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Torpoint
Town in Cornwall, England From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Torpoint (Cornish: Penntorr[3]) is a town and civil parish on the Rame Peninsula in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated opposite the city of Plymouth across the Hamoaze which is the tidal estuary of the River Tamar.[4] At the 2021 census the parish had a population of 7,444 and the built up area had a population of 7,160.
Torpoint is linked to Plymouth (and Devonport) by the Torpoint Ferry. The three vessels that operate the service are chain ferries – that is, they are propelled across the river by pulling themselves on fixed chains which lie across the bed of the river. The journey takes about seven minutes.
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Origin of name
It is said that Torpoint's name is derived from Tar Point, a name given because of the initial industry on the west bank of the Hamoaze. However this is actually a nickname given by workers, Torpoint meaning "rocky headland".[5]
History
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Torpoint is an eighteenth-century planned town. The grid-based design for the town was commissioned by Reginald Pole Carew in the Parish of Antony in 1774. His family continue to have a strong influence in the area, having become the Carew Poles in the twentieth century, and still reside at their family seat, Antony House.
In 1796 Torpoint was the setting for a shooting battle between the crew of a government vessel, the Viper, and a large party of armed liquor smugglers, in which one person was killed and five people seriously wounded.[6]
Due to the presence of Devonport Dockyard, the town grew as Dockyard workers settled there. The establishment of the Royal Navy's main training facility, HMS Raleigh also increased the population of Torpoint.[7]
Parish churches
Torpoint has four parish churches known at "Maryfield Church", "Torpoint Cornerstone Church" , "Catholic Church of Saint Joan of Arc" and "St James Church"
Notable people from Torpoint
See Category:People from Torpoint
- John Langdon Down was born in Torpoint in 1828. He later described the medical condition which is now referred to as Down syndrome. He was called back on a number of occasions to help his father in his local business until his father's death in 1853.
- Jack Stephens a footballer for Southampton F.C.
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Education
Educational institutions in Torpoint include:[8]
- Torpoint Infant School — a medium-large infant school.
- Carbeile Junior School — a large primary school.
- Torpoint Community College, a small secondary school.
Governance
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There are two tiers of local government covering Torpoint, at parish (town) and unitary authority level: Torpoint Town Council and Cornwall Council. The town council meets at the Council Hall at the corner of York Road and Buller Road and has its offices in an adjoining pair of converted houses at 1-3 Buller Road.[9]
Administrative history
Torpoint historically formed part of the ancient parish of Antony in the East Wivelshire Hundred of Cornwall.[10]
Torpoint was made a separate ecclesiastical parish from Antony in 1873, although it remained part of Antony for civil purposes until 1904.[11] When elected parish and district councils were created under the Local Government Act 1894, Antony was given a parish council and included in the St Germans Rural District.[10] The first chairman of Antony Parish Council was Joseph Shepheard of Torpoint.[12]
In 1904 Torpoint was removed from the civil parish of Antony and the St Germans Rural District to become its own urban district.[11] In 1933 Torpoint Urban District Council bought the former United Methodist Church (built 1904) at the corner of York Road and Buller Road and converted it to serve as its meeting place and a public hall, renaming it the Council Hall.[13][14] The building was formally re-opened in its new role in November 1934.[15] The council built itself offices adjoining the Council Hall in 1937.[14]
Torpoint Urban District was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972.[16] The area became part of the new Caradon district.[17][18] A successor parish called Torpoint was created at the same time, covering the area of the abolished urban district.[19] As part of the 1974 reforms, parish councils were given the right to declare their parishes to be a town, allowing them to take the title of town council and giving the title of mayor to the council's chairperson.[20] The new parish council for Torpoint exercised this right, taking the name Torpoint Town Council. Ron Widdecombe was the first mayor.[14]
Caradon district was abolished in 2009. Cornwall County Council then took on district-level functions, making it a unitary authority, and was renamed Cornwall Council.[21][22]
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Sport and leisure
Torpoint has a non-league football club, Torpoint Athletic F.C., which plays at The Mill.
Cornish wrestling
Cornish wrestling tournaments, for prizes, were held in Torpoint in the 1700s.[23]
Twinning
Torpoint is twinned with Benodet (Benoded) in Brittany, France.[24]
Town Events and Holidays
Freedom of Torpoint march[25]
St Piran's day[26]
Armed Forces Day[27]
Commonwealth Day[28]
Day of Accession Council and Principal Proclamation[29]
Merchant Navy Day[30]
St George's Day[31]
Christmas Lights Switch On[32]
Civic Service[33]
References
External links
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