History of Mevagissey Harbour
and Current Status

Prior to the original Mevagissey Harbour Act of 1774, a thriving fishing industry had been built up around the village of Mevagissey. At this time a medieval quay existed in the region of the present East Quay.  However this did not offer much protection against the onslaught of easterly gales. With this in mind a group of businessmen, land owners and local clergy brought together the necessary requirements to set in motion the Act of Parliament to enable the construction of East and West Quays.
 



 View of coastal Mevagissey 1890, before the outer harbour was built

Thus, Mevagissey Harbour was set up as a Trust Harbour. Over the years subsequent Harbour Acts were passed in 1865,1888, and 1892. The construction of the harbour to its present state was taken in various stages, which culminated in the construction of the outer harbour walls in 1888. These were virtually destroyed in the great blizzard of 1891, and were rebuilt and completed by 1897.
 

View of Mevagissey inner harbour circa 1890. Only a handful of
 houses on Polkirt Hill, and no outer quay

Over the years much damage was done to the outer piers in particular, and large amounts of capital and grant aid were used for repairs and strengthening works.
 

View of Mevagissey inner harbour circa 1890. The east wharf
only extends part of the way along the inner harbour


Over the passage of time the fishing industry has tended to follow "boom and bust" cycles. However the industry has seemed to recover, albeit through different types and trends of fishing.
 

View of old Mevagissey inner harbour looking out to sea. The many fishing boats outside
the harbour were not protected from easterly winds because there was no outer harbour.
They all had to squeeze into the inner harbour in a strong easterly.

At present there are 63 registered fishing vessels in the harbour which employs approximately 57 full-time fishermen and 12 part-time fishermen. Most of the boats are under 10 metres in length, the different types of fishing carried out being trawling, wreck netting, sole netting, ray netting, shellfish with pots, long lining, and hand lining for mackerel. In the summer months several of the boats offer angling trips and sight seeing trips around the bay.

 


In 1988 Mevagissey Harbour was given charity status, and along with Looe it is one of the only two Trust Harbours that are registered charities. The charity status means a great deal to the harbour, and the financial benefits are very important.

Mevagissey has, over the years, become a very great attraction to the tourist industry, the harbour area being the nucleus which draws visitors through the village and on to the waterfront. Many of the local shops are now totally tourist motivated and as this is only seasonal there can be an aura of ghost town quality in the winter months. The boom years of the 1960s and 1970s will probably never return because of the attraction of cheap foreign holidays, and the ease of foreign travel. However if the decline in visitor numbers is allowed to increase then much of Mevagissey's economy will decrease in proportion.

As the nucleus of the village, it is therefore important that the harbour area is given the chance to redress the balance, and by radical ideas, not only protect the village from the probable effects of global warming, but bring in extra trade, create sustainable local skilled jobs, and change the visitors' views in wanting to visit Mevagissey all the year round and not just in the Summer months.




This Site is maintained by Andrew Crawshaw: Crawshaws@aol.com

 who also hosts St Austell Choral Society's web site

and the Mevagissey Activity Centre Web Site