Cornish Cousins Aren’t That Hard To Find
Cornwall is a peninsula of granite, ancient and unspoiled, uncoiling for the best part of 100 miles into the open Atlantic.
It is the home of legendary King Arthur, and ancestral home to many in the United States today claiming Cornish ancestry.
When the mining industry dwindled in the 19th Century, tens of thousands of men and women and their families left Cornwall, taking precious skills with them to develop famous mines all over the world.
If finding the background of a particular ancestor has you stumped, but you know that he was a miner, then perhaps you have a Cornish family.
Here are a few Cornish-related resources to help in your ancestral search and to help you understand your Cornish heritage:
Cornish World is a new publication calling itself “the international magazine for the Cornish.” Regular features tell how our Cornish ancestors lived hundreds of years ago and how our cousins live there today. Articles tell how to trace and find those ancestors and present-day cousins, plus articles on Cornish culture.
The magazine has access to Cornwall’s local libraries, record offices and parish records, and its researchers and contributors are Cornwall experts who will be pleased to answer readers’ questions.
Cornish World also encourages individuals and group tours to visit Cornwall.
To subscribe, send 12 pounds (about $20) to Cornish World, Institute of Cornish Studies, Trevithick Centre, Trevenson Road, Redruth, Cornwall TR15 3PL, United Kingdom.
The best way to send money overseas is to call Ruesch International, 800-424-2923. Tell them how much you need to send and to what country, and they will tell you how much to send to them. For a $2 fee, they will provide you with a proper draft to send to the country in question.
Tam Kernewek is a quarterly newsletter of the Cornish American Heritage Society and comes with membership of $10 to join the society. The newsletter, founded in 1982 for the Gathering of Cornish Cousins, carries queries, book reviews and a library list. It also has a non-circulation library, but librarian Jean Jolliffe will be glad to check their holdings for specific information.
Write to her at 2405 N. Brookfield Rd., Brookfield, WI 53045, and don’t forget that selfaddressed stamped envelope.
To subscribe to the newsletter, send your check to CAHS, c/o Tam Kernewek Editor, Richard Hay, 3618 Ligon Rd., Ellicott City, MD 21042-5239.
The newsletter also features Cornish gatherings around the country. The main annual reunion, sponsored by the Cornish American Heritage Society, will next be in Calumet, Mich., July 27-30. There will be folk dancing, Cornish dances, a pasty (meat pie) picnic, cemetery walks, tours and group sessions covering historical, cultural and genealogical topics. Coordinator is Jean Ellis, 1105 Calumet Ave., Calumet MI 49913, (906) 337-3356. Wish I were Cornish - this sounds like great fun.
Judy Locy, a member of the Cornish World team, shared this information with me. She invites questions and letters from any “Cornish cousin.” Write her at 18 Indian Trial, Lake in the Hills, IL 60102, or call her at (708) 658-6737. Her fax number is (708) 967-3100.
One last Cornish item: The Cornish American Heritage Society offers a Cornish Heritage Certificate to anyone whose ancestor was born in Cornwall and subsequently settled in North America. The parchment certificate will be sent upon receipt of $5 and a completed application sent with documentation. If you’d like a copy of the application and instructions, contact Jean Jolliffe at the address given above.
Certificate bookmark
On another subject, Evelyn Howard of Coeur d’Alene wrote recently that while studying in the Genealogy Section of the Spokane Library, downtown, she came across a most unusual bookmark.
It was a tiny, folded, marriage certificate for Bethel L. Keegan and Betty L. Dee, both of Spokane, who were married in Coeur d’Alene on June 23, 1964.
Evelyn sent it to me, and I would be happy to pass it on to any family member. Please send me a self-addressed envelope in care of this newspaper.
Today’s laugh
Remember, a halo only has to fall 11 inches to become a noose.
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