The History & Heritage of

Chypraze Farm

Human Endeavour:

It is the riches in the sea, in the ground and in the soil that enticed humans to settle here, and it is their past and present endeavours that shapes the landscape and leaves a lattice of ingenuity for us to unravel.

Morvah abounds in monuments left by Pre-historic folk that first came, clearing the forest, trading precious metals and rearing animals. These include Chun Castle, Lanyon Quoit, Menan Toll to name but a few and Chypraze has its very own stone circle if you can you find it.

The 1841 census reveals that no fewer than 53 people lived at Chypraze in that year. Bearing in mind that when the farm finally ceased independent production in 1986 it supported just one person and that there were less than 100 people living in the entire parish of Morvah then we are spurred to ponder what physical, social and economic forces have brought about such a demographic change.

While the sea has for centuries yielded a living for many in Cornwall fishing does not appear to have played a key role in the history of Chypraze or even Morvah as the sea is prone to lash the feet of the cliffs and there is nowhere to keep a boat safely. What did those 53 people do?

Well there was one farmer with a wife, several children and two servants and there was a farm “labourer”, also with a large family. There were two miners and their families and there was a miller and his family.