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Newlyn
Cornish: Lulynn
Newlyn  Newlyn shown within Cornwall
Population	21,168 (Civil Parish, 2001)
OS grid reference	SW460283
Parish	Penzance
Unitary authority	Cornwall
Ceremonial county	Cornwall
Region	South West
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	PENZANCE
Postcode district	TR18
Dialling code	01736
Police	Devon and Cornwall
Fire	Cornwall
Ambulance	South Western
EU Parliament	South West England
UK Parliament	St Ives
List of places: UK • England • Cornwall

Newlyn

The settlement is recorded as Nulyn in 1279 and as Lulyn in 1290, and the name is thought to be derived from the Cornish for "pool for a fleet of boats".^[1] Other origins have been proposed^{[by whom?]} and may be these are better.

Before the rise of Newlyn as an important settlement the landing rights and most property within the Newlyn area were owned by the Manor of Alverton. Newlyn's history has been strongly linked to its role as a major fishing port. The natural protection afforded by the Gwavas Lake (an area of seawater in Mounts Bay) led to many local fishermen using this area as a preferred landing site."The Harbour". http://members.tripod.com/vingoe/Henry%20of%20St%20Just%20Line.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-27. . Newlyn harbour is first recorded in 1435 by the Bishop of Exeter; later large scale improvements to the harbour led to Newlyn becoming the predominant fishing port in Mounts Bay.

In 1620 the Mayflower stopped off at Newlyn old quay to take on water.^[2] A plaque on the quay reads:-

In memory of Bill Best-Harris, historian who through rigorous research found that the Mayflower docked in Newlyn Harbour for fresh water as the water supplied in Plymouth was contaminated. Therefore Newlyn was the last port of call in UK for the Mayflower.

Before the 19th century "Newlyn" referred only to the area near the old quay. The part of the village which now contains the fish market was known as "Streetanowan", this was separated at high tide from "Newlyn Town" the site of the lower part of the modern harbour being reclaimed land and formerly a beach.^[3]

In 1755 the Lisbon earthquake caused a tsunami to strike the Cornish coast over 1,000 miles away. The sea rose ten feet in ten minutes at Newlyn, and ebbed at the same rate. The 19th century French writer, Arnold Boscowitz, claimed that "great loss of life and property occurred upon the coasts of Cornwall".^[4]

The Spanish Raid of 1595 destroyed Penzance, Mousehole and Paul as well as Newlyn. During the 19th century Newlyn was the scene of the Newlyn riots following protests over the landing of fish on a Sunday by fishermen from the north of England, the local Cornish fishermen being members of the Methodist church and as such strong supporters of sabbatarianism.

A map of the town from 1946 showing the tidal observatory

In 1915 the Ordnance Survey tidal observatory was established in the harbour and for the next six years measurements of tidal height were taken every 15 minutes.^[5]

Newlyn was the home of William Lovett a leader of the Chartist movement. In 1937 the fishing vessel Rosebud sailed to London to deliver a petition to the Minister of Health on behalf of those villagers whose homes were threatened under the government's slum clearance scheme.

Before the 1890s Newlyn (like Mousehole) had strong connections with the nearby parish of Paul. It was common for villagers to climb the relatively steep route from "Newlyn Cliff" to Paul via the area which is now known as Gwavas to worship at Paul Church. Until the mid twentieth century an ancient stone cross was present on this route at "Park an Grouse" (The Field of the Cross), this cross was one site of veneration of the Cornish sea deity Bucca, (others were the beaches of Newlyn and Mousehole) the name 'Bucca' has often been used as a nickname for people resident in Newlyn: the location of the cross is now unknown.

During world war two Newlyn was a base for the Air Sea Rescue craft covering the Western Approaches. The harbour was bombed during the war, hitting the colier 'Greenhithe', which was beached in the harbour at the time and supplied coal to the east coast drifters, which traveled to Newlyn during the mackerel fishing season between the wars. Reporting the event on the Germany Calling propaganda broadcast Lord Haw-Haw announced that the Luftwaffe had sunk a British cruiser in Newlyn harbour.^{[citation needed]}

Newlyn's economy is largely dependent on its harbour and the associated fishing industry. Because of Newlyn's association with the creative arts there are also a number of artists and art galleries that are established in the area.

It was made famous in the 1880s and 1890s for its Newlyn School artists' colony, including the painters Thomas Cooper Gotch, Albert Chevallier Tayler and Henry Scott Tuke. The current largest collection of work by the Newlyn School is held by Penlee House Gallery and Museum in nearby Penzance.

See also: Newlyn Copper

Newlyn is the home of Newlyn Art Gallery [1] which houses a collection of modern art.

Between 1970 and 1983, Troika Pottery, an art pottery studio, was based in Newlyn.

For the purposes of local government, Newlyn is part of the Penzance Civil Parish and returns 5 councillors to Penzance Town Council. The principal local authority in the area is Cornwall Council.

As of 2004^[update], Newlyn harbour is the largest fishing port (by turnover >£18 million 2004) in England. The fishing fleet boasts a number of different catching methods: beam trawling, trawling, gill netting, potting and a large number of under 10m vessels that fish inshore. The port was a major catcher of pilchard until the 1960s. Today, a few vessels have resumed pilchard fishing and use a modern version of the ring net. The largest vessels are beam trawlers owned by W. S. Stevenson and Sons, one of Cornwall's largest fish producers.: most of the other vessels are owned by their skippers.

The UK National Tidal and Sea Level Facility (NTSLF) maintains a tidal observatory at Newlyn, and the UK Fundamental Benchmark is maintained there. The Ordnance Survey, the United Kingdom's mapping agency, used to base all elevations including mapped contour lines and spot heights on the mean sea level at Newlyn defined by this benchmark; see Ordnance Datum Newlyn.

Sandy Cove is the name given to the small bay immediately south of the harbour wall.

Gwavas is a residential council estate on the outskirts of the village.

Notable residents past and present

Thomas Cooper Gotch

Charles Holroyd

William Lovett a political agitator

Robert Hichens

Allan G. Wyon

John Pearson (artist)

Brenda Wootton singer

Sir Terry Frost artist [2]

Margeret Freethy