In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Gwithian like this:
GWITHIAN, a village, a parish, and a stream, in Redruth district, Cornwall. The village stands near the mouth of the stream, at the E side of St. Ives bay, 2½ miles N by W of Gwinear Road r. station, and 3¾ NE of Hayle; and has been so exposed to accumulations of drift sand as to have been in risk of destruction by them, and as to have required an extensive planting of the arundo arenaria to stop them. ...
The parish comprises 2, 318 acres of land, and 315 of water. Post town, Hayle. Real property, £2, 340; of which £640 are in mines. Pop., 774. Houses, 168. The property is divided among a few. Much of the land has been overwhelmed by driftsand. Copper ore is worked; and, at one time, was worked more extensively than now. Building stone, and a peculiar kind of freestone, suitable for chimneys, are quarried. There are extensive ancient earthworks, called Trevarian Rounds. The living is a rectory, annexed to the rectory of Phillack, in the diocese of Exeter. The church is not good. Remains of an ancient, small, very rude chapel, a baptistery, and a grave yard, were, not long ago, discovered, by digging in to the sand, in the vicinity of the church. There is a Wesleyan chapel.- The stream rises between Redruth and Camborne; and runs westward, about 6½ miles, to St. Ives bay.
Gwithian through time
Gwithian is now part of Penwith district. Click here for graphs and data of how Penwith has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Gwithian itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Gwithian, in Penwith and Cornwall | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/3855
Date accessed: 19th April 2024
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