POLPERRO'S SMUGGLING STORY
by Jeremy Rowett Johns
Polperro's Smuggling Story is told through extracts from the letter-books of Zephaniah Job, the schoolteacher who became known as the 'Smugglers' Banker' for his role in the highly organised contraband trade carried on in this Cornish fishing village at the end of the 18th century. Featuring the exploits of the Quiller, Rowett and other Polperro families involved, it traces the voyages of the Swallow, the smuggling vessel whose capture of a valuable French prize laid the foundation to Job's fortune, and the raids on Polperro led by Captain Gabriel Bray in search of hidden contraband. This book also tells the true story of the Lottery; how the murder of a Customs officer, the hunt for the men responsible and the subsequent trial and execution of Tom Potter led to the first Preventive boat being stationed at Polperro.
A5 paperback 106 pages, 15 illustrations
ISBN 0953001202
Reviews of POLPERRO'S SMUGGLING STORY
"The author deserves our congratulations for bringing Polperro and its smuggling story so vividly to the printed page." Mariners' Mirror
"It is doubtful whether the best of novelists could have developed a better plot than Jeremy Johns' story of the hard men who made a good living from their frightening, dangerous trade. All the elements of a good story are there, made the more vital by being true." Cornish World
"An ideal purchase for summer visitors and for any lover of Cornwall and the county's chequered history." Sunday Independent
"Excellent... A well researched book that increases our knowledge of those hard times." Cornwall Family History Society Journal
"I can heartily recommend this book to like-minded sea rovers." Tony Pawlyn, South West Soundings
"Fascinating and entertaining... an essential addition to the bookcase." Cornish Times
"A must for anyone intrigued by the illegal pursuits of some Cornish folk around the 18th C." Cornish Forefathers Society Journal