Menacuddle

Menacuddle is a historic place, holy well and wooded area in St Austell, Cornwall, UK.[1]

Menacuddle holy well

The holy well was built in the 15th century and restored by Admiral Sir Charles John Graves-Sawle shortly after the First World War in memory of his son who was killed in action.[2] It is a popular spot with ramblers.[3] Its name is recorded as Menequidel in 1250 and Menedcudel in 1284 and comes from the Old Cornish mened and cuydel and it means hillside with a small wood. The name does not include a saint's name, and there was no St Guidel.[4] The site has also been known as Pinni-menny.[5]

It is said that if a person drops a pin into the well and makes a wish, that wish will be granted.[5] The woods have a reputation for being haunted, with sightings of a "huge black beast" there.[6]

A weir with a river cutting a rough winding channel roughly 2 metres deep flowing through a wooded valley with paths.
The weir at Menacuddle.

The site is a monument scheduled under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979, NHLE list number 1019163.[7]

References

  1. "Menacuddle Well, Menacuddle Woods, St Austell · cornishmemory.com". cornishmemory.com. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  2. "'Beast' spotted at holy well | St Austell Voice". www.staustellvoice.co.uk. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  3. "St Austell Walk". Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  4. Craig Weatherhill, Placenames in Cornwall and Scilly 2005, page 122.
  5. Fred W. P. Jago, The Ancient Language and the Dialect of Cornwall, 1882
  6. Millar, Joey (11 May 2016). "Walker finds HUMAN REMAINS in eerie wood haunted by BLACK BEAST". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  7. Historic England. "Menacuddle Well, Treverbyn (1019163)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 October 2017.

50.3457°N 4.7960°W / 50.3457; -4.7960


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.