St Mewan ( kw, Sen Mewen) is a

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

and village in south

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, England, United Kingdom. The village is approximately one mile (1.6 km) west of St Austell. It is a small settlement, comprising the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

, rectory, a school and nearby farms. St Mewan parish includes the villages of Sticker, Trelowth, Trewoon, and most of

Polgooth Polgooth ( kw, Pollgoodh) is a former mining village in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It lies mainly in the parish of St Mewan and partly in the parish of St Ewe. The nearest town is St Austell two miles (3.5 km) to the north-eas ...

. An electoral ward with the name ''St Mewan'' also exists. The population at the 2011 census was 3,402.

Parish church

The church is dedicated to Saint Mewan, a sixth-century Celtic saint who was born in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, visited Cornwall, and is mostly venerated in

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

. The current building dates from the 13th century and is mentioned in a bishops' inquisition of 1294 as the 'Ecclesia de St Mewany'. It was, however, substantially rebuilt in 1854 by

George Edmund Street George Edmund Street (20 June 1824 – 18 December 1881), also known as G. E. Street, was an English architect, born at Woodford in Essex. Stylistically, Street was a leading practitioner of the Victorian Gothic Revival. Though mainly an eccl ...

and enlarged in 1890. The church tower is of only two stages and is built of granite blocks. Local legend suggests that the original builders were prevented from raising it higher by the devil, who threw down their stones each night.

Education

St Mewan Community Primary School was founded (as St Mewan

Board School School boards were public bodies in England and Wales between 1870 and 1902, which established and administered elementary schools. School boards were created in boroughs and parishes under the Elementary Education Act 1870 following campaigni ...

) in the nineteenth century, the main building being designed by

Silvanus Trevail Silvanus Trevail (11 November 1851 – 7 November 1903) was a British architect, and the most prominent Cornish architect of the 19th century. Early life Trevail was born at Carne Farm, Trethurgy in the parish of Luxulyan, Cornwall on 11 Nove ...

in 1874. The schoolmaster's house had previously been the St Mewan Inn. The school currently has around 400 pupils.

St Mewan Beacon

This natural landmark lies some distance from the village, to the north-west of Trewoon. It is a tor exposure of quartz-topaz-tourmaline rocks that has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) for its geological characteristics. St Mewan Beacon was studied by Cornish mining engineer and mineralogist

Joseph Henry Collins Joseph Henry Collins FGS, (16 March 1841 – 12 April 1916) was a British mining engineer, mineralogist and geologist. He died at his home, Crinnis House, near St Austell, on 12 April 1916 and is buried in Campdowns cemetery, Charlestown.''Tra ...

who published an account of it in 1914.

References

External links

Genuki page on St Mewan

Cornwall Record Office Online Catalogue for St Mewan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Mewan Civil parishes in Cornwall Villages in Cornwall