Source of the photo: w. Harding Thompson, 1930. Cornwall, a survey of its coast, moors, and valleys, with suggestions for the preservation of amenities. Publisher: University of London Press.
Review: Abdel Rahman El Gamal
Introduction: Polperro harbor was a valuable source of income to the local lords of Raphael manor since the 12th century who owned it until ownership passed to the Harbor Trustees in 1894.
Polperro is a village and fishing harbor on the south-east Cornwall, UK. Polperro is well known for its wonderful location, surrounded by tightly packed old fishermen’s houses which make it attractive to tourists.
Polperro harbor and fishery: Over the centuries, fishing has been the principal occupation for Polperro families whereas the village used to be a pilchard fishing and processing port. In the old days, pilchards were caught in abundance by Polperro fishermen. A part of the catch was consumed in local markets while parts of the catch were exported to many parts of Europe.
While fishermen were fishing at sea, women were doing salting, pressing, bulking and cleaning the fish ashore. The oil resulted from pressing was collected and used as a by-product for heating and lighting.
It may worth mentioning that two terrible storms struck the Polperro harbor. The first was in January 1817 while the second was in 1824. Both storms left behind damaged fishing boats, demolished fish and salt stores, and washed away houses.
Today, tourism is the mainstay of the local economy whereas visitors come and enjoy this old fishing village, narrow streets, Polperro Festival and a lot more.
