We may be a small, but we have big story to tell about the parish of Constantine stretching back over 5000 years.
What can you learn about our parish?
Our collection provides an opportunity to find out about the influence of mining and, particularly, granite quarrying on this large Cornish parish as well as farming, the variety of local trades that once existed and the wide range of community activities.
A few key facts
The parish of Constantine borders the Helford in the south and extends north to include the granite outcrops which gave rise to quarrying which was at its peak from the mid 1800s to the 1920s. Many of the houses in Fore Street were occupied by granite workers in the early 1900s. Until 1986 the parish included parts of Gweek and Mawnan Smith and the parish benefited from two harbours, Gweek and Port Navas and several quays along the River Helford.
Our home
We are housed in a purpose built extension adjoining the Tolmen Centre, a popular performance venue. The main building, until it was purchased by the community in 1998, was a 19th century double floored Weslyan Chapel rebuilt in the 1880s to accommodate a congregation of 400.
What we offer?
Not only to we have long term displays, but we also have activities for children and short term exhibitions, which focus on aspects of the parish’s history in more detail. An archive has been developed more recently and ongoing research is adding to the information that we have about individual properties. We also hold a substantial collection of photographs and have a small library for research.
We welcome group visits, are happy to undertake outreach work, give talks to schools and groups and to respond to local and family history research requests.
Our sole aim is to share the heritage of Constantine Parish with the community and visitors.
During the period of the closure, the newly elected committee will continue their work that has been ongoing since November 2022; reorganizing our artefacts, maps, photographs, documents, etc., This takes both time and care to ensure the museum operates to a high standard.
We are always on the look out for new members to join the committee. You don’t have to be a historian, just someone who is interested in the local area and would like to learn more. The current committee bring to the table a range of knowledge, experience, and skills. If you are interested, please contact us via email in the first instance on constantinemuseum@gmail.com.
We continue to put aside Wednesday mornings for our ongoing work programme at the museum (except Christmas and the New Year period), but recommend you contact us in the first instance. We will even invite you to join in with our tea break and make you a cup of tea/coffee with biscuits. We are a friendly easy-going bunch of people and rely on good sense when making decisions.
We look forward to reopening in the new year. We are planning a special 80th anniversary exhibition on D Day and how the historic parish of Constantine was involved in those preparations amongst many other plans.
If you are doing some research for your family tree in the area, for a small donation, we can help you. We also have a well-established database relating to many of the buildings in the village itself. Again, please contact us via email – constantinemuseum@gmail.com
In the meantime, on behalf of the committee, we wish you a lovely Christmas and hope to see you sometime when reopen in 2024.
Chris Hillyer, Secretary and Archivist, Constantine Museum and Archive.
