KERNOW TO THE CRYSTAL PALACE: THE REMARKABLE RAMBLINGS OF A CORNISH FISH WIFE By Pamela Vass PAMELA

Event information

TALK: In August 1851 a curiously dressed, elderly woman was seen trudging along Southampton High Street. Passers by couldn’t fail to notice her, she wore a huge beaver bonnet and carried a corracle-like basket on her back. On being spoken to she said she was a Cornish fisherwoman, in her 84th year, and was walking to London from the Land’s End to see the Great Exhibition.

Mary Kelynack spent her entire life in the small community of Newlyn in the far west of Cornwall. Yet in 1851 she became so inspired by the wonders of the Great Exhibition in London that she resolved to go, one way or another. Travelling by boat or train was beyond her means but there was one thing she could do - walk. Before long she had become quite a celebrity - taking tea with the Lord Mayor, being interviewed by the Illustrated London News, modelled by a famous sculptor, having a polka named after her… and even greeting the Queen.

This illustrated presentation delves into the Cornish legend that is Mary Kelynack, creating a picture of her marathon journey and her adventures in London, including a visit to the spectacular Great Exhibition held in the Crystal Palace.