Ruan Lanihorne, Cornwall

Historical Description

Ruan Lanihorne, a parish in Cornwall, on the river Fal, at the head of a creek of Falmouth Harbour, 2½ miles SSW of Tregony, and 6 from Grampound Road station on the G.W.R., with a post, money order, and telegraph office at Ruan Highlanes, under Grampound. It contains the hamlets of Highlanes, Treweryd, and Ruan Church Town, and has a quay at the latter used for the landing of coal, timber, slate, and other commodities. Acreage, 2204; population, 301. A castle of the Arcdecknes was here. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Truro; net value, £400 with residence. The church is a massive structure built in 1321, with a tower, and contains a monument to Whittaker the antiquary, who was rector. There is a Wesleyan chapel. Near the centre of the village is an ancient well, inclosed with stones.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Church Records

The register dates from the year 1695.

Churches

Church of England

St. Rumon (parish church)

The church of St. Rumon, situated in a picturesque valley and founded in 1324, is a building of stone with granite facings in the Gothic style, consisting of chancel, nave of six bays, north aisle, south transept, south porch and an embattled western tower of two stages, with pinnacles, containing two bells, dated 1756-1788: the chancel retains a sedile and credence: the roof, pulpit and communion table are all of fine old carved oak: in the transept is a hagioscope: under the floor which faces the altar are interred the remains of the Rev. John Whitaker B.D. author of "The Ancient Cathedral of Cornwall," and rector of this parish from 1778 till his death, October 30, 1808, and of Jane, his widow, d. 1828; a similar stone is inscribed to Jane Margaret Whitaker, daughter of the Rev. John Whitaker, d. 1798: there is also a brass with an inscription and a marble monument to John Luke esq. of Treviles, ob. 1776, and Elizabeth (Morshead), his wife. ob. 1778: in the south transept is a stone effigy of St. Rumon, to whom the church was dedicated, October 17, 1321; placed above it is a brass coffin plate discovered at the time of the restoration, and inscribed to Richard Tristean, born Angust 13, 1579, and buried September 5, 1664: and there are many modern monuments: the church was fully restored in 1866, and has 250 sittings.

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Ruan Lanihorne from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Ruan-Lanihorne (St. Ruan))

Maps

Online maps of Ruan Lanihorne are available from a number of sites:

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Cornwall papers online:

• Royal Cornwall Gazette
• Cornishman
• West Briton and Cornwall Advertiser
• Lake's Falmouth Packet and Cornwall Advertiser

Visitations Heraldic

We have a copy of The Visitations of Cornwall, by Lieut.-Col. J.L. Vivian online.