scheme operates a service to help family historians; the OPC page for this parish is available on-line, from where the OPC can be contacted by email.

Maps

• Map of the Kerrier Registration District in which the parish lies.
• An old map of the parish of Carnmenellis in the 19th century is also available.

Poorhouses, Poor Law, etc.

Carnmenelis parish became part of the Helston Union for Poor Law administration and parish relief on its creation.

Population

The parish of Carnmenellis was created in 1846 from part of Wendron parish. Population figures before this date are with Wendron.

Statistics

The parish comprises 3094 acres of land.

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