Portmellon () is a coastal settlement in south

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, Britain, United Kingdom. It is one mile south of

Mevagissey Mevagissey (; ) is a village, fishing port and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.< ...

and six miles south of

St Austell Saint Austell (, ; ) is a town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, south of Bodmin and west of the border with Devon. At the 2021 Census in the United Kingdom, census it had a population of 20,900. History St Austell was a village centred ...

. Portmellon lies within the

Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty The Cornwall National Landscape (formerly the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) covers in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom; that is, about 27% of the total area of the county. It comprises 12 separate areas, designated under the Na ...

(AONB). Almost a third of Cornwall has AONB designation, with the same status and protection as a National Park. The sandy beach at Portmellon is safe for bathing and there is a public

slipway A slipway, also known as boat ramp or launch or boat deployer, is a ramp on the shore by which ships or boats can be moved to and from the water. They are used for building and repairing ships and boats, and for launching and retrieving smal ...

for launching boats. The beach is set in a small cove, a 20-minute walk from Mevagissey. The beach is around 150 metres long but is completely covered at high tide. At low tide rock pools are exposed and on some occasions seals can be seen swimming off the beach or resting on the rocks.

History

The

Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest of the lifeboat (rescue), lifeboat services operating around the coasts of the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on s ...

(RNLI) opened

Mevagissey Lifeboat Station Mevagissey Lifeboat Station was the base for a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) Lifeboat (rescue), lifeboat at Mevagissey in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It was in use from 1869 until 1930. History The inner harbour at Mevagis ...

on 2 October 1869 on ground leased from Earl of Mount Edgcumbe at Portmellon. The lifeboat was a standard Self-Righter with sails and 10

oar An oar is an implement used for water-borne propulsion. Oars have a flat blade at one end. Rowers grasp the oar at the other end. The difference between oars and paddles is that oars are used exclusively for rowing. In rowing the oar is connecte ...

s named ''South Warwickshire''. The boathouse at Portmellon was sold after the lifeboat was moved into Mevagissey harbour in 1888. It has been converted into a house. Portmellon has a long history of building boats with many wooden–hulled boats leaving the workshop over the years, including Denis Hame's 20-footer named ''Vivian''.

References

External links

Villages in Cornwall {{Restormel-geo-stub