Polgooth memories
Here are memories of Polgooth and the local area. You can start now: Add your own Memory of Polgooth or a Polgooth photo.
Rose View
1970 - 1984: As you look at this photo the last building on the right, the barn like cottage with the small window, is Rose View. My mum and dad bought it for £1,000 in 1970, and set to work modernising it as I was due 1971 and my brother 1975. When they purchased the cottage it was a 1 up and 1 down, no electric or inside running water and the toilet was up the far end of the garden. My Dad built the double extension that is still there today, and the car port (the circle pattern on the wall was made with one of the bases of my tea set!!). My dad died there in 1978, we lived there till 1984 when we moved to Sticker. My mates lived in Tyshute Lane and we all had a great time growing up playing up the pig sty that was up the end of the lane, and numerous other games in the lane. Many a time Pete Stafford had... Read more
The Post Office
1971 - 1984: Whilst I lived in village the Post Office was where you got all you needed in an emergency. As a little one, I personally loved the vending machines on the wall. In those days we all used to be sent out for groceries even as young ones, as the village was safe and everyone knew each other. Where the barn is, on the right, the old peoples' flats were built, and the ladies and gentlemen used to stand outside leaning on the rails, all talking to each other and to us as we walked or ran to shop for sweets.
Great Part of The Village
1970's and 80's: We had a great childhood playing at this end of the village. It was quiet except for the cars of people that lived up here. Everyone knew each other. My old house is in the background, all you can see is the gable end and the chimney. In the 1970's the Fowlers lived next door and they had the orchard behind, which they later sold and a bungalow was built there. On the hedge that you can see in the forefront is where our dog HOBO used to sleep all day waiting for us to come home from school. Cock's buses collected and dropped us at the Polgooth Printing Press by the old Omlo dairy and Count House. Tyshute Lane was unsurfaced, and great for playing in. The Warrens, Staffords, Ellis's, us Crosses, Polumbo, Connelly's etc..... what a safe and great lane!!!!! Loved the Pig Sty and the Miners paths up to fairyland and the Tin Mine, where we played in the shafts and engine house etc.... Read more
My Cottage
The cottage in the centre of the picture was our first home in Cornwall.
4/4/2001
Sunday School
Anyone remember the Spooner's from the Midlands living in the village? They moved from Lostwithiel. Joyce and Arthur(John)Spooner. I was about 5 and remember going to Sunday School with my foster brother Mark. We lived in the middle of three houses I think on a hill. I also remember two older girls who used to take us for walks and they visited a man who lived in a caravan/mobile home near the village. They told me and Mark that he used to be a lorry driver and had got injured. I remember a sausage dog from the shop, I think it was called Jamie but not sure. After my younger brother was born we moved to Oxford. Please if any of this rings any bells please get in touch. Jamie Spooner (kernow66@hotmail.com)
Sunday School And Discos
1980's: This is where we went every Sunday for Sunday School, taken by Mrs Warren. Also where the first village disco was held before moving them to the village institute.
Where the photographer is standing was the playing field and woods.....which contained the love tree!!!!!!! Further round was the Goffin, that today has been cleared and looks great. But was scary and dangerous in our day!!!!! hehe
Memories of Cornwall
Summer Holidays
My grandparents lived in this village and I have many memories of my visits to the village as a child. One highlight was the walk down the lane to catch the bus to Penzance. Walking across the lane to the diary with all its Gnomes in the garden. The Fish and Chip shop where I was always remembered from one year to the next. Walking up to the post office for sweets on routre to the rec. The village shop was on a little hill just down from the chip shop, across from here was a small garage. The walk into St Austell toen centre we used to pass the pig farm which to us kids was great fun. Grandparents lived in a little courtyard of 3 houses which later changed its address to Cooperage Road. Uncle still lives in the Village. Carnival time was also a great community event and one of the daughters living across the way from Gran was carnival queen one year, so it was... Read more
The Boat House Porthpean Beach
The tall building at the bottom left hand side of the slipway leading down to the beach was used by a Mr Axford who had two or three wooden rowing boats that he hired out by the hour. He would sit on a bench outside the boathouse and having paid the appropriate monies one was issued with a pair of oars and allocated a boat. My dad bought one of Charlie's boats in the early '50's which we kept on the quay at Charlestown and used it for recreation fishing. We initially powered it with a 4hp Seagull outboard. Then, on one of our fishing trips we come across a large quantity of wood planks that must have washed overboard from some freighter in a storm. In that great tradition of Cornish wreckers we salvaged as many of these 15 or 16 foot long boards as we could pile onto our boat, leaving just a narrow gap to stand in as we ever so slowly made our way back to... Read more
Anti-Invasion Defences-Porthpean Beach
During the invasion scare of WW2, Porthpean beach was protected from seaborne landings by the Germans by having anti-landing craft defences built along the length of the beach at I believe, the low tide mark. This consisted of an A-frame structure constructed from scaffold piping. Possibly this had mines attached but I have found no confirmation of this.
Additionally, on the slope leading up from the beach there were pyramid shaped, concrete pillars about four or five feet high that would prevent vehicles using it.
One of these can be seen in the photo "View from beach c. 1955"
I lived on Porthpean Road at MountCharles from 1939 till 1955 and now live in Illinois, USA
Anti Invasion Devices
I spent many happy hours on Porthpean beach, both with my family and my friends during the summer holidays. I remember the anti invasion devices well as we used them as monkey bars. After the war they became very rusty with many sharp rusty edges to get snagged on.
I also remember during the war years that a few miles off the beach were some bombing targets and we used to watch bomber pilots practising their skills from time to time.
Peter, I believe you were a year behind me at St. Austell Grammar school and that a few years back I think we swapped emails. I now live in Marblehead, Massachusetts, having moved here in 1968.
St Austell Fore Street - Rivera Restaurant
The Rivera!! Once a week after school in 1964- 65, a group of us (mostly 6th-formers from the Grammar School, which was co-ed by that time) used to gather upstairs in the Rivera Restaurant (on the right in the photo) and order tea and buttered teacakes - all we could afford - and we'd make them last an hour or more. I'm sure we were often noisy, and took up a lot of room, much to the consternation of other customers and the staff, but we were regulars too, just learning how to be adults. I remember most of the old shops along Fore Street - WH Smith on the corner opposite the church where I was confirmed, the Home and Colonial store, which had boxes of biscuits with glass lids, just at the right height to tempt young children, Northcott's the butcher across the street from H&C (Stuart Northcott was in my class at school), and Sydney Grose, where we purchased our school uniforms. Saturday mornings were spent at... Read more
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