Callington grew up as a small mining and woollen town. The houses are slate hung, and the surrounding countryside has fruit growing orchards and market gardens. The population is just over 5000. It lies 6 miles from the River Tamar and from Devon. The area is classified as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Originally a Saxon settlement and probably called Celliwic, the town had a population of 200 at the Norman conquest. Callington (Calweton, Calvington, Killington, Killiton) is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Calwetone. In 1584, Callington became a Parliamentary Borough, and continued to send two members to Parliament, until "rotten boroughs" were abolished under the Reform Act of 1832.
Callington Parish Church is a medieval church described by Pevsner as ‘an ambitious building’
A mile SE of the town is one of the largest and most important holy wells in Cornwall - Dupath Holy Well. It is a fine granite building from 1510. The waters in the basin are believed to cure whooping cough.
Callington boomed as a mining town, and when the mining boom collapsed, miners from the Callington area emigrated to many parts of the world. The industrial heritage from this era still remains as part of the landscape. You can enjoy the view from Kitt Hill, 1000 feet high. On the top of Kitt Hill is a 80ft high stack built in 1858 for the winding and stamping engine of Kit Hill Consols mine. The hill is now a country park and was given to Cornwall in 1985 by Prince Charles. There are marked walks and an industrial heritage trail
Today Ginster Pasties are made here and the Ginsters factory produces Cornish pasties which are widely distributed around the UK
Callington, Cornwall Town web site
Callington, Cornwall Genealogical information in Genuki