Port Isaac pier was constructed during the
reign of Henry VIII. "...Tudor pier and breakwater have now yielded to a
strong new sea-wall balanced by an arm on the opposite side of the cove, and we
do not doubt that the fishermen sleep more soundly in their beds on stormy
nights." (Arthur Mee: Cornwall; The King's England; London: Hodder &
Stoughton, 1937, p. 184.) The village centre dates from the 18th and 19th
centuries, from a time when its prosperity was tied to local coastal freight
and fishing. The port handled cargoes of coal, wood, stone, ores, limestone,
salt, pottery and heavy
