The name of this place is derived from caer, a castle, a house, or
dwelling, and hay a hazel hedge, as the situation does plainly make
out; and did much more so before the great alterations which Mr.
Trevanion hath lately made here.
I have reason to believe that this place was part of Carminow’s lands,
and that it came into the Arundell family on the match with Jane, the
eldest daughter of Sir Thomas Carminow, in the reign of Edward the
Third. Of this family, in recent times, Col. John Trevanion was killed
in his father’s lifetime, at the head of his regiment before Bristol,
whose character may be seen in Clarendon. His father, Sir Charles
Trevanion, was a very worthy honest gentleman, and suffered much for
the king’s cause, to the great detriment of his estate, and dying
before the Restoration, lived not long enough to have those amends
made to his family, which his own merits and their losses deserved.
Col. John Trevanion married Anne, daughter of John Arundell, of
Trerice, esq. by whom he had a numerous issue, and among the rest
Richard Trevanion, a famous sea commander, under King Charles the
Second, and King James the Second, with which last he went to France,
and died there in exile. The said Anne, his mother, was afterwards
remarried to Sir John Arundell, of Lanherne, by whom she had not any
issue.
Sir Charles Trevanion was succeeded by his grandson, of the same name,
who first married the daughter and coheir of Sir Adam Drummond, by the
heiress of the Lowers of St. Winnow, and had two sons. He died on the
night of the great storm, Nov. 26, 1703; being succeeded by his eldest
son, John Trevanion, who first married Anne, one of the daughters and
coheirs of Sir Francis Blake, of Ford Castle in Northumberland, by
whom he had no issue; and secondly Barbara, the daughter of William
Lord Berkeley of Stratton, by whom he has one son William, and two
daughters, all very young. Mr. John Trevanion has been three times
elected knight of the shire for this county, in the 9th and 12th of
Queen Ann, and in the 1st of King George the First.
He has bestowed a great deal of money in buildings, gardens, &c. on
this place; but as there is nothing of regularity observed, it may
more properly be called a pleasant romantic seat than a complete
habitation; and although it faces the south, yet it lies too much
under an hill, and is therefore cold and damp in winter. The house
anciently stood to the north of the present, towards the brow of the
hill, according to my opinion in a far better situation. The place
where it was built is still called the haller, that is the hall; but
the odd desire of our ancestors to settle in our vallies, and to get,
as they called it, in _the luthe_, inclined one of the Arundells to
remove the house to where it now stands, and that was done so long
since that nothing remains but the name to point out this ancient
dwelling.
Trevanion, formerly written Trevagnion, that is, the town or dwelling
in an hollow, gave name and was the ancient inheritance of this very
eminent family, which they left on their marriage with Arundell’s
heiress, for Carhayes. The house at Trevanion is now so wholly
destroyed, that it would be hard to guess where it stood, had not the
footsteps of two or three ways leading towards it pointed out the
former situation. The park is at this place, and not at Carhayes,
being well wooded, and having a fine river flowing through it. A
portion of the park is in the parish of Gorran, called by the name of
Porown Berry, and paying a quit-rent to the duchy manor of Trevennen,
out of which it plainly appears to have been taken.
Hurris, or Herys, was formerly the seat of a knightly family, of which
family I believe was Henricus de Herys, mentioned by Carew to have
held a knight’s fee in the reign of Richard the First.
Near to this place is Treberrick, the fruitful or fertile town.
Treberrick in this parish (for there is another place of the same name
in St. Ewe) carries with it not only the advowson of St. Michael
Carhayes, but also of St. Stephen’s, and St. Dennis in Branwell. It
was sold by John Tanner, esq. to Charles Trevanion, of Carhayes. This
place is now the seat, under lease, of Simon Slade, gent. a younger
brother of the late Mr. William Slade, of Trevennen. Mr. Simon Slade
was twice married, first to one of the daughters of Mr. Thomas
Hancock, of Pengelly in Creed, and not having any surviving children,
he married secondly the daughter of Stephen Thomas, of Tregamena in
Verian, gent. by whom he has two sons and two daughters.
The church is but small: being seated however on a hill, it is a good
sea mark. This church consists of a nave, a south aisle extending
about half its length, a north cross aisle, and a small confessionary
to the north of the chancel. The tower is low and without pinnacles,
provided with three bells.
A broken flat stone in the chancel has this inscription round its
margin:
Here lyeth the bodie of Mr. Zacharie Hooker, of this parish rector,
who was buried yᵉ XXV day of Nov. 1643.
On the middle of the stone,
Si genus aut nomen quæras, insignia monstrant:
Si vitam, aut mortem, sat pia facta docent.
Non opus est tumulo, cujus tot viva sepulchra
Commemorant meritum, terra quot ora tenet.
At the end of the verses is an achievement, containing the arms of
Hooker, with several quarterings.