Cornwall gazetteer "L"

Lamorna: Lamorna harbour was built to export granite from nearby quarries. This granite was used for the Thames Embankment and for many lighthouses. The cove is a small sandy beach, a few cottages and the stone pier. The Wink Pub in the village is said to come from the fact that a wink to the landlord would produce a nip of smuggled liquor
: The merry Maidens Stone circle is nearby. This is a Bronze Age circle of 19 stones, said to be a group of young girls who were turned into granite because they were dancing on the Sabbath. The two large standing stones nearby, are called the pipers, after the two pipers who were accompanying the dancers met the same fate.

Lands End: The Romans called this area The Sea of Storms. Its claim to fame is that it is the most westerly point in England. There is a dramatic coastline from which you an see both the Longships Lighthouse (1.5 miles off shore) and the Wolf Rock Lighthouse (8 miles off shore). On a clear day you can see the Scillies 28 miles away.
: Given that it is a major tourist destination, there are a number of tourist attractions at Lands End. The lands End Experience offers audio-visual presentations, craft shops, exhibitions and even boats to play on.
: The cliff path south from the area crosses some breath taking cliff scenery. Off share are a number of rock and reefs - "Armed Knight", "Dr Johnson's head", "Irish Lady", "Kettles Bottom, "Enys Dodman"

Lanhydrock House: Now owned by the National Trust, Lanhydrock House has a long history. It was originally a Augustinian Priory of St Petroc, until the dissolution of the monasteries in1539. It was purchased by the Robartes family in 1620, and remained their home until it was given to the National Trust in 1953. The house appears to be Tudor, but the majority of the 17th century house was destroyed by fire in 1881. Only the entrance porch and the north wing remained, but the burnt part was reconstructed to look like the original.
: In the gardens is the 15th century church of St Hydrock. The gardens are particularly beautiful in early summer.

Lanlivery: The parish church tower is 100 feet high and one of the finest in Cornwall. NW of the village is Helman Tor, which has a rocking logan just below the summit. Also on this hill are the traces of a Neolithic settlement and a huge pile of flat boulders called the Cup and Saucer Rock.

Launceston (pronounced "Lanson" locally) was the country town of Cornwall from early times until 1838, when the right of assize passed to Bodmin. Strategically positioned to guard the main route into Cornwall, the Normans built a castle here. It was also the only town in Cornwall to have a town wall. The town walls survive in many places, and the castle is still there but in ruins.
: Executions were carried out here until 1821. St Cuthbert Mayne, a priest, was hung drawn and quartered on the castle walls in 1574.
: St Mary Magdalene Church , built between 1511 and 1524, had carvings in memory of his wife, added by Sir Henry Trecarrel.
: Today Launceston is a small busy market town. There are a number of well preserved red-brick Georgian houses, an art gallery over the South Gate, a local history museum in Lawrence House.; Outside Launceston there is the Launceston Steam Railway which runs along the beautiful Kensey Valley. And just north at North Petherwin, , the Tamar Otter Park will teach you all you need to know about otters.

Lelant: In the Middle Ages Lelant was a port, but the river eventually silted up, and the port declined. The estuary is now salt marshland, and a sanctuary for wading birds.. The railway station is the starting point for the Park & Ride for St Ives. The golf course is particularly scenic, with views over Hayle Towans and Godrevy Lighthouse.
: In the sand dunes is the church of St Uny. This is a 15th century church that is in constant danger of being overwhelmed by the shifting sand dunes. Extensive plantings of marram grass have been made to stabalise the sand

Liskeard flourished as a result of its mineral wealth (tin, copper and granite). It was one of the five original stannary towns. The copper ore came from the Caradon mines and the granite from the Cheesewring quarry. Last century a canal linked Liskeard with Looe on the coast, but by 1859 the railway had taken over. This line is still open. Buildings in the town include Cornwall's largest parish church, a Victorian Italianate guildhall, an 1833 coaching inn, several Georgian houses, Stuart House where Charles I stayed in 1644.

The town has its own web site at http://www.liskeard.com with more information

To the west of Liskeard is Dobwalls Theme park

Lizard: This is the most southerly point on the British mainland. The name comes from the Cornish "lis" meaning "place" and "ard" meaning "high". The Spanish Armada was first spotted from here in 1588. Sir John Killigrew, a notorious wrecker from the Arwennack family of Falmouth, erected the first lighthouse on the Lizard in 1620. Shipowners refused to support the venture, believing that Killigrew had ulterior motives in erecting the lighthouse.. Eventually in 1752 a regular lighthouse was established, and it was taken over in 1790 by Trinity House. . The powerful beam of today's light can be seen for 64 miles.
: Almost all the Lizard Peninsula is composed of soft, colourful Serpentine stone ( so called because of its snakeskin appearance when polished), which was carved in local workshops.; Just east of Lizard village is the hamlet of Landewednack with its church of St Winwalloe, built of alternate granite and serpentine blocks.
: Just to the west is Kynance Cove, owned by the National Trust, with golden sands and isolated

Looe

Originally two separate towns, West and East Looe, they were joined by a bridge in 1411. The port exported copper and arsenic, and grew as a pilchard fishing port. . Shark and other fishing trips can be made from the quay today, and the fishing boats still land here.; The old quarter of East Looe still has a labyrinth of narrow streets, but the rest of the town caters for mass tourism in summer. There is a16th century guildhall, and a former fish cellar which has a museum of Cornish folk items.
: St Geoges Island , just off shore, was once inhabited by the pirate and smuggler, Black Joan and her brother Fyn. It was bombed in World War II when the Germans mistook the island for a battleship.

Lostwithiel: Lostwithiel was the capital of Cornwall for a short period in the 13th century. Its importance was that it was the lowest bridging point on the River Fowey. It was an inland port and stannary town, until the river silted. The largest iron mine in Cornwall was nearby, and a tramway took the ore to Lostwithiel, from where it was shipped by barge to the sea at Fowey.; It was the seat of the Duchy Parliament, Stannary Court and Hall of Exchequer.; There are Georgian houses, narrow "ope ways" ,old shop fronts, the 1740 guildhall and the buttressed walls of the Old Duchy Palace (13th century) as reminders of is past. Also 13th century is the unusual octagonal Breton style church spire of St Bartholomew's.
: North of the town is Restormel Castle, a well preserved example of a Norman castle. it also featured in a Civil War battle.

Luxulyn: The village contains a number of granite cottages, a 15th century church with a turreted tower. A massive viaduct was built by the mine owner, Joseph Treffry in 1842 to take ore to the port at Par.
: St Cyor's Holy Well, under a stone canopy at the lower end of the village, is now dried up. There is a local vantage point at Helman Tor

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