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Wesley
|Altarnun
in the Eighteenth Century:
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The Bernard and Isbell Families
Altarnun is Cornwall's
largest and most sparsely populated parish. Until the middle of
the eighteenth century its only roads were mediaeval tracks. In
1769 a turnpike road was laid down over the moor, and presently
the mail-coaches from London to Penzance passed regularly through
the parish, by-passing the Churchtown, but travelling through
the hamlet of Trewint. This highway was until recently a section
of the modern A30 which also by-passed Trewint, leaving a fragment
of the old coach road to pass the cottage door and swing round
to the rear of the "Prophet's chamber". The surroundings
of the cottage, therefore, with the exception of the "Pilgrims
Garden", laid out in 1958, remain today much the same as
they were in Wesley's time.
The inhabitants of the parish were for centuries small moorland farmers, tin streamers and a few artisans. Among the latter, in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, was a family of stoneworkers called Burnard. They are represented on the Protestation Roll (1641), and on the Church Rate (1671). The Church Rate also contains the name of Isbell, another family of stonecraftsmen. Among the descendants of these families were James Isbell (1756-1840), the builder of Dartmoor Prison, and Robert Whale, A.R.A. (1805-87, who was of Burnard descent. Other member of the Isbell family, though not resident in the parish, were the sculptors, Robert, of Stonehouse (flourished 1769-1824), and his son James, of Truro (fl. 1797-1837), whose work can be seen in many Cornish and Devon churches. The greatest of them all was the sculptor Nevil Northey Burnard (1818-78), whose early work can be seen at Altarnun: the head of Wesley (1836) over the door of the old chapel, and the carving on the tombstone of his grandfather George Burnard (1753-1805). A delicate carving of the head of James Montgomery, the hymn-writer, on a sea shell, is also Burnard's work and can be seen in the showcase at Trewint.
These two families were united in the persons of Digory Isbell (1718-95) and his wife Elizabeth (1717-1805), the daughter of Thomas and Catherine Burnard, who were married on 13th June 1739 and from that date lived in the cottage at Trewint.
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The Arrival of Methodism in Cornwall
Methodism began among a group of religious societies formed for the deepening of the spiritual life among their members. These societies were loosely attached to the parish churches. Those which accepted John Wesley as their leader were know, from 1739, as The United Societies (and later as The Society of People call Methodists).
Wesley's preaching tours which went on continuously for fifty years were based upon the ever growing number of these societies. Among those not originally associated with Wesley was one at St Ives. In 1742 a Bristol sea-captain, who was a member of Wesley's society there, visited the town and was introduced to the group. It was when he later reported its existence that John Wesley determined to extend his work into the far west. First, two of his lay preachers, then his brother Charles, and finally he himself came down to Cornwall. He travelled with three of his helpers - John Nelson, a Yorkshire stonemason, John Downes, a Northumbrian, and William Shepherd, who may have been a Cornishman. Shepherd was making his second journey to St. Ives for he had been there with Charles Wesley some weeks earlier. It was on this journey that Nelson and Downes came to Trewint on 29th August and the story is be told in the words of John Nelson:
"Mr Downes and I had but one horse; so we rode by turns…we generally set out before Mr Wesley and Mr Shepherd. One day, having travelled twenty miles without baiting, we came to a village and enquired for an inn; but the people told us there was none in the town, nor any on our road within twelve Cornish miles: then I said, 'Come, brother Downes, we must live by faith.' When we had stood awhile, I said, 'Let us go to yonder house, where the stone porch is, and ask for something': so we did, and the woman said, 'We have bread, butter and milk, and good hay for your horse.' When we had refreshed ourselves, I gave the woman a shilling; but she said she did not desire anything; I said, 'I insist upon it.' We got to Bodmin that night; but it was late before Mr Wesley and Mr Shepherd arrived, having lost the path on the twelve-mile common, and found the way again by the sound of the bells"
Elizabeth Isbell's account of this visit was not doubt often repeated in the family circle and was eventually set down by the itinerate preacher, Francis Truscott, after conversation with one of her daughters. In this account, which may be dated 1809, the daughter says,
"My mother observing Mr Nelson and Mr Downes give thanks before and after they had received their food, and hearing them pray with her in a manner she had never heard before, was much delighted with her new company. On their asking her if she would permit them to preach in her house on their return? She said, she did not know what preaching was, but she would consult her husband on the subject. On my father's return that evening, she related what had happened in the day; minutely detailing what these strange men did and said! My father attentively heard the relation, and, after pausing a little, said 'I have read somewhere in the Bible, how that some have entertained angels unawares'."
When John Nelson, travelling alone, returned to Trewint some weeks later he received a welcome for the stonemason and his wife. He says,
"I was benighted on the twelve-mile common, and was wet to the skin;…I knocked at the door, and the woman knew my voice, and said, 'The Lord bless you! Come in.' As soon as I went into the house, they pulled off my wet clothes, and put me on dry ones, and got me something warm for supper; they took my wet clothes out of my bags, which they rinsed, dried and ironed. We sang a hymn, went to prayer, and I gave an exhortation that night."
He preached again at the cottage at seven the following morning to a congregation which Digory Isbell had hastily collected. It is clear from both accounts that Digory and Elizabeth both had an experience of conversion as a result of Nelson's preaching and that they determined right away to open their house to any of Wesley's preachers who might come their way.
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The Prophet's Chamber
One day, when the stonemason was reading his Bible, he came to the story of the visit of the prophet Elisha to the Shunamite woman, and how the woman later said to her husband, "Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither." This passage seemed to Digory to contain a direct divine command, and he immediately set about building an extension to his house, two rooms, one up and one down, which could be used by the preachers whenever they were in the district.
As Digory set about his work, finding himself "greatly blessed while engaged in this labour of love" he could never have imagined that two centuries later the rooms would become a place of pilgrimage for thousands.
Trewint was not the only example of a prophet's chamber in Cornish Methodism, though the others may have owed their inspiration to it. At the home of John and Alice Daniel at Rosemergy, in Morvah, Wesley and his preachers were regularly made welcome, and the bedroom occupied by them was long preserved unaltered. The little room is still pointed out in the now disused house. A similar room was provided for the use of the Bible Christian itinerants at Gerrans Mill in Roseland. At Cubert, Joseph Hosken, the wealthy friend of Wesley, added a wing to his house at Carines for the use of Wesley and his preachers, and for a time employed one of them, John Trembath, as his personal chaplain. The "prophets" were held in great esteem in many places; hospitality, sometimes plain and sometimes lavish, was constantly offered the them and they were occasionally recipients of legacies from the faithful. When Elizabeth Isbell died, in 1805, she left a small legacy of one quinea to be divided between the three preachers then in the circuit. Similar bequests were made by Richard Morlen, of St Columb Major, 1804, Charles Bunt, of Liskeard, 1813, and on a larger scale, by Richard Mabyn, of Lanteglos-by-Camelford, 1821. Other testators, such a Edward Burall, of Illogan, 1779, stipulated that their home should continue to be at the service of the preachers. Others, again, like Joseph Hosken of Cubert, 1780, left the preaching houses they had built for the continued use of the Methodists.
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John Wesley at Trewint
There is no suggestion in the early records that the Prophet's Chamber was added only for Wesley's use though he was certainly the most honoured of the preachers who come there. Altogether he paid six recorded visits to the cottage.
On Monday, 2nd
April 1744, the Dartmoor hills were covered with snow as Wesley
road towards the Cornish border but the snow was turning to rain.
He says:
"About two we came to Trewint, wet and weary enough, having
been battered by the rain and hail for some hours. I preached
in the evening to many more that the house would contain, on the
happiness of him whose sins are forgiven. In the morning Digory
Isbell undertook to pilot us over the great moor, all the paths
being covered with snow; which, in many places, was driven together
too deep for horse or man to pass."
He returned on Monday 16th April, on his way out of Cornwall and perhaps would have stayed the night again but John Bennett, the incumbent of Laneast, met him at the cottage, took him to Laneast for a service, lodged him there, and returned with him for 5.00am preaching the following morning, 17th April. According to Truscott's information, George Thomson, the Vicar of St Gennys and George Whitefield, met Wesley and Bennet at Trewint that day, the four clergymen attending the baptism of Digory's third child, Hannah. Wesley presumably was the officiating minister. On this visit Isbell informed Wesley of local rumours that he was an imposter and that the real Wesley was dead, no doubt a local form of the rumour that Wesley was an agent of the Pretender.
Wesley's fourth visit was on Monday 15th July, when he summed up the progress of Methodism in Cornwall so far in the words, "Indeed I never remember so great an awakening in Cornwall, wrought in so short a time, among young and old, rich and poor, from Trewint quite to the sea side." He preached at the cottage before going to Laneast Church. Wesley's Sermon Register shows that he was at Trewint again in July 1747. His last visit was on Sunday 26th September 1762, on which occasion he preached at noon, was entertained by John Nicholls at Trerithick and rode on to Launceston.
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"The Church in thy house"
Long before the early Christians had any church buildings they met for worship in the homes of their members - St Paul on more than one occasion sends his greetings to "the Church in thy house". Christian history repeated itself among the early Methodists and once more "the Church in thy house" came before the chapels. The members of the society were expected to worship on Sundays at the parish church but during the week the Methodist society meetings were held in cottage homes such as that of the Isbells. A hymn of Charles Wesley recalls these house gatherings with its blessing upon the man who has opened his home in this way:
To the good
man of the house,
Now let Thy salvation come
words which perhaps were sung in this cottage which Digory bowed his head in humility.
To this cottage, as the years went by, came the travelling preachers, their saddle-bags stuffed with Methodist literature. Like Wesley they preached outside the stone porch, and met the members of the society within, reading out their names each quarter and presenting them with their class (membership) tickets. Sometimes they would give a ticket of admittance to new members, and sometimes they would withhold the ticket, a dread happening which marked the expulsion of an unworthy member. The Rules of Society were strictly observed, and none could hope to remain in membership if they consciously broke them.
The little society faced a certain amount of opposition from their neighbours. The days were rough and there was a population of surface miners in the area among who were unruly elements. Threats were made to attack the cottage when a preacher attended, and on one occasion, faced with this situation, the preacher resolved to continue, and gave out the hymn:
If any ask
the reason, why
We thus together meet?
To such enquirers we reply,
"To wait at Jesu's feet".
And if you
will not seek him too,
Don't evil us entreat,
Your land, we're only passing through,
Our Saviour-God to meet.
From this day the opposition quickly died down and the society increased in numbers.
Between the visits of the travelling preachers (later to be known as ministers) services would be led by the local preachers from a wide area around, and each week the members would meet in classes (one no doubt at Trewint) each under its leader, for spiritual fellowship.
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The Chapel in the Village
The early Methodist Society at Trewint continued to meet at the cottage from 1748, or earlier, until the end of the century when it became necessary, on account of growing numbers as well as the infirmity of the Isbells, to find fresh accommodation for the society. Accordingly, under the leadership of Thomas Nicolls, of Trerithick, a chapel was built in the Churchtown, the foundations of which can still be seen in the lower part of the old chapel. This was built in 1795, the year of Digory Isbell's death. On the earliest Cornish Methodist "plan" (1748) Trewint stands as a principal place in East Cornwall; the only one between the Tamar and St Ewe. In 1784 it was still a preaching place on the East Cornwall plan, and so it continued until the opening of the chapel at Altarnun in 1795. From this date it ceased to appear on the plan until after its re-opening in 1950. Over the intervening years the society has been centred at Altarnun, which was first in the East Cornwall, then in the Launceston, and (since 1868) in the North Hill circuits. (Note: The North Hill and Launceston circuits merged in 19 ).
The 1795 chapel was enlarged in 1836, when the Burnard head of Wesley was placed over the doorway. This building, which still stands, was superceded by the present chapel in 1859.
The Isbell Tombstone
Digory Isbell died in 1795, and Elizabeth survived him, blind, deaf and bed-ridden, until 1805. Both found comfort in the hymns of Charles Wesley as their pilgrimage neared its goal - Elizabeth often quoted aloud:
I long to
behold him array'd
With glory and light from above;
The King in his beauty display'd,
His beauty of holiest love:
I languish
and sigh to be there,
Where Jesus has fixt his abode:
O when shall we meet in the air,
And fly to the mountain of God?
These words were not just poetry to her, every line brought well loved passages of the Bible to her mind.
At some date, it may have been years after their death, and altar tombstone was erected over their grave, on the right of the path leading from the church gate to the porch. It is a fine example of contemporary design, the work of an unknown craftsman. The inscription has attracted a great deal of attention, at least since Archbishop Temple made a copy of it in the 1870s.
"Sacred
to the memory of Digory Isbell, who died in the Lord, 23rd June,
1795, in the 77th year of his age. And of Elizabeth his wife,
who exchanged Earth for Heaven, 8th October, 1805, in the 87th
Year of her Age. They were the first who entertained the Methodist
preachers in this County, and lived and died in that Connection,
but strictly adhered to the Duties of the Established Church.
Reader may thy end be like theirs.
From early Life, under the Guidance and Influence of divine Grace,
They strengthened each other's Hand in God, uniting to bear their
Redeemer's Cross and promote the interests of his Kingdom in the
Face of an opposing world, thus duly estimating Scriptural Christianity;
in Youth, Health and Strength their Conduct was regulated by its
Precepts; in Age, Infirmity and Death They were supported by its
Consolations, And in a happy Immortality They enjoy their rewards."
"Jack's House"
After the death of the Isbells the associations of the cottage continued to be remembered. The beginning of a legend can be discerned in the tradition that one could hear the bells of heaven ring by the simple expedient of running twelve times round the Isbell tomb and then putting a finger in each ear. In the course of time the cottage was referred to as "Jack's house" in reference to Wesley. In 1848 the suggestion was made that the new Chapel at Altarnun, then projected, should be built at Trewint, but this was not adopted.
About 1860 a local antiquarian visited the house and made a pencil sketch of the living room, showing a derelict fireplace with small cupboard openings in the wall on either side, somewhat resembling ecclesiastical piscinae. He was told by an old man that, although the furniture had been changed, the cottage itself was exactly as his grandfather had known it at the beginning of the century. The cottage by this time had evidently fallen into decay, and this was probably the period during which the lower room of the annexe was use by a local farmer for pig killing.
There is no record of Methodist gatherings at Trewint after the passing of the Isbells until 2 October, 1932, when a Methodist Union celebration was held there. The cottage at that time was occupied by Mr and Mrs J. Wallis. A similar service was held to commemorate the Bicentenary of Wesley's conversion, in 1938. By 1947, however, the building was in such a condition that the local council considered demolishing it, and it was only saved by the suggestion of the Public Health inspector, Mr T. A. Judd, to the Rev. Ernest Porter that the Methodist authorities might like to purchase the property and undertake its restoration.
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The Restoration of the Cottage, 1950
The leading spirit in the restoration of the cottage was Stanley Sowton (1875-1958) who after a lifetime of energetic service at the headquarters of the Methodist Missionary Society retired to Rilla Mill. Mr Sowton quickly realised the possibilities of Trewint, and rapidly conveyed his vision to a group of people who were already interested in the cottage. A Trust was formed to administer the property which was then vested in the Methodist Trustees for Chapel Purposes. Stanley Sowton was appointed Secretary to the Trust.
The cottage was completely restored by Sir George Oakley, of Bristol, and furnished in eighteenth-century cottage style. On Wesley Day (24 May) 1950 the cottage was re-opened. Mr A. Thomas Isbell, of Manchester, unlocked the door leading to the prophet's chamber which his great-great-great-grandfather had built and which was now to be opened daily to the public. A dedicatory service was conducted by the Chairman of the district (the Rev. E. H. Hines) from the stone porch to which the preachers had first come in 1743. At Altarnun parish church later in the day the vicar (the Rev. W. A. Kneebone) conducted Evensong "with Commemoration of the Rev. John Wesley, Mr and Mrs Digory Isbell, and the Early Methodists of Altarnun". The large church was crowded to capacity and some hundreds were unable to gain admittance. The memorable day concluded with a public meeting in a marquee at Trewint.
On Wesley Day every year a crowd gathers at the cottage for an open air service conducted by one of the leading preachers of Methodism, and the celebrations are continued at Altarnun in the evening. The cottage remains open to all who come and about 3,000 people visit the rooms every year.
Stanley Sowton served Trewint with unabated enthusiasm for eight years, constantly seeking ways of adding to or improving the furnishings of the cottage, busily working with his pen to keep it in the public eye, and planning details of the annual Wesley Day services for years ahead. Regular visitors to Trewint began to expect to see something new each year - in 1952 a replica of John Nelson's sundial at Birstall, Yorkshire, appeared in the side garden; (it was made from half a granite roller which Mr Sowton's eye had discovered in the corner of a field, and was later moved to its present position); in 1956 two oil paintings by Mr A. W. Gay, of Bristol, showing Wesley, Nelson and Downes, at the cottage were displayed; then came the Wesley Day postcard sellers in traditional "Bal Maid" costume, and, in 1958, the Pilgrim's Garden was opened.
The Rt. Hon. Isaac Foot, speaking at Trewint, said without exaggeration, "These room now restored will stand for five hundred years as a memorial to John Wesley - and Stanley Sowton." On the wall of the lower room is a tablet to the memory of the first secretary of the Trewint Trust, and a photograph which shows him in a characteristic pose.
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The Treasures of Trewint
The stone walled passage leads to the small room of the Prophet's Chamber, the slate floor of the lower room, the rush mats, the brass candlesticks on the mantelpiece, the brandis in the open fireplace, the "lazy-Jack" kettle on the hearth, the contemporary chairs and the warming pan all help to create the eighteenth-century atmosphere. The preaching desk (the cottage is a preaching place, and not just a museum) is distinctive and looks in period, but it is actually a modern copy of the desk at Coads Green.
In the upper room where the preachers slept are display cabinets housing many items of "Wesleyana". Here are two letters of John Wesley (one, surely, his shortest, reads: "August 13, 1774. My dear brother, All is well. Yours sincerely, J. Wesley"), many pottery statuettes, commemorative plates and medals. Here also may be seen letters and early writings of John Nelson, Thomas Coke and Adam Clarke, and two volumes of the Journal of James Chubb, a Cornish Methodist exciseman of the late eighteenth century. Here also are possessions of the early members of the Isbell family, strangely preserved - a family Bible, a portrait and a class ticket.
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The Significance
of Trewint
There is no
other place in Cornwall, and few in the country, where the authentic
atmosphere of early Methodism can be so keenly felt. Perhaps that
is the chief value of the cottage. It was in surroundings such
as these that the converts of the Wesleys met regularly to build
each other up by sharing together their intense religious experience.
In the words of the hymn announced by the preacher at Trewint,
while the mob stood at the door,
If any ask the reason, why
We thus together meet?
To such enquirers we reply,
"To wait at Jesu's feet".
No new denomination had been formed for these early Methodist like their neighbours were communicants at the parish church. The inscription on the Isbell tomb records the fact that they "lived and died in the Connection, but strictly adhered to the duties of the Established Church". Nearby is the gravestone of Jonathan Harris, of Trewint, who died in 1853, of whom the inscription says, "He was for seventy years a member of the Methodist Society, and died in that Connexion; yet strictly adhered to his duty as a member of the Established Church". In response to the Bishop's Visitation Queries in 1821, the Vicar of Altarnun reported that there were in his parish "many Westleian Methodists; who for the most part frequent the Church".
The members of the Society, however, found increasing spiritual sustenance in the ministry of the itinerant preachers, and this led in time to a separation from the Church of England even in parishes where the clergy were sympathetic to Methodism.
The preachers came to Trewint, and later to Altarnun village, in the course of a large round which covered the whole of Cornwall until 1764, and the eastern half of Cornwall until 1794 when Launceston Circuit was formed. Even after this subdivision the circuit was extensive as can be seen from the Launceston Circuit Plan of 1808 on the cottage will. Each society was divided into classes, and each class member received a quarterly ticket from the itinerant preacher. A ticket of Petronelle Isbell's, dated 1826, can be seen in the showcase.
This old preaching-place has been described in recent years as a shrine, but it is not a museum. Since the re-opening Trewint has again been on the circuit plan, and it serves the District as a centre of evangelism, conference and retreat.
The significance
of Trewint for the student of Methodist history is not that it
adds anything to the information available elsewhere but that
it offers a perfect illustration of all that we know about the
early Methodists, and provides an ideal setting for a study of
Methodist beginnings in the countryside. To the ordinary wayfarer
who turns of the busy A30 into its calm retreat Trewint offers
a surprise, and to many it offers also a benediction.
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Wesley Cottage, Trewint, Altarnun, Launceston, Cornwall, PL15 7TG. Telephone: 01566 86158 Email:secretary@wesleycottage.org.uk www.lamc.org.uk www.bodminmoor.co.uk/wesleycottage www.cornwall-online.co.uk/north-cornwall/altarnun.htm |
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