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Emigration

In the mid to late 19th and early 20th centuries many families from the Penwith area of Cornwall left to make new lives for themselves as either the mines closed or the three life leases on their farms came to an end. Some made their way to Canada by sailing on ships that had come to Cornwall  bringing timber for the mines. Rather than returning empty Ships Masters were willing to take paying passengers. Others went to America via Liverpool and still others to Australia, New Zealand and other places half-way round the world. 

Many returned to Penwith and invested the money they had made in land and houses. It is interesting to look for properties with names like Dakota, Wyoming & Tennessee and to imagine these were built with the  hard won proceeds of their foreign travels. 

The St Just of the 1860's was a place of great depression. In May 1867 the West Briton newspaper reported:

"During the last twelve months, Cornish miners to the number of 7,380 have left the county, 1,155 of whom settled in America, 670   in Australia and New Zealand, 450 in California, while the iron mines of Scotland and the coal and iron mines of the North of England have absorbed 1,090; 1,390 have left Gwennap, Stithians, Illogan and Phillack; 1,590 the district of Lelant, St Ives and St Just; 80 Wendron and Sithney; 205 the district of St Agnes and Perran; 220 the district of St Austell; and 1,200 the district the districts of Liskeard and Callington. The returns from other districts are not so correctly ascertained, but must fall little short of 2,000. "

West Briton 17 May 1867.  

and again in August:

"At Wheal Owles meeting on Friday last, Mr R Boyns has beheld a sight a day or two ago he had never seen before, and one he hoped he would never see again in St Just.On his way to Hayle, this side of Penzance, he had overtaken 15 women – all on their way to the workhouse. He knew the faces of many and believed that genuine penury had driven them to seek parish relief."

  West Briton 23 August 1867

 

 

 

Below we list the names of those members of the extended tree who moved from Cornwall to settle in other parts of the UK

Name Date From To Occupation

Leonard HUMPHREYS b 1818 

 

Paul, Cornwall

Scotland

 

Edward VINGOE b. 1692

c.1715

Falmouth,Cornwall

Devon

 

George VINGOE II, b. 1700

c.1731

Sennen, Cornwall

Devon

 

William Harvey VINGOE  b1824

 

Sennen, Cornwall

Cardiff, Wales

Master Mariner

Alexander Luke VINGOE b1852

1870

Penzance, Cornwall

Tavistock, Devon

Organist / Teacher

John D VINGOE    

b1858

Sennen, Cornwall

Cardiff, Wales

 

Frederick Charles VINGOE 

b.1873

Is.of Sc, Cornwall

Ilford, Essex

Commercial traveller

Charles VINGOE

b 1851

Is.of Sc., Cornwall

London

Commercial traveller

Robert Henry VINGOE

b 1856

Penzance, Cornwall

Kirby Lonsdale, YORKS. 

Teacher

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below we list the names of those members of the extended tree who moved from Cornwall to settle in Canada

Name Date From To Occupation

Robert Henry VINGOE b1856

 

Penzance, Cornwall

Canada

Teacher

Alexander VINGOE b 1882     

 

Penzance, Cornwall

Canada

 

Alfred Pears VINGOE b 1885

 

Penzance, Cornwall

Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

Boilermaker

Henry Thomas VINGOE 

b 1887

Cleator Moor Cumberland

Montreal , Canada

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below we list the names of those members of the extended tree who moved from Cornwall to settle in the USA.

Name Date From To Occupation

Edgar BARNES  b1881

Warley Pickering BARNES b1872

c1904

1904

Penzance, Cornwall

Penzance, Cornwall

Calumet & Hecla, Michigan, USA

Miner

Thomas Ellis GRENFELL bt.1846

 

St Just, Cornwall

Paterson, New Jersey, USA

Miner

Nicholas Ellis GRENFELL b.1851

c1870

St Just, Cornwall

Silver City, New Mexico

Farmer

William GUY b.1845

 

Madron, Cornwall

New York, USA

 

 

 

 

 

 

William LUKE b. 1822 - 1887

1863

Redruth, Cornwall

Grass Valley, California, USA

Miner

Louis Harvey WEARNE b.1876

 

St Just, Cornwall

San Francisco, California, USA

 

         
         
         
         
         
         

Below we list the names of those members of the extended tree who moved from Cornwall to settle in the South America.

Name

Date

From

To

Occupation

William Henry ROUFFIGNAC b.1865 - 1930

 

Paul, Cornwall

 Buenos Aires, Argentina

 

Below we list the names of those members of the extended tree who moved from Cornwall to settle in the New Zealand.

Name

Date

From

To

Occupation

John GRENFELL: b1849

1876

St Just, Cornwall

New Zealand

Miner

Peter Wallis GRENFELL   

b: 1832

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below we list the names of those members of the extended tree who moved from Cornwall to settle in the Australia.

Name Date From To

Occupation

Nicholas MANN   b.1839 - d.1920

 

Mousehole, Cornwall

Bendigo, South Australia

Miner

Mary Ann VINGOE  b 1811

 

Sennen, Cornwall

Geelong, South Australia

 

James WHITE [1839-1887]

 

Pendeen, St Just, Cornwall

Bendigo, South Australia

Miner

Nicholas Tremewan BOTTRELL

 

Sennen, Cornwall

Geelong, South Australia

 

William Henry Vingoe BOTTRELL

 

Sennen Cornwall

Australia

 

Adeline TREMBATH

b 1871

St Just in Penwith

died 1932 New South Wales AUS

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below we list the names of those members of the extended tree who moved from Cornwall to settle in the South Africa.

Name Date From

To

Occupation

Lucy  Harris VINGOE b 1882

 

Sennen, Cornwall

South Africa

School Teacher

  John Clemence VINGOE  

b: May 2, 1841

Sancreed, Cornwall

South Africa Died on passage home to Cornwall.