12 July 2023 , 15:11
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Residents have told of the ghost of a young woman who haunts a Cornwall village with flowers mysteriously appearing on her gravestone each year on the anniversary of her death.
Historian Barry West has investigated the case of Betsey, who died aged 19, in 1795. Yet for generations, flowers have appeared on a slate gravestone just by the entrance to the lychgate at the church of St Clement near Truro.
He said: "I have often wondered about the truth that sits behind what has become something that always draws me to visit at this time of year. There are different stories about this young woman who sadly died so young."
Barry looked into the history of the village situated on the outskirts of Truro in the valley of the Tresillian River within Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty as well as into the genealogy of Betsey's family.
Betsey's gravestone is in the lychgate at the church of St Clement (Barry West)He's also appealed to anyone who might have carried out further research into this specific headstone and Betsey's life to come forward.
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Betsey's parents were known to run the old inn at St Clement, which in more recent times was known as the Ship Inn. Tragically, it is said she took her own life after becoming pregnant to someone of a different class, which would have brought shame on her family in that era.
And that is possibly a reason why Betsey's headstone is in the lychgate rather than in the consecrated ground of the churchyard beyond. Her headstone reads: "In loving memory of Betsey the daughter of William and Elizabeth Tregaskis. Who died June 20, 1795, aged 19."
Barry said that on his latest visit to the village, he called on author Helena Paterson who lives in one of the quaint cottages nearby and has researched the history of St Clement. She, though, told him that Betsey died of tuberculosis, which was recounted to her by descendants of the Tregaskis family whom she met over the past 50 years.
Whether Betsey died of TB or took her own life - a grave sin according to the Church which would have meant her body could not be buried in a churchyard - Betsey's restless soul is said to be wandering this earth near the spot, reported CornwallLive.
He added: "Helena has been aware of flowers appearing for as long as she can remember. She also shared stories of the many sightings of what is believed to be Betsey.
"One was that many years ago a coach party arrived to visit the beautiful church set behind the thatched cottages in St Clement and after seeing a pretty young girl wearing a mop cap and old-fashioned dress, they enquired with Helena whether there was some historic re-enactment going on in the village that day. There was not.
"There have been other sightings by different people and the mystery still interests and intrigues me."
Intrigued not just by Betsey's story but by the sightings people claim to have seen, or the presence and energy they have felt or encountered in the area, Barry tried to find other people with information.
He said: "One man told me that the thatched cottage to the left of the church was known to have a female energy in the form of a poltergeist while another said he lived in Harmony Cottage for the first three years of his married life between 1969 and 1973 and experienced poltergeist."
Gael Phillips contacted Barry and told him: "My great-grandmother was Margaret Tregaskis. My branch of the family had been associated with the Parish of St Clement for hundreds of years. My branch of the family moved to Gwennap from the Truro area in the middle of the 18th century.
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"WH Tregaskes wrote a book on the family (What’s in a Name) giving details of the family and the changes in the spelling of the name over 500 years.
"The stone to which you refer for Betsey Tregaskis was the daughter of William and Elizabeth Tregaskis, as stated. The most likely candidates to be William Tregaskis and an Elizabeth Tregaskis may be a William Tregaskis, born in 1741, who married Elizabeth Drew at St Mary’s, Truro, in 1765. Betsey could have been one of their offspring but I could be wrong.
"My line is descended from Christopher Tregaskis, who married Grace Penrose of Frock in 1704. The William to whom I referred, is descended from Christopher’s cousin Cuthbert Tregaskis. I do not know who places the flowers on Betsey’s headstone but I thank them."