The crowds gather in Camborne for Trevithick Day.
When: 30th April 2016
Where: Camborne, Cornwall
£: Free. The park and ride costs £3.
What is it?
Camborne’s Trevithick Day is a one day festival celebrating Cornish Engineering and Mining Heritage. This community event has taken place on the last Saturday of April every year since 1984, and it is organised by a group of enthusiastic volunteers.
Highlights of this year’s Trevithick Day will be the morning dance, with Camborne schoolchildren dressed as bal maidens and miners; and the afternoon ‘Trevithick’s Dance’ for adults, wearing Cornish colours. Both are led by the Camborne Town Band who will be playing Trevithick’s Tune composed by Cornish musician and bard, Geoff Self. The children’s dance will begin at 10.15am and the adult dance will take place at 2.15pm.
A steam engine parade will commemorate the first trials of Trevithick’s Road Carriage in Camborne in 1801. An event immortalised in the Cornish ballad Going Up Camborne Hill Coming Down. These words can be heard throughout the day sung by Climax Choir and other Cornish choirs. Traditional Cornish music and dance is an important element of the celebrations. The founder of Trevithick Day, Trevor Dalley, was made a Cornish Bard for ‘services to Cornish Culture’ in 1994.
For the event every church and community hall will be hosting an exhibition, including arts, crafts, local history, engineering models, and a flower festival. In amongst the streets lined with stalls there will be a diverse programme of entertainment by local Cornish-based people, suiting all ages and tastes. Entertainment will range from morris and clog dancers to samba and rock music. Steam engines, including a replica of the Trevithick Road Carriage, and vintage vehicles will be on display all day. There will also be fairground rides for visitors to enjoy.
New for Trevithick Day 2016 there will be with five covered entertainment hubs. The steam parade will have a different route, or rather it has reverted to the old route! So this will be the first time in 13 years that the engines will be going up the main street. The steam parade will begin at 3.15pm.
More info: www.trevithick-day.org.uk