Museum of Cornish Life

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Mark the date in your diary!The Christmas Craft Fayre returns on 14 November... 🎄
19/10/2026

Mark the date in your diary!

The Christmas Craft Fayre returns on 14 November... 🎄

📸Photo of the week 📸Plenty of sales talk, viewing before buying.1. W.C. Collins selling livestock (HESFM:1993.5988)2. ...
16/10/2026

📸Photo of the week 📸

Plenty of sales talk, viewing before buying.

1. W.C. Collins selling livestock
(HESFM:1993.5988)

2. Much discussion on the finer points of the animals, circa 1910 (HESFM:2007.10153)
© A.H. Hawke

Join us for a very special exhibition as part of “Bayeux Around Britain, supported by WorldQuant’ a nationwide programme...
11/10/2026

Join us for a very special exhibition as part of “Bayeux Around Britain, supported by WorldQuant’ a nationwide programme designed by the British Museum to communicate the story and significance of the Bayeux Tapestry to as many people as possible, through a network of more than 60 National Partners.

Created by the Tregellas Foundation (established by Rita Tregellas Pope) in the 1990s to ‘advance the knowledge and understanding of Cornwall’s cultural heritage’. The tapestries were made by embroiderers from across Cornwall, inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry, and each takes a theme from Cornish history or mythology and vibrantly illustrates it.

Free entry.

📸Photo of the week📸Views of the Cattle Market in St Johns1. A busy cattle market in 1913 (HESFM:1988.5431)© A.H. Hawke ...
09/10/2026

📸Photo of the week📸

Views of the Cattle Market in St Johns

1. A busy cattle market in 1913
(HESFM:1988.5431)
© A.H. Hawke

2. August Bank Holiday, 1932
(HESFM:1985.5244)

3. Bray & Sons displaying their wares at the cattle market, 1920 (HESFM:1977.848)

📸Photo of the week📸Helston has always had Markets from street stalls to Farmers’ Markets, the Country Market was origin...
02/10/2026

📸Photo of the week📸

Helston has always had Markets from street stalls to Farmers’ Markets, the Country Market was originally run by the W.I. The Fatstock show and even Royal Cornwall Show have exhibited here. These are a few to look back on. Ranging from Meat and Veg to Flowers, the produce was always fresh, homemade and varied.

A wide choice at these stalls

1. Stalls in the Market Place, circa 1910
(HESFM:1994.6200)

2. Coinagehall Street, with stalls, circa 1904
(HESFM:1992.5941)
© A.H. Hawke

3. Mr Willey’s vegetable stall by The Cornish Bank circa 1917 (HESFM:1994.6454)
© R. Tuck & Sons

How much do you know about Methodism in Cornwall and why we have so many chapels in our towns and villages? In our lates...
01/10/2026

How much do you know about Methodism in Cornwall and why we have so many chapels in our towns and villages? In our latest article, research and collections volunteer Sue Roberts explores the early history of Cornish Methodism using beautiful illustrations from our Photographic Archive.

In the 18th century the first people to be called ‘Methodists’ were a group of friends in Oxford. John Wesley (1703-1791) was one of these and he started the movement which became the Methodist Church. Wesley first visited Cornwall in August 1743, a month after his brother Charles Wesley (1707-1788).

Methodist preachers wanted to supply the fervour lacking in the established church, they were revivalists and they succeeded in reviving both established and non-conformist churches. Wesley gained his hold by supplying opportunities for religious expression, which was seen as lacking in Cornish hearts for two centuries. The itinerant preachers were working class and understood their fellow women and men. They were self-taught and keen to improve their education.

From Zennor to Wendron to Camborne, Wesley’s hymn book could be found in most houses, completely changing attitudes which had previously rejected his teachings. Many places now had a simple building in which to worship. The whole country was changed by Wesley’s work but perhaps nowhere more so than Cornwall, the land of ‘Tre Pol and Pen’. By 1798 there were five circuits comprising 95 chapels across Cornwall.

📷l Large group of people dressed in their best clothes ready for a Tea Treat (HESFM:2016.13888.1)

Read on: https://museumofcornishlife.co.uk/2026/09/25/a-short-introduction-to-cornish-methodism/

📸Photo of the Week📸Competitions at Harvest Fair time1. Carnival Float, horse drawn, early 1900s ...
25/09/2026

📸Photo of the Week📸

Competitions at Harvest Fair time

1. Carnival Float, horse drawn, early 1900s
(HESFM:1977.2601)

2. Cornish Wrestling, 1979
(HESFM:2015.12632)

3. Decorated Bicycles early 1900s
(HESFM:1992.5939)

The museum is looking beautiful with its repaint. All our leaks are also gone and the weathered beam on our bell tower h...
22/09/2026

The museum is looking beautiful with its repaint. All our leaks are also gone and the weathered beam on our bell tower has been replaced with Cornish Oak. When we were doing this work we noticed a Latin inscription and discovered the bell dates from 1426-1456. You can find out more through listening to the Hidden Cornwall series BBC Cornwall

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0pb2xm8

This work was made possible thanks to the Museum Estate and Development Fund (MEND), with criteria set by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), Arts Council England, Historic England and The National Lottery Heritage Fund, we were been awarded a grant by Arts Council Englandwith funding provided by DCMS to carry out this needed work.

📸Photo of the week📸Harvest Festival 1. Service in The Rodney, Meneage Street, 1949 (HESFM:1981.4815)2. Pennarth Wes...
18/09/2026

📸Photo of the week📸

Harvest Festival

1. Service in The Rodney, Meneage Street, 1949
(HESFM:1981.4815)

2. Pennarth Wesley Chapel, decorated for the occasion
(HESFM:1995.6603)

Address

Market Place
Helston
TR138TH

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 4pm
Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

01326564027

Website

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