Wesley's Cottage

One of the most hallowed Methodist sites in Cornwall, Wesley stayed here on several occasions. But there is much more to the story than that. The cottage was owned by stonemason Digory Isbell. In his absence, his wife Elizabeth gave food and drink to two strangers who, after eating, knelt and prayed 'without benefit of a book'. They were two of Wesley's advance agents. Digory was impressed by the story of the strangers and when Wesley returned to Cornwall a year or so later, he was made welcome and blessed the cottage and its owners. Later Digory, having read a passage in his bible about the Shunamite woman who built a 'Prophet's Chamber' for a man of God, built an extension to his own house - a chapel with a bedroom over - for Wesley and his preachers. Trewint became a flourishing centre of Methodism but, as other chapels were built in Cornwall, the rooms in Trewint fell into disuse and became derelict. Happily, in 1950 they were restored and opened to the public. Wesley Day celebrations are held in May each year in what is believed to be the world's smallest Methodist preaching place. Digory and Elizabeth Isbell are both buried in the churchyard at nearby Altarnun. Local legend has it that if you run round the iron railings surrounding their tombstone twelve times, then put your fingers in your ears, you will hear the bells of heaven.

Museum entrance is the black middle door

Off A30, 6 miles west of Launceston. See also Gwennap Pit

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Cornish Saints

Constantine, St.