The parish of

ST CLEER

is located on the south-eastern fringes of Bodmin Moor, in an area known for mining and, at one time, farming. The Moor has been classified as an A.O.N.B. (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty).
	First built of wood around 800 A.D., the church of St. Cleer was rebuilt towards the end of the 13th century and the church tower (97 feet high) more recently in the 15th century. The latter contains a ring of 6 bells. The parish contains rugged granite outcrops and water features, including Siblyback Lake (a reservoir and watersports centre) and Golitha Falls (a Nature Reserve) on the River Fowey. The 14th century Well (below left) was once seen as a place of healing and it ages gracefully. It is dedicated to St. Clarus. King Donierts Stones (below) are two granite slabs with Latin inscriptions, which lie about 1 mile north west of the town of St. Cleer. They are the remains of two Crosses associated with King Doniert (Durngarth) who drowned in the river Fowey in about 875 AD.
All photographs ©2003, S. Beazley

The previous OPC maintained a website which contains much useful information.

For information about, and contact details for, the current parish council please see this website.

PARISH INFORMATION

CENSUS:

Transcriptions can be found at COCP (Cornwall Online Census Project), which is complete for 1841 to 1891 and validated, FreeCens at Rootsweb - both are free, searchable databases - or check GenUKI for other alternatives.

St. Cleer residents, in different censuses; a unique resource on this page.

REGISTERS:

For Parish Register information and other resources, please see our searchable database (C-PROP) which is updated frequently, GenUKI (link below) and the LDS website (Library section).

Additionally, transcriptions for the records below are on this site. Please visit the website for more, updated transcriptions.

• Baptisms: 1500s, 1600 - 1649, 1650 - 1699, 1700 - 1749, 1750 - 1774, 1775 - 1799, 1800 - 1824, 1825 - 1849, 1850 - 1874, 1875 - 1903
• Marriages: 1500s & 1600s, 1700 - 1749, 1750 - 1799, 1800 - 1849, 1850 - 1899
• Burials: 1500s, 1600 - 1649, 1650 - 1699, 1700 - 1749, 1750 - 1799, 1800 - 1849, 1850 - 1901

Burial Records for St Cleer Dissenters Chapel can be found found on this website.

DIRECTORIES:

For information, see GenUKI (link below) or visit the University of Leicester's Directories website, which has many online to view for free.

OTHER:

1. 1569 Muster Rolls, a transcription.

2. 1641 Protestation Returns

3. Voters Lists:

1. 1851/52
2. 1852/53
3. 1864/65
4. 1861-1867, included with records for Liskeard

4. An Indenture, dated 25 Mar 1818,, concerning property in Warleggan, but mentioning William HONY of this parish.

5. Bastardy / Filiation Bonds. These usually name the local Justices of the Peace and Overseers of the Poor, as well as the mother and reputed father.

1. dated 13 Jun 1792, naming Jacob STEPHENS, Humphrey STEPHENS and Mary BARTLETT.
2. Order dated 30 May 1820 and Warrant, dated 13 Dec 1821, naming Samuel STEPHENS and Grace HENDER.
3. dated 4 Mar 1822, naming John LAUNDRY and Jane/Joan HAMBLY.
4. dated 4 Mar 1826, naming William RETALLICK and Ann PRIOR.
5. Voluntary examination, dated 3 May 1827, naming Christopher HAMBLY and Elizabeth BENNY.
6. dated 14 Dec 1827, naming John KITTOW and Rosamond RAWLING
7. dated 11 Apr 1829, naming Richard HANCOCK and Jane MARTIN.
8. dated 7 Sep 1829, naming Thomas KERNICK and Mary ROWE.
9. Voluntary examination and Order, dated 12 Dec 1829, naming John HONEYCOMBE and Margaret WILLS.
10. Voluntary examination, dated 22 Sep 1832, naming William RICHARDS and Grace HENDER, plus subsequent Warrant and Sentence.
11. Voluntary examination and Order, dated 1 Dec 1832, non-payment Order, dated 5 Aug 1833, naming Richard GILBERT, the Younger, and Jane HARRIS.
12. Voluntary examination, dated 31 Dec 1832, naming Robert PIKE (late of the Parish of Stoke Damerel) and Jane TRENOUTH.
13. Voluntary examination, dated 1 Feb 1833, naming Martin CHRISTOPHER and Sarah HOOPER.
14. Voluntary examination and Order, dated 9 Feb 1833, naming Richard TRUSCOTT and Mary STEPHENS.
15. Warrant, dated 16 May 1833, naming William SOWDEN the younger and Elizabeth BURRIDGE.
16. Voluntary examination and Order, dated 30 Jul 1834, naming William CRABB and Elizabeth BURRIDGE.
17. dated 30 Jul 1834,, naming John WERRY and Mary CRABB.

6. Wills:

7. Other transcribed documents (covering multiple parishes including St Cleer) link from here.

For more information regarding history, population, etc., visit GenUKI.

MAPS:

For a zoomable and printable map of Cornwall please visit Cornwall Council’s mapping website. To see the Parish boundaries, click on the Layers Tab for Government Boundaries.

For maps and satellite images use Google Maps.

To enjoy a "walk" around this parish, search for St Cleer at http://maps.google.co.uk/, then drag the person icon from above the zoom commands and place it at a specific location on the map.

ADJACENT PARISHES:

St Neot, Bolventor (post-1849), Altarnun, North Hill, Linkinhorne, St Ive, Menheniot and Liskeard.

ONLINE BOOKS:

1. St Cleer is included in The Parochial History of Cornwall, Volume I by Davies Gilbert, William Hals, Thomas Tonkin, Henry Samuel Boase, originally published in 1838 (page n214). Also downloadable as a pdf.
2. Phillimore's Marriages Vol VIII transcripts including St Cleer (transcribed and in our database)

St Cleer Bible Christian Chapel
© David Coppin