Through the museum’s entrance and into the Butter Market there resides a cider press surrounded by various cider bottles. It is an impressive object constructed circa 1750 which required intensive labour to even move it from its previous location in Trelowarren Estate, Mawgan.

The museum’s cider press has a total estimated weight of five and a half tons whilst the centre beam alone weighs around one and a half tons. It was not a small feat to move this object to its current place. A story of How the cider press came to Helston from the Trelowarren Estate by Mr. A.P. Gilbert of Gilberts Ironmongers, formerly of Meneage Street, currently sits atop the press, a reminder of the ‘great ingenuity’ needed to transport the object. Below is the story currently on display at the museum.

“And the Lord spake unto that Frank which is called Strike, saying – Arise, gird up thy loins and get ye hence unto that Barn which delighteth the solitary place and hath for a garment the serenity of cool woods.

And the voice of the Lord came unto him from out of the midst of the Barn, saying – Be not dismayed for I am with thee and the place wherein thou standest is very pleasant in my sight. Look diligently therefore upon the timbers that dwell herein and apply thine hands with vigour to the plan of my unfolding.

And behold in the fullness of time the impulse of the Lord was made manifest through His servant, who did leap as an hart to the fruits of his bidding.

And so it was that Frank and they that were of his persuasion drew nigh unto the great beam and her timbers. With fervour and cunning uplifted they them to the floors of the chariots that move without horses. With levers and wedges and improvisation – and great ingenuity – surged they to triumph.

And it came to pass that the great Press called Cider moved quietly and with passing dignity into the sanctuary of an Ancient Borough; there to remain as a link with the past and a memorial to Endeavour.”

From ‘How the cider press came to Helston from the Trelowarren Estate – The Bush Still Burns…’ By Mr A. P. Gilbert of Gilberts Ironmongers, formerly of Meneage Street.

For my internship at the Museum of Cornish Life, I was drawn to their diverse farming collection. It ranges from domestic tools to make butter, beekeeping equipment, and even a man trap. However, the cider press’s enormous size and integral links to other museum objects makes it stand apart. Cider is an important part of the cultures in the South West of England. Therefore, it was both relevant and significant for me to investigate the cider press and its reliance on other museum objects to make cider.

I have only included images of the Museum of Cornish Life’s cider press, cider mill, saddlery collection, and digital photograph collection in this blog post. My aim is to show the connections between the museum’s objects, highlighting the importance of cider making in Cornish culture.

The Cider Riots of 1763-1766

Excise tax records from 1764 to 1765 reveal that for every sixty-five people there was one cider maker across England and Wales. At the time, Cornwall alone had a total of 5,361 cider makers. Therefore, when the 1763 Cider Bill was introduced to raise taxes on commercial cider and even start taxing cider from smallholdings, Cornwall was particularly outraged.

Residing in the museum, it is hard to imagine the cider press circa 1750 existing in a time of political dissent against the government. Crowds were known to attack tax collectors and eventually an army arrived in the West Country to subdue opposition, though rebellion continued.

The Cider Bill especially upset landowners who would produce cider on their own estates to pay farm labourers. If you refused the extra tax on commercial cider you would have to pay a fine of £25 (£2,500 in today’s money). Trelowarren Estate, consisting of 1,000 acres and a large cider press, could have been affected by this bill.

The bill was repealed three years later in 1766 so smallholdings were no longer taxed. Cider production had been at the heart of the issue and the museum’s press serves as a link to this rebellious past.

Making Cider

Cider making is a seasonal process that relies on the harvesting of apples. Depending on the variety of the apple, they can be picked from the middle of August at the earliest or as late as November. At Healey’s Cornish Cyder Farm, the home of the first commercial Cornish orchard, approximately 2,000 tonnes of apples are harvested annually.

Cider presses were an integral part of cider production on farms. The museum’s press is of a screw press design which was invented in the 13^th century. The large screws on either side were turned, and wooden planks were inserted through slots to change the height of the centre baulk for pressing apple pulp.

Production was typically a private endeavour in which labourers were paid an allowance of cider, and this had a history as far back as the 15^th century. Cider was safer than the drinking water at the time, much like ale, hence its popular consumption. Although the 1887 Truck Act prohibited wages to be paid in part or solely in food or drink, the tradition of paying in cider continued into the 20^th century.

However, some cider presses, such as the one in Tregarne Farm in St Keverne were only used by families and neighbours. A sequence of six photographs from this farm in 1978 about cider making can be found in the museum’s digital photograph collection. The photographs below show Clifford and Barry Lugg on Tregarne Farm using their press and continuing their family tradition of making cider.

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Here, the pulp (or ‘pomace’) created from crushing apples in a cider mill was put into the granite cider press where barley straw and pomace were layered alternately. By stacking stone weights on top of the press, the Lugg family pressed juice into a bucket. Any leftover pomace could be disposed of or fed to animals.

Cider making has a long history which continues to be significant to Cornwall. Notably, Haye Farm Cider, close to St. Veep, first produced cider in the early 13^th century and the farm is planned to reopen in 2023 to continue this legacy and spread cultural awareness.

The Cider Mill and Horsepower

Opposite the museum’s cider press is a cider mill also from Trelowarren Estate. This mill is quite unique because it is made from one piece of granite whereas many others are made with two dowelled together. Before pressing the juice, it was necessary to crush the apples first. Approximately 50 kilograms of apples would be placed in the mill’s centre and then horsepower would turn the central spindle to crush said apples.

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The museum’s cider mill has a hook that attaches to a horse. For this, some objects from the museum’s Saddlery collection would have been used. For example, the open top (or ‘latch’ collar) was used as a part of a draught horse harness and was especially common to the South West of England. This collar is split at one end, therefore it can slip over the neck of a horse instead of its head.

Draught horses (or heavy horses) were bred to be large and strong enough for farm labour. For many professions, especially on farms, the local saddlers’ shops offered useful horse equipment to make the most of a horse’s strength and stamina.

In the photograph below of Meneage Street, Helston, a Harness Maker and Saddler Store can be seen on the left. This was located at 15 Meneage Street, which is now owned by Wearne’s Jewellers. The museum holds a physical photograph of this saddler’s shop from the early 1900s.

Helston itself was not limited to one saddler’s shop, however, as a postcard from the 1910s displays staff outside of Hendy’s Saddler and Harness Making Shop at 34 Meneage Street.

From left to right, the photograph below from about 1920 shows J. Bennetts (now Boo Koos restaurant), Hendy’s Saddler and Harness Making Shop (now Sands Boutique and Cornwall Animal Welfare Fund), and the Horse and Jockey Inn (now Rowe’s Bakers, Boots Pharmacy and Superdrug).

The image below shows the Museum of Cornish Life’s current saddlery collection. This showcases some of the various collars and harnesses which would be available at these saddlers’ shops and would have found uses on farms, especially in powering cider mills as previously discussed.

Today, horsepower is rarely used in industrialised cider production. The photograph below shows the Lugg family using a tractor to power their granite cider mill, which was over 100 years old at the time, before pressing.

An exception, however, can be found at Fair Oak Cider, a supplier from Herefordshire. They are believed to be one of the only cider mills still employing horses, notably Pye (now retired) and Tommy, two Gypsy Cob stallions. Just one of these horses can accomplish the work of three people pushing the mill’s wheel.

Celebrating Cider

The museum’s cider press and mill represent the significance of apple orchards in Cornish history and current culture.

The Lugg family are pictured below, drinking the cider they had made on their farm in 1978. This is the sixth and final photograph of the Tregarne Farm cider making sequence and reinforces the importance of family and community in cider production.

Nowadays, cider remains a popular beverage. The National Association of Cider Makers, formed in 1920, continues to support national and regional cider makers of varying sizes.   Apple Day, first organised on the 21^st October 1990 by the Common Ground charity, revitalised local festivals of orchards and its produce across the country with support from villages, wildlife trusts, and some National Trust properties.

Due to support, the cider press gains prominence once again. Its presence outstretches that of the museum’s walls, but within this building its heritage and culture are preserved.

The celebration of apples and cider production by communities today empower the words of Mr. A.P. Gilbert who described the transporting of the press from Trelowarren Farm as such:

“… the great Press called Cider moved quietly and with passing dignity into the sanctuary of an Ancient Borough; there to remain as a link with the past and a memorial to Endeavour.”

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Victoria Drew

I am currently a history student from the University of Exeter completing an internship with the Museum of Cornish Life. This internship was supported by the University’s Professional Pathways scheme specific to the arts, culture, and heritage sectors.

References:

James Crowden, Cider Country: How an Ancient Craft Became a Way of Life (London: William Collins, 2021).