William Gwavas

William Gwavas (1676–1741) was an English barrister and writer in the Cornish language.

Life

The eldest son of William Gwavas, by Eliza, daughter of Sir Thomas Arundell of Tolverne, near Truro, he was born at Huntingfield Hall, Suffolk, 6 December 1676, and baptised in Huntingfield Church on 1 January following. He was articled to James Holt, an attorney in Lyon's Inn, and then entered the Middle Temple, where he purchased a ground chamber, No. 4 Brick Court.

Gwavas moved back to Cornwall, living in a house in Chapel Street, Penzance. His father had left his Cornish property with debts, but he paid off the incumbrances, and redeemed the mortgage on the rectory of Paul. With this rectory he had inherited a chancery suit, begun on 14 June 1680, as to the right of the rector to take tithe of fish landed at Newlyn and Mousehole. The case came before the House of Lords 26 February 1730, and went against the fishermen. Nevertheless, at the entrance to Newlyn there was for many years a notice affixed to a house which said "One and All, No tithe of fish".

Gwavas

Coordinates: 50°06′07″N 5°33′07″W / 50.102°N 5.552°W / 50.102; -5.552

Gwavas is a residential council estate on the southern outskirts of the town of Newlyn in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated immediately west of Gwavas Road and takes its name from nearby Gwavas Farm.

History and geography

The name Gwavas derives from the Cornish "gwaf" meaning winter, and "bos" meaning abode.

The estate was built by Penzance Borough Council in 1937 following limited slum clearance in the harbour area of Newlyn. The slum clearance programme was intended to be much larger but many houses were saved following the famous Rosebud Campaign.

Situated on hilly ground, Gwavas contributes to much of the Penzance South Ward's high standing on the UK government's index of deprivation . Most of the housing stock is now in the ownership of Penwith Housing Association following the sale of Penwith council housing stock in 1994.

Gwavas Lake

Nearby is the Gwavas Lake which is an area of relatively calm water that is situated outside the current harbour area of Newlyn. The natural protection afforded by the Gwavas Lake (an area of seawater in Mount's Bay) led to many Newlyn fishermen using this area as a preferred landing site.