A Brief History of Port Isaac

Situated on the rugged north Cornish coast is the historic fishing village of Port Isaac. A sheltered, sparsely populated inlet once offering sanctuary to seafarers and residents, it is now a beautiful attraction that draws visitors from near and far. Protected by large headlands and a harbour wall that has stood the test of time, Port Isaac is still a working port, where generations of local families have ventured out into the Atlantic come hell or high water. Wander the narrow, cobbled streets and you’ll find picturesque, whitewashed cottages, the lifeboat station, Cornish pubs and Michelin star eateries, interspersed with locally run shops, cafes and holiday accommodation.

With our strong, local connections, the mission of Port Isaac Bay Holidays is to immerse you in this quaint, beautiful little village. As one of our founders grew up in the village, we know the winding lanes like the back of our hand, and many of the historic properties with interesting, unique stories to tell, are managed by us. Drop into a different way of life the second you arrive, with views out to sea, coastal walks on your doorstep and Cornish culture on tap.

Surrounding Port Isaac, accessible by the South West Coast Path that runs through the centre of the village, are the beautiful bays of Port Quin and Port Gaverne, plus other small coves such as Lundy Bay and Epphaven. Don’t forget your walking boots, the coastline of Port Isaac Bay is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and it is best explored on foot.

The Origins of Port Isaac

First recorded in 1338, Port Isaac was founded as a fishing and coastal trading village. It was considered one of the most remote settlements in Britain, and the safest and most practical harbour along the treacherous north Cornish coast.

Records from the 17th century show that North Cornwall was a major grain producer, and it is thought that the name Port Isaac possibly derived from the Cornish word ‘Yzack, meaning corn, which the village exported. However, by the 19th century grain exporting tapered off, and all produce was utilised locally.

1500-1800s

“There restoreth a brook to Porthissek; and there is a pier and some succour for fisher boats.”

- John Leland, 1536

Shipping, Trade and Fishing

Home to countless generations of fishermen, the waters surrounding Port Isaac have provided food and livelihood for families since the first settlers arrived in the 1300s.

During the 1820s it was recorded that around 50 fishing boats were moored in the safety of the harbour, and four thriving fish cellars operated in the village. Boat building also boomed during the 1800s with two known boatyards operating in the village; Halwyn on Roscarrock Hill and another on Fore Street. Summer trading vessels the Mary Stephens, Echo, Bessy Jane and Sylph were built and used to export corn and barley, and import wheat, pottery and general goods.

However, Mother Ocean is a cruel mistress. Between 1823 and 1846, 130 ships were wrecked on the coast either side of the village, and the graves of many fishermen and mariners can be found in St Endellion church yard.

A prosperous port, renowned Delabole slate was exported both nationally and as far as France and Belgium from neighbouring Port Gaverne. A trading vessel called the ‘Exchange’ sailed back and forth between Dublin, Bordeaux and Santander from 1680-97, and the ‘Industry’ brought deal, spars and firewood from Norway between 1682-1719. Port Isaac was also known for importing coal, timber, salt and limestone.

Early Buildings

“Wonderfully increased in buildings.”

- Norden, 1584

Many of the original buildings surrounding the thriving harbour date back to between the 17th and 18th century, and are built from local materials such as sand from the beach and stone and slate from the quarries in the area. Cladding was later added for extra protection from the elements.

The old primary school, perched on the cliff edge, was designed and built in 1876 on the site of the Good Intent fish cellar. It is now the Old School Hotel, with the hotel in the old part of the school and the restaurant in what was the infant class.

One of the largest buildings in the village is the Golden Lion Inn, a pub built in 1715. Possibly lending itself to the smuggling history of Cornwall, the downstairs cellar known as “Bloody Bones features a trapdoor entrance to a once-secret passage that once opened out onto the beach.

Built in the late 1700s, the Market House on the corner of The Platt was thought to accommodate the weekly Friday butchers market, and was later used as a store by fishermen. In the early part of the 20th Century it was a shop selling “drapery and good oddments”. The corner stones, made of Lundy granite, possibly date about to the 1600s when the parish church of St Endellion was renovated using the same material.

The Mote has had many names (The Bristol Inn and later The Commercial in the 1800s, and more recently The Wheelhouse) and dates back to 1542. It has always been an inn, but it is believed it could have been a Moot House too, where elders and freemen would meet to discuss and decide village matters.

The row of Victorian properties at the top of Roscarrock Hill, on the side of Lobber overlooking the harbour, are called Khandalla. They were built by wealthy tea plantation owners (the name comes from a town in Northern India) using stone quarried from the cliff below.

The current structure of The Slipway Hotel was constructed in the early 1800s, however the original building that it is built upon is believed to date back to 1527 due to the datestone found. It is a Grade II listed building that was used as a chandler’s, general store, offices and a bank in the 1800s. It was owned by prominent local businessman Warwick Guy, who sold goods here that he imported using his own fleet of ships. Other buildings around Port Isaac owned by Guy included the cellars beneath Roscarrock Chapel, a store in Church Street, and Greengates, a then-warehouse next door to the hotel that is thought to originally date back to the 1400s when it may have been a water mill.

The steep hill leading up from the harbour towards Port Quin and St Endellion Church is called Church Hill. It is considered one of the earliest streets in Port Isaac. Lined by Grade II listed buildings that date back to the 1600s, you’ll find what once were shops, the old butchers and a small path leading to Port Isaac Mill, which was built in the 1700s. The miller would walk his donkey down the path and Church Hill, laden with milled flour, to deliver to the village bakeries.

John Wesley & Methodism

John Wesley, a minster and cleric who led the Methodist movement in the 1700s, visited Port Isaac more than a dozen times between 1747 and 1789. Many Cornish folk were Roman Catholic, non-religious or celebrated pagan festivals in the time of John Wesley’s first visit, and he was reportedly stoned upon arrival! However, he persisted, and on his last visit he conducted an open air service that was well attended and received on the Platt (the name for market squares in Cornish towns. ‘Platt’ in Cornish means, plate, or flat space). It is assumed that the preacher may have stayed at Wesley house, however his writings tell of preaching from a balcony overlooking a large space somewhere in Port Isaac, which could possibly be the Manor House.

The Lifeboat

Originally built in 1869, the old lifeboat house part way up Fore Street (which became the Post Office and is now the Boathouse shop) was erected on a site previously home to a fish cellar and some old salting sheds. Not on the waterside, the boat was guided down the street by one strong man, whilst up to 30 men with ropes took the strain from behind. Taking around three minutes, the launch from the lifeboat shed to the waters edge left its mark on the village in the form of grooves and scars left on some of the houses of Fore Street, caused by the ropes as the boat was guided around corners , and some cottages were even cut back to allow space for the carriage wheels. More than once, the lifeboat was launched three miles away from the town, from the small cove of Port Quin. When this happened, the lifeboat was hauled overland by oxen and horses. Three successive lifeboats serviced the village and surrounding areas between 1869 and 1927, and the original lifeboat station closed in 1933. A ‘modern’ inflatable lifeboat was acquired in 1966, and a new lifeboat house has been operational opposite the slipway, to avoid dragging it through the narrow streets and making for quicker and easier ocean access when emergencies arise and the lifeboat needs to be launched.

Fishing From Port Isaac

At first, pilchards were the most profitable catch. When the enormous shoals arrived in July to feed on plankton, the fishing season could last until December. Wooden barrels, known as ‘hogsheads’ that could contain around 3000 fish, were used to store the pressed and salted pilchards. In a good year it was estimated that over 40,000 hogsheads would be filled with Cornish pilchards. The fish were sold for around £40 a ton in 1811 when the pilchards were considered scarce, and four years later when the pilchard population was thriving once again, a ton would go for about £22. During this time, 300 tons of fish moved through one cellar in a week.

In 1591 it was recorded that one of Port Isaac’s six-ton trading vessels, the ‘Mynion’ sailed to Bristol with a cargo of fish oil, called ‘pilchard traine’, produced by pilchards from the fish cellars.

When the pilchard shoals began to decline during the mid 19th century, the locals began fishing for herring at night through November and December. During this time, a Scottish fish-smoking expert was invited to the Cornish village to teach the residents how to smoke the fish to create kippers. The process involves splitting the fish through the back, gutting it, opening flat, salting or brining to reduce the water content, and then cold smoking. The smoke stacks used are visible above the fish cellars to this day.

Eventually the herring also declined, and the fishermen turned to mackerel.

Crab and lobster are the main catch today, both being sold locally in fishmongers, in restaurants within the village and further afield in London and Europe.

The Lobster Pools in the harbour have been used by generations of fishermen to store live crabs and lobsters in special ‘keep pots’ before sending them to market. They are situated beside the causeway leading to the eastern breakwater and the pools are now rented from the Duchy of Cornwall.

20th Century Port Isaac

Building The Breakwaters

Before the 1920s Port Isaac harbour was open to the elements. With no protection in the cove for the fishing boats, there was only a small pier (constructed during the reign of Henry VIII), the remains of which can still be spotted at low tide. The breakwaters, built to provide shelter for the fleets and fishermen, were constructed in two parts. The eastern breakwater was built below the school, partially from local stone quarried from Lobber, but the contractor building it went bankrupt before it was finished, and another firm finished the job using concrete. The second section to be built was a shorter, western breakwater. Unfortunately erected in the wrong position, it was built too close to the shore, meaning it doesn't hold any water at low tide and provides less shelter than originally planned. The breakwaters are now a century old. They have stood the test of time and still provide safety and shelter to this day, however there was a campaign in recent years to raise money for much-need repairs

The World Wars

“They were heroes as we all now know, how much we owe them. What is the inspiration behind these men? Love for those at home and the beloved Homeland. During the war craft of every description were used—trawlers, drifters, and other kinds of sea-faring craft.”

- Reverend M. Harvey of Wadebridge, speaking on the list of names recorded on the Port Isaac War Memorial on New Road

Seeking safety from the destruction of World War II, many children were sent as evacuees to Cornwall. The Bide-A-While hotel in Port Gaverne, run at the time by Mrs Ashton, became home to many of the evacuees that were billeted through Port Isaac. The seaside villages of Port Isaac and Port Gaverne were a world away from London, allowing the children freedom to explore the farms, fields and coastline of Cornwall, away from the dangers of war. It is believed housing the children at the Bide-A-While hotel was also a practical decision as it kept the hotel staff employed and the building in use whilst the war was happening and less people were holidaying.

The Decline Of Fishing And Rise Of Tourism

Unfortunately, by 1820 the seas were starting to suffer from over fishing. This meant the townspeople of Port Isaac had to turn to other forms of income.

In 1895, as if overnight, tourism arrived aboard The London & South Western Railway. The attraction of isolation and the natural, untouched beauty of the landscape brought holidaymakers from near and far.

“Then you see it all, huddled in a steep valley, a cover at the end of a combe, roofs and roofs, tumbling down either steep hillside in a race for shelter from the south-west gales. A fresh water stream pours brown and cold along the valley, under slate bridges, between old houses, under the road and out into the little harbour…”

- John Betjeman

Port Isaac Today

Now a hugely popular tourist destination, the beautiful coastal village of Port Isaac draws hordes of visitors every year. With a local population of under 1000, the streets become bustling with life come the summer holidays, and the town is filled with the sound of laughter and sea shanties. Attracted by the picturesque cottages, stunning coastline, sandy beach and colourful fishing boats, holidaymakers are treated to local Cornish cuisine such as fresh seafood, Michelin star restaurants, Cornish pasties, handmade fudge and Cornish ales.

Television and Film

The quaint and beautiful old village has lent itself to film and TV locations on numerous occasions. Saving Grace, family favourite Doc Martin and 2-part feature film Fisherman’s Friends (an adaptation of the story of the Fisherman’s Friends sea shanty band that was formed in Port Isaac) were all filmed in and around the Port Isaac area; in the winding cobbled streets, on the beach and in some of the historic buildings such as Fern Cottage on Roscarrock Hill.

An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a Heritage Coast Area

Classified as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Port Isaac and the coastline of Port Isaac Bay is one of only 46 places in the UK to be protected by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. This means there are strict planning controls and conservation measures in place. Many miles of the coastlines of Cornwall are recognised as an AONB, with Port Isaac falling into the section between Pentire Point and Widemouth. Take in the unspoilt views whilst walking on the South West Coast Path, remembering to close gates and leave the trails as you found them.

Heritage coasts are defined rather than dedicated. With work taken on by the district authorities, local councils and charities striving to conserve and protect the beauty of Port Isaac’s coastline, the coastal and marine flora and fauna, and the heritage features found along the clifftops and beaches. Established to conserve the best stretches of undeveloped coast in England, a heritage coast is defined by agreement between the relevant maritime local authorities and Natural England.

Sea Shanties

Famous for classic sea shanties such as ‘Nelson’s Blood’ and ‘South Australia’, the infamous Fisherman’s Friends band was formed in Port Isaac in 1995. Many of the members are originally from Port Isaac, and until recent years sung each Friday evening on The Platt overlooking the harbour, drawing enormous crowds.

Pictured left singing on The Platt in summer 2009

Dating back to at least the 16th century, before booming in the 19th century, sea shanties are traditionally folk songs that were sung to accompany rhythmical work, tasks and actions aboard merchant sailing vessels. They helped keep sailors in time whilst boosting moral. Typically they are ‘call and response’ songs, with the lead singer, known as the ‘shantyman’ singing the verses and all the other sailors replying with the chorus. The rhythm is mostly regular and heavy, and whilst there can be numerous versus or versions, the tune and tempo will remain consistent. The word ‘shanty’ was thought to have evolved from the French word ‘chanter’ meaning to sing, whilst others link it to the English word ‘chant’. Port Isaac now hosts its very own Shanty Festival in venues around the village on a weekend in April each year – if you’re a music fan then be sure to book your holiday for this weekend when the old lanes and alleyways ring out with the sound of song.

To delve deeper into the history of Port Isaac, be sure to visit the current PISCES exhibition during your stay or browse the amazing articles and archives on the website of the Port Isaac Heritage group here.

If you’d like to step into history, explore the stunning coastline or simply relax and fall back into a slower pace of life, then we’d love to welcome you to Port Isaac. A number of our rental properties are in historical cottages themselves, whilst boasting all the modern comforts you require for a comfortable holiday in Cornwall. Click below to browse our accommodation and begin booking your getaway.