Lanivet is a village and parish in the North Cornwall district, and is some 2 and 1/2 miles from Bodmin. The parish includes the hamlets of Bodwanick, Bokiddick, Lamorick, St. Ingunger, Trebell, Tregullon, Tremoore, and Woodly. Part of St. Lawrance is also in this parish. It is geographically the centre of Cornwall. The parish shares its boundaries with on the north Bodmin, on the east Bodmin and Lanhydrock, on the south Lanlivery and Luxulyan, and on the west Roche and Withiel. Lanivet means the 'Church site (lann), at Neved' At one time Lanivet had eleven copper mines, now all closed. With so many parishes on its boundaries, if your ancestors cannot be found here, please check with the neighbouring parishes, as I have found that it was all to easy for them to "stray".
The church is dedicated to St. Nivet, and dates from the 15th century. It is now a Grade 1 listed building. The bells in the tower of the church are both ancient and valuable. The bells, now a full octave set to the key of F, are currently housed in a chamber on the second floor of the tower some seventy feet, or perhaps more significantly seventy spiralling steps above ground level. From a brief history of the bells prepared in conjunction with an appeal for funds in 1924, it is learnt that in the thirtieth year of the reign of King Henry the eighth, 1539, a number of bells, which is believed to have been four, were purchased for the sum of £36/14/6 (£36 72p) the receipt for which was signed by a John Tregons. A terrier drawn up by the Reverend John Vashon, the Rector of Lanivet from 1701 to 1738, states that in the year 1727 there were five bells in the tower "lately newe cast". In 1808 these bells were again recast by John Pennington of Stoke Climsland and they currently occupy positions 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 in the octave. Although no mention has been found of the addition of a sixth bell between 1808 and 1869 it is known that one was acquired because in 1869 it has been recorded that the tenor, the heaviest bell in the tower had cracked and it had to be recast by John Taylor & Co the Bellfounders of Loughborough in Leicestershire.
John Taylor & Co will say that this bell too was
originally cast in 1808 by the Pennington family. The appeal of 1924
was launched to finance a most ambitious project which would see the
replacement of the wooden frame on which the six bells were mounted
by a composite construction comprising cast iron frame sides mounted
upon a foundation of rolled steel girders with the girders taking
their bearings in the tower walls. At this
time too, two further treble or smaller bells were acquired, it is
believed from the old Priory at Bodmin and all the bells were
refurbished and mounted on ball bearings. Little wonder then that
the church bells at Lanivet are considered by some to represent the
Rolls-Royce of bell installations!
Pictured left is the Methodist Chapel.
Another interesting building in the village is St Benet's Abbey, which was built in 1411. St Benets is at the half-way point of the Saints Way, a medieval route taken by pilgrims on their way from Ireland to France which crosses from Padstow to Fowey.
The Online Parish Clerk for Lanivet is Pauline Pickup, who may be reached via Email.
The OPC offers look-ups from 1841 to 1901.
Information can be found also at COCP (Cornwall Online Census Project) which is almost complete for 1841 to 1891 and has been verified, FreeCens at Rootsweb, which has a very good search engine and information from COCP, as well as GenUKI, which has more reference information and alternate resources.
Marriage look-ups available from Phillimore's Transcripts (1608 - 1812) and from Parish Registers (1813 - 1910); Burials from 1813 -1837. Some non-conformist Registers are also available.
Some marriages of strays are available here (people from Lanivet who married elsewhere).
The IGI has a searchable index only of Baptisms from 1608 - 1875.
For further Parish Register information, please see our online searchable database (C-PROP), GenUKI (link above), and the LDS website, Library section.
Various trade directories are available for look-ups and the 1914 entries from Kelly's Directory of Devon and Cornwall are online here.
For other information, see GenUKI. Link below.
Indentures:
Regarding Lamorock in Lanivet, dated 30 May 1787, naming William MARSHALL, his children William and Mary, Simon SAUNDERS, Francis COLE, Stephen COOK and Thomas TOM of this Parish.
Barton Farm, Tremeer and other property in Lanivet,
A long and complex Indenture, dated 21 Dec 1810 but referring to several previous legal documents of the 1700s, regarding Barton Farm and other property in Lanivet.
Two related Indentures, dated 2 Oct 1811 and 1 Dec 1811, also involving Barton Farm and Tremeer, naming William LANYON, his widow Francis and Thomas THOMAS of this Parish.
A third related Indenture, dated 8 Nov 1811, also involving Barton farm etc.
Dated 21 Aug 1848, assignment of 'prospecting' rights to James BENNETTS and his adventurer partners by Elizabeth MARSHALL, widow.
Dated 3 Sep 1861, concerning land and property in this parish, naming William FITZE and his wife Frances Elenora, John FITZE, Richard HIGGS deceased, William CHAPMAN, James COWL, John STEPHENS, John PENN and James RETALLICK.
A document concerning William MARSHALL and the 'inclosure' of Referry Common, dated 18 Jul 1867. Also an indenture, dated 29 Jul 1867, between William MARSHALL and Charles SOBEY, referring to the same land.
Will and Probate (dated 15 Nov 1871) for Richard FOWLER of Nanstallon, Parish of Bodmin, concerning property in Lanivet and naming Ann FOWLER (widow) and William FOWLER (son), Mary HUGO (daughter), Jane WILLIAMS (daughter), John DYER, Joseph HICKS, Nicholas MAGOR, John BARRETT, John NORTHCOTT, Ann VERCOE, Elizabeth GROSSE, William HAWKEN, William HUGO, Ann OKE, Henry ELLERY and John HARRIS.
An Indenture, dated 25 Mar 1891, between Elizabeth Ann TRUSCOTT and Edwin John HAMBLY, also naming William Flamank PHILLIPPS Esquire and Francis HAM.
For a memorandum (dated 29 Jan 1903) on the sale of Penburthen to Mrs Rebecca BEWS by Thomas Julian HIGGS, click here.
For more information regarding history, population, etc., visit GenUKI.
For a Parish Locator map, please click here. Lanivet can be located at coordinates H - 5.
For further map information, please visit GenUKI (Genealogy - United Kingdom & Ireland).
To see a current, zoomable Ordnance Survey map, please visit MultiMap, or for maps and satellite images use Google Maps.
Bodmin, Luxulyan,
Lanhydrock,
Withiel, Lanlivery and
Roche.
