Cornwall

Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine), 1834-1924Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 184K words
Chapters: 19

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Cornwall by S. Baring-GouldAuthor: Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine), 1834-1924,Language: English, Class: DA: History: General and Eastern Hemisphere: Great Britain, Ireland, Central Europe, Release Date: Dec 3, 2011

Editor's review

This is Baring-Gould's descriptive account of Cornwall, belonging to the genre of local history and topographical observation. In prose, the author surveys the region's geography, ancient monuments, folklore, and local memory, carrying throughout the flavor of nineteenth-century travel writing and naturalist observation. Its value lies not in offering practical information of the kind found in a modern tourist guide, but in showing how a place is observed, recorded, and narrated: which sights draw attention, which legends are preserved, which details are deemed worth writing down. For those studying English local history, folklore, or travel literature, the book can serve as a primary source or background reading; for the general reader, it is more like a slow ramble through a region, suited to reading in instalments in a quiet setting. Note that the book's social observations and phrasing bear the marks of their era; read with a historical eye rather than treating it as a current fact book.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in English local history and Cornish culture
Those studying travel literature, folklore records, or nineteenth-century observational writing
Readers who enjoy slow-paced topographical accounts and can accept an old-fashioned prose style
Students or book-club members seeking background material on local history

Not a good fit for

Travellers wanting the latest tourist guides, transport, and accommodation information
Readers who prefer strong plotting or fast-paced reading
Those sensitive to nineteenth-century prose style and the era-bound phrasing

Reading tips

Begin with the table of contents and read by geographical area or theme; there is no need to finish it in one go.
Read alongside a map or local-history sources to better locate the places and monuments mentioned.
Take notes on folklore and legends, distinguishing the author's account from later scholarship, and keep a historical perspective.
Well suited to bedtime or travel reading in short stretches, one or two sections at a time.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Can this book be used as a tourist guide to Cornwall?

Not directly as a tourist guide. It was written long ago and focuses on local history, ancient monuments, and topographical description rather than practical information such as transport, accommodation, or opening hours. For travel, use it as background reading to understand the local cultural context; consult current sources for itinerary details.

Can I read it without a background in English local history?

Yes, but it takes some patience. The book involves many place names, ancient sites, and legends, which may feel unfamiliar without background knowledge. Read alongside a map and basic local-history sources; focus first on how the author observes the place rather than memorizing every detail.

What are the characteristics of the book's writing style?

It is overall a prose topographical account with the tone of nineteenth-century travel writing and naturalist observation, emphasizing descriptions of scenery, ancient monuments, and folklore. Sentences tend to be long and information density uneven; it suits slow reading in instalments and is not for readers seeking fast-paced narrative.

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About the author

Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine), 1834-1924 Author

S. Baring-Gould (Sabine Baring-Gould, 1834–1924) was a prolific British author, with 49 of his works held in this collection. Public information about him is limited, but his writing interests clearly centered on religion, history, folklore, and local topography. His representative works include the multi-volume The Lives of the Saints, which presents saints' lives month by month; Curious Myths of the Middle Ages and A Book of Ghosts, which reveal his fondness for legend and the supernatural; and Strange Survivals, which explores ancient customs surviving in human history. He also wrote A History of Sarawak under Its Two White Rajahs 1839–1908, the travel book In Troubadour-Land on Provence and Languedoc, and Conscience and Sin, a Lenten devotional. His style combines erudition with accessibility, weaving historical sources, legends, and travel observations into highly readable narratives.