The Fal is known as a famous estuary on the south coast of Cornwall, busywith shipping for hundreds of years. The river itself is perhaps less well known,but nevertheless its rural course is full of great historical interest. The objectiveof this book is to bring that history to the eyes of all those who love the Cornishcountryside.The river is described from its source above the wild beauty of Goss Moor,down to where it meets the main estuary. The unique underlying geology hasresulted in a fascinating varied terrain. The granite uplands were the source oftin and other metals from the Bronze Age almost to the present day. The samearea has been exploited for its vast deposits of china clay, for the production ofceramics and paper making. Water from the Fal and its tributaries played a vitalpart in these industries.

Further down the valley the river flows through a landscape farmed forthousands of years, resulting in a picturesque pattern of fields on the valley sidesand rich meadows on the flood plain. Within the landscape human settlementsvary from Iron Age hill forts to villages dating from medieval times.Water-mills along the course of the river were vital for corn milling andindustrial purposes. Using fieldwork and early documents the author hasresearched the histories of these, and of the villages of Grampound, RuanLanihorne and Tregony, discussing the work of earlier writers. A range of expertlyselected illustrations complement the informative text and feature aspects of thevalley¿s superb natural environment in this authoritative volume.