LISTENERS from around the globe are invited to join author Richard Hoskin for his Zoom talk on Cornwall’s “Invention and Dissent” of the 18th century.
Richard hails originally from Liskeard and now lives in the United States. He said: “The talk grew out of my research for a planned sequel to my historical novel The Miner & the Viscount set in my native Cornwall in the 18th century at the time of the Industrial Revolution and dissent from the Church of England.
“It told the stories of the people who mined tin and copper, operated the first steam engines, enthused over Methodism, and struggled passionately over wealth and power. The story that was to follow is about the inventiveness of the Quakers and the wealth and beauty they developed from the Cornish china clay used to manufacture porcelain.”
Dissenters who refused to subscribe to the Thirty-nine Articles supporting the Church of England were barred from attending Oxford and Cambridge, says Richard, and hence they were limited in their access to the learned professions.
“Many resorted to business, the most enterprising with remarkable success,” he continues.
“In my talk, I tell the story of the Quaker giants of industry and invention in Cornwall. They formed smelting companies, they financed pilchard fishing and exporting, they invested in shipping and civil engineering, they founded banks. Notably, the Quaker polymath William Cookworthy, learned of huge deposits of china clay on a Cornish moorland, cracked the Chinese code of manufacturing porcelain, and with his Quaker partners founded an industry.”
"Invention & Dissent" is sponsored by the Cornish American Heritage Society, which is devoted to offering information and activities about diverse aspects of Cornish and Cornish North American heritage and culture (including genealogy), immigration to North America, the many Cornish settlements dotting the North American landscape, music, crafts, Cornwall today, and more. You can explore the website at cousinjack.org
Richard’s Zoom talk takes place on Saturday (November 20) at 11am. To join just click on this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84378046893?pwd=RFpKZEhrVG9wbEdmU0xNOTdyNlVHQT09 for the Meeting ID: 843 7804 6893. Use the Passcode: 021910.