Main Archive

The Audio Archive is a collection of recorded interviews and other material, some dating back thirty years or more.

Extreme weather conditions are only part of this collection of material about major events in Newlyn. It also includes historic events such as the Spanish Raid of 1595, the cholera outbreak of the 1830s and the Newlyn Riots of 1896, and more recent major events such as Royal Visits.

The catalogue is set out by the date of the event.

The section in the catalogue about the Family contains photographs and documents to do with family history, particularly family trees. It is organized by surname

The Film Archive is an eclectic mix of old newsreel, home video, feature films and documentaries with a focus on Newlyn, Lamorna and West Cornwall Art.  

The section in the catalogue about the fish trade contains items about the early fish sales on the beach and the hawkers and fishwives who sold the fish.

The Harbour Master’s Archive is one of the great treasures of the Newlyn Archive. It is the collection of records kept by the Harbour Masters at Newlyn since they first took up in 1884.

The section deals with fairs, fetes and outings; celebrations (like the Band of Hope Galas); parties, concerts, pantomimes; clubs such as the British Legion, the Boy Scouts, Sea Scouts and Rover Scouts and much more.

The section of the catalogue about maritime matters includes photos and documents about coastguards, lifeboats, rocket wagons and shipwrecks.

The headings include the British Legion, the Newlyn Environment Group, Girl Guides, the Girls Friendly Society, the Newlyn Association, the Salvation Army, Boy Scouts and Sea Scouts.

The section in the catalogue about Place lists historic and recent material from the archive about the old villages of Newlyn Town, Street-an-Nowan (including Fradgan) and Tolcarne (including the Coombe), as well as material about the uplong areas of Chywoone Hill, Bellevue and Gwavas, and the outlying villages.

The PZ Fishing Boat database is a store of information about PZ boats that is frequently updated by volunteer Linda Holmes

The section in the catalogue about Schools contains information and school pictures from the earliest Dame Schools run in private homes to the more formal schools provided later.

We have very good material about Newlyn Rugby Football Club in the Sports section of the archive as Phil Westren has allowed us to copy the club’s archives for the Newlyn archive. The Sports section also contains information and photographs about a number of different sports including water sports and bowls. It includes photos, pamphlets, programmes and accounts of sportsmen and women.

The section in the catalogue about War contains entries about the two world wars including information on bombing, evacuees, the homeguard, refugees, war heroes, war graves, war memorials, war rations, war ships, and WW1 women drivers.