St. Agnes, Isles of Scilly
Encyclopedia
St Agnes is the southernmost populated island
of the Isles of Scilly
, England
, United Kingdom
.
by a tombolo
, a kind of sandbar, called the Gugh Bar, which is exposed only at low tide. The two islands together have the smallest population of the Scilly archipelago, with 73 residents recorded in the 2001 census, and a landmass of 366 acres (148.1 ha).
In earlier times many men from St Agnes earned a living as pilots, guiding transatlantic liners and other vessels through the English Channel
. Now the mainstay of the economy is tourism, together with some bulb
farming. Accommodations are limited, and St Agnes is the only populated island in the Isles of Scilly
which has no hotel. However, it has a few B&B
s and self-catering cottages, a campsite, a small post office general store and a gift shop. It also has a pub (the Turk's Head) and a cafe, although these are closed in the winter.
The main population centre is in the north and middle of the island. The southern end of the island is covered by the heather
moorland
of Wingletang Down.
The island's most notable landmark is its lighthouse
, which has been converted into living accommodation and the tower no longer contains a light. It was built in 1680 by Trinity House
and was coal fired until 1790, when it was converted to oil fired, with copper lamps and 21 revolving reflectors. A plaque records original construction by Captains Hugh Hill and Simon Bayly, builders of the 1676 Lowestoft lighthouse.
The St. Agnes lighthouse was the second to be built in Cornwall (after the Lizard lighthouse
of 1619). It stands 74' above the ground, and 138' above mean high water. It was superseded in 1911 by the Peninnis Lighthouse. St. Agnes lighthouse now serves simply as a daymark
for shipping.
Peninnis lighthouse is a 17 metre tall black and white steel lattice tower situated on the southern extremity of St. Mary's island. The range was reduced from 17Nm to 9Nm under the Trinity House 2010 Aids to Navigation review. The light source employed is now LED.
Other landmarks include a standing stone
known as the Nag's Head (probably a natural formation) and the so-called "Troytown Maze" a pebble maze thought to be of medieval date. In 1707, many of the sailors who had drowned in the great naval disaster off the Isles of Scilly
were reputedly buried on the St Agnes playing field.
racing on Scilly, with the ladies' race on Wednesday. After the race, supporters fill the Turk's Head to discuss the race and to socialise. The pub is always open through the summer, but during the winter it is only open on Wednesdays for a quiz, and one other night.
where the fern
Least Adder's-tongue
Ophioglossum lusitanicum grows.
In addition:
Among rare vagrants recorded at other times of year are the following:
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
of the Isles of Scilly
Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly form an archipelago off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain. The islands have had a unitary authority council since 1890, and are separate from the Cornwall unitary authority, but some services are combined with Cornwall and the islands are still part...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
Description
St. Agnes joins the island of GughGugh
Gugh could be described as the sixth inhabited island of the Isles of Scilly, but is usually included with St Agnes with which it is joined by a sandy tombolo known as "The Bar" when exposed at low tide. The island is only one km long and about 0.5 km wide, with the highest point, Kittern...
by a tombolo
Tombolo
A tombolo, from the Italian tombolo, derived from the Latin tumulus, meaning 'mound,' and sometimes translated as ayre , is a deposition landform in which an island is attached to the mainland by a narrow piece of land such as a spit or bar. Once attached, the island is then known as a tied island...
, a kind of sandbar, called the Gugh Bar, which is exposed only at low tide. The two islands together have the smallest population of the Scilly archipelago, with 73 residents recorded in the 2001 census, and a landmass of 366 acres (148.1 ha).
In earlier times many men from St Agnes earned a living as pilots, guiding transatlantic liners and other vessels through the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
. Now the mainstay of the economy is tourism, together with some bulb
Bulb
A bulb is a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf bases. The leaves often function as food storage organs during dormancy.A bulb's leaf bases, known as scales, generally do not support leaves, but contain food reserves to enable the plant to survive adverse conditions. At the center of the bulb is...
farming. Accommodations are limited, and St Agnes is the only populated island in the Isles of Scilly
Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly form an archipelago off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain. The islands have had a unitary authority council since 1890, and are separate from the Cornwall unitary authority, but some services are combined with Cornwall and the islands are still part...
which has no hotel. However, it has a few B&B
Bed and breakfast
A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...
s and self-catering cottages, a campsite, a small post office general store and a gift shop. It also has a pub (the Turk's Head) and a cafe, although these are closed in the winter.
The main population centre is in the north and middle of the island. The southern end of the island is covered by the heather
Calluna
Calluna vulgaris is the sole species in the genus Calluna in the family Ericaceae. It is a low-growing perennial shrub growing to tall, or rarely to and taller, and is found widely in Europe and Asia Minor on acidic soils in open sunny situations and in moderate shade...
moorland
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...
of Wingletang Down.
Lighthouse
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
, which has been converted into living accommodation and the tower no longer contains a light. It was built in 1680 by Trinity House
Trinity House
The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond is the official General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales and other British territorial waters...
and was coal fired until 1790, when it was converted to oil fired, with copper lamps and 21 revolving reflectors. A plaque records original construction by Captains Hugh Hill and Simon Bayly, builders of the 1676 Lowestoft lighthouse.
The St. Agnes lighthouse was the second to be built in Cornwall (after the Lizard lighthouse
Lizard Lighthouse
The Lizard Lighthouse is a lighthouse in Lizard Point in Cornwall, United Kingdom, built in 1752. A light was first exhibited from that point in 1619, but demolished in 1630. Trinity House took responsibility for the station in 1771...
of 1619). It stands 74' above the ground, and 138' above mean high water. It was superseded in 1911 by the Peninnis Lighthouse. St. Agnes lighthouse now serves simply as a daymark
Daymark
A daymark or a day marker is a structure such as a tower constructed on land as an aid to navigation by sailors. While similar in concept to a lighthouse, a daymark does not have a light and so is usually only visible during daylight hours...
for shipping.
Peninnis lighthouse is a 17 metre tall black and white steel lattice tower situated on the southern extremity of St. Mary's island. The range was reduced from 17Nm to 9Nm under the Trinity House 2010 Aids to Navigation review. The light source employed is now LED.
Other landmarks
Standing stone
Standing stones, orthostats, liths, or more commonly megaliths are solitary stones set vertically in the ground and come in many different varieties....
known as the Nag's Head (probably a natural formation) and the so-called "Troytown Maze" a pebble maze thought to be of medieval date. In 1707, many of the sailors who had drowned in the great naval disaster off the Isles of Scilly
Scilly naval disaster of 1707
Scilly naval disaster of 1707 is an umbrella term for the events of 22 October 1707 that led to the sinking of a British naval fleet off the Isles of Scilly. With four large ships and more than 1,400 sailors lost in stormy weather, it was one of the greatest maritime disasters in the history of...
were reputedly buried on the St Agnes playing field.
Sporting and social life
Friday evenings in the summer (end of April until start of October) see men's domestic Cornish Pilot GigCornish pilot gig
The Cornish pilot gig is a six-oared rowing boat, built of Cornish narrow leaf elm, long with a beam of four feet ten inches.It is recognised as one of the first shore-based lifeboats that went to vessels in distress, with recorded rescues going back as far as the late 17th century.The original...
racing on Scilly, with the ladies' race on Wednesday. After the race, supporters fill the Turk's Head to discuss the race and to socialise. The pub is always open through the summer, but during the winter it is only open on Wednesdays for a quiz, and one other night.
Population
- 1841 - 243
- 1861 - 200
- 1871 - 179
- 1878 estimated to be nearly 150 in 25 households; the heads of 17 of these were surnamed Hicks and this is still a common surname on the island.
- 1881 - 148
- 1891 - 130
- 1901 - 134
- 1911 - 102
- 1921 - 101
- 1931 - 78
- 1951 - 78
- 1961 - 85
- 1971 - 63
- 1981 - 80
- 1991 - 90
- 2001 - 73
Botanical importance
Wingletang Down is the only site in BritainGreat Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
where the fern
Fern
A fern is any one of a group of about 12,000 species of plants belonging to the botanical group known as Pteridophyta. Unlike mosses, they have xylem and phloem . They have stems, leaves, and roots like other vascular plants...
Least Adder's-tongue
Ophioglossum lusitanicum
Ophioglossum lusitanicum is a small fern of the family Ophioglossaceae. It is categorised as Vulnerable by the IUCN .- Description :...
Ophioglossum lusitanicum grows.
Vagrant birds
St Agnes is a favourite island of visiting birdwatchers, particularly during the Scilly season of October. Among the many vagrant birds which have been found here during the month of October are the following, which were all firsts for Britain:- Northern WaterthrushNorthern WaterthrushThe Northern Waterthrush is one of the larger New World warblers. It breeds in the northern part of North America in Canada, and in the northern United States, . This bird is migratory, wintering in Central America, the West Indies, and Florida; also Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador...
(Parkesia noveboracensis) in 1958 - Europe's only Magnolia WarblerMagnolia WarblerSetophaga magnolia, commonly known as the Magnolia warbler, is a member of the Parulidae family of wood warblers. [4] This warbler was first discovered in magnolia trees in the 19th century by famed ornithologist Alexander Wilson while in Mississippi. [7]-Description:The magnolia warbler can be...
in Barnaby Lane on 27 and 28 September, 1981.
- Eastern Bonelli's WarblerEastern Bonelli's WarblerEastern Bonelli's Warbler is a "warbler" in the leaf warbler genus Phylloscopus. It was formerly regarded as the eastern subspecies of a wider "Bonelli's Warbler" species, but as a result of modern taxonomic developments, this species is now usually considered to be two species :* Western Bonelli's...
in 1987 - Wood ThrushWood ThrushThe Wood Thrush, Hylocichla mustelina, is a North American passerine bird. It is closely related to other thrushes such as the American Robin and is widely distributed across North America, wintering in Central America and southern Mexico...
in 1987 - Short-toed EagleShort-toed EagleThe Short-toed Snake Eagle also known as Short-toed Eagle, is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards and harriers.-Range and habitat:...
in 1999
In addition:
- a Yellow-browed BuntingYellow-browed BuntingThe Yellow-Browed Bunting, Emberiza chrysophrys, is a passerine bird in the bunting family , a group now separated by most modern taxonomists from the finches ....
in 1994 was Britain's fourth - a Cream-coloured CourserCream-coloured CourserThe Cream-colored Courser, Cursorius cursor, is a wader in the pratincole and courser family, Glareolidae.Although classed as waders, these are birds of dry open country, preferably semi-desert, where they typically hunt their insect prey by running on the ground.These coursers are found in...
in 2004 was the first to be seen in Britain for 20 years.
Among rare vagrants recorded at other times of year are the following:
- Britain's fifth and Scilly's first Balearic Woodchat ShrikeWoodchat ShrikeThe Woodchat Shrike is a member of the shrike family Laniidae.The Woodchat breeds in southern Europe, the Middle East and northwest Africa, and winters in tropical Africa. It breeds in open cultivated country, preferably with orchard trees and some bare or sandy ground.This migratory medium-sized...
(Lanius senator badius) at Troy Town, St Agnes from 21–27 April 1999. (Accepted by the BBRC) - a Little BustardLittle BustardThe Little Bustard is a large bird in the bustard family, the only member of the genus Tetrax. It breeds in southern Europe and in western and central Asia. Southernmost European birds are mainly resident, but other populations migrate further south in winter...
in March 2002 - a KilldeerKilldeerThe Killdeer is a medium-sized plover.Adults have a brown back and wings, a white belly, and a white breast with two black bands. The rump is tawny orange. The face and cap are brown with a white forehead. They have an orange-red eyering...
in November 2003
See also
- List of shipwrecks of the Isles of Scilly
- Extreme points of the United KingdomExtreme points of the United KingdomThis is a list of the extreme points of the United Kingdom: the points that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location. Traditionally the extent of the island of Great Britain has stretched "from Land's End to John o' Groats" .This article does not include references to the...