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The Grampound Times
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Edition 45

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SOME OF CORNWALL’S INVENTORS

What marvellous tales abound about Cornwall and the more I read the more exciting and indeed romantic they all become, especially of the many inventions by Cornishmen. Many of these came from very humble backgrounds, which illustrates how clever and resourceful they were.

Take the story of Richard Trevithick of Camborne, he of prolific ideas but no business sense and consequently never made much money.

In the early 19 th century Cornwall was the centre of Britain’s industrial revolution and Cornish inventors were working on new kinds of steam engines. Richard Trevithick was persuaded by his partner Andrew Vivian to demonstrate their new steam carriage along Oxford Street, London in 1803, but hostile exception was taken by many cabdrivers and the two Cornishmen were pelted with rotten eggs and vegetables - this was merely one of the many prejudices that had to be overcome.

Not daunted Trevithick sailed to South America in 1816 to improve steam engines in the silver mines in Peru. He soon had them working and at last was due for great rewards, but alas their War of Independence broke out, the machinery was destroyed and Trevithick lost everything.. For a short time he then enlisted as a soldier under Bolivia. Afterwards he headed for Costa Rica dreaming of building a railway across Panama. Crossing from Lake Nicaragua to the Atlantic his raft capsized and he was threatened by an alligator but a Venezuelan soldier on the bank shot it and hauled Trevithick to safety. He was impoverished in Cartagena but fortunately met George Stephenson’s son Robert, who also had gone there to improve steam engines, and Robert paid for his return ticket to England where Trevithick died impoverished in Dartford.

One important invention responsible for saving thousands of lives throughout the world came about because of a storm at Looe Bar in 1807, when the captain of the ship The Anson tried to beach this stricken vessel. Luckily a mast broke and made a bridge across the rough water and enabled at least some of the crew to scramble to safety. Among the powerless spectators was Henry Trengrouse, a cabinet maker from Helston. Although unable to help them he later developed a life saving apparatus fired by musket and later by rocket, and reputably invented the cork life jacket. However, he spent most of his own money, sold his family land and died penniless and unrecognised.

Another unsung inventor was a young doctor, Goldsworthy Garney of Bude who produced a steam jet which enabled a steam locomotive to be lighter and thus faster, which eventually replaced the then horse drawn stage coaches. Alas for poor Garney his personal losses on this project were estimated at the then huge sum of £232,000.

There are many other tales of Cornwall, not only about inventions but certainly of much interest which can be told about the hearts and minds of men, especially Cornishmen.

BETTY MURDOCH