Life in 18th Century Cornwall
TL;DR
Daniel’s world was rigidly hierarchical – wealthy landowners held all power, most men couldn’t vote, and the slave trade funded local gentry.
High mortality, food scarcity, and limited education were normal. And smuggling was rife.
Daniel’s self-taught brilliance and Enlightened thinking defied every expectation for a working-class man in rural Cornwall.
The World Daniel Gumb Lived In
To truly appreciate Daniel Gumb’s achievements, you need to understand the world he lived in. Think Poldark (from the 2015 BBC TV series) for a mental image of 18th-century rural Cornwall. It was governed by a rigid social hierarchy, a political system where few could vote, literacy rates were low, and with the constant threats of high mortality and food scarcity.
Social and Economic Issues
Social hierarchy: 18th century society was rigidly structured with Aristocracy and major landowners at the top, who controlled vast estates and wielded significant political power. The Middle ranks were made up of wealthy merchants, successful professionals and minor gentry. Then came the working classes – skilled craftsmen like Daniel (stone masons, carpenters, blacksmiths), tenant farmers, labourers. At the bottom were the landless poor, domestic servants and agricultural workers. Your position in this hierarchy determined almost everything: where you could live, who you could marry, what work you could do, and how you were treated under the law.
Land is Power: In this period, the ownership of land was paramount, defining social status, political power and personal wealth. Daniel’s grandfather was a Yeoman farmer whose land passed to Daniel’s father. When these tenancies and land holdings were lost to his stepmother, Daniel used his professional skill and eccentric intelligence to maintain his economic standing.
The Atlantic Slave Trade: The wealth of 18th-century Britain was intrinsically linked to the Atlantic African slave trade and the plantation economy (sugar, tobacco). The gentry who hired Daniel for stonework and cartography benefited from this system. Cornish ports and the county’s core mining industry were also connected as Cornish copper was often shipped to Africa to be traded for enslaved people, linking the local mining economy to the brutal global system.
Mortality: Daniel’s personal losses were tragically common. The high mortality rate in childbirth and infancy due to limited medical knowledge (or lack of access to it), infection and disease was a constant reality of 18th-century life.
Food and Scarcity: Diet varied dramatically by social class. Wealthy families had access to meat, fish, imported goods, fine bread and wine. Working families would eat bread, porridge, root vegetables, occasional meat or fish, and drink ale. Poor families would survive on whatever they could grow, forage, or afford, and it was often barely enough. Seasonal variation affected everyone. Winter and early spring (before new crops) were the “hungry months” and poor harvests meant genuine hardship, sometimes famine.
Religion, Politics and Dissent
Politics: Corruption and Voting rights: Parliamentary politics were dominated by the wealthy landowning elite. Only a tiny percentage of the male population (often less than 10%) had the right to vote. This right was almost always tied directly to owning a specific amount of property or land, therefore most of the population, including skilled workers like Daniel, had no right to vote. The system was rife with “rotten boroughs” (small districts controlled by one wealthy family), making local and national politics deeply corrupt and class-bound.
The Established Church: The Church of England dominated religious life, with significant social and legal power. The church controlled records, education and social welfare. Not attending church could result in fines.
The Rise of Reason: The 18th century was a period of huge change where old traditions were being challenged. The Enlightenment (roughly 1685–1815) championed reason over tradition, scientific inquiry, and individual rights. These ideas filtered down to ordinary people like Daniel, who embraced mathematics, astronomy, and independent thinking.
Rational Dissent: This movement, which emerged toward the end of Daniel’s life, rejected strict church doctrine in favour of science, reason, and ethical religion. Its followers faced penalties (unable to go to university or sit in public office).
Quaker Influence: Quakers (Society of Friends) were active in Cornwall and deeply influenced the philosophical landscape. They emphasized equality and self-improvement, which mirrored Daniel’s values. Crucially, the Quakers were also among the first and strongest voices for the abolition of the slave trade, placing the roots of Daniel’s non-conformist and independent thinking in a tradition that was actively challenging one of the most brutal economic systems of the age.
Literacy and Daily Life
Literacy and Learning: The average labourer in rural Cornwall had a low literacy rate, so Daniel Gumb’s extraordinary self-educated ability to read, write, and carve complex academic material proves he was an intellectual outlier – a “genius” who transcended the educational and social barriers that kept most rural working people illiterate or only partially literate.
Daily Life for Children: Children in working families like Daniel’s had limited childhood as we understand it. Up to the age of 6 they would have been at home with mother and receive only basic care. From the ages of 7-14 they would begin to work, learning trades, helping with farming, or doing domestic work. Education was available only for children whose families could spare them from work and could afford it. Daniel’s access to reading, writing, and advanced mathematics was exceptional for his class and location and it’s thought that someone (his father, a local teacher, a benefactor?) may have recognised and nurtured his intellectual gifts.
Cornwall’s Wild Economy: Smugglers & Contraband
While Daniel Gumb was seeking intellectual freedom on Bodmin Moor, a different kind of rebellion was happening along the Cornish coast. Smuggling – or the “free trade” – was a way of life in 18th-century Cornwall and a major part of the local economy.
The “Free Trade” Economy
Remote coves and caves were perfect for landing untaxed goods. Tea, brandy, gin, tobacco were the main contraband – all heavily taxed luxuries. Whole villages often participated – it was seen by many not as crime, but as legitimate protest against unfair taxes.
Frequent shipwrecks along Cornwall’s treacherous coast provided an unexpected lifeline for impoverished coastal communities. When ships foundered, locals would work together to salvage cargo and materials from the sea. For families struggling with poverty and poor harvests, this salvaged bounty – whether timber, cloth, or food – was a vital resource, turning tragedy into a means of survival and reinforcing a culture of incredible resilience and communal cooperation.
Jamaica Inn: Smuggler’s Haven
In the very heart of Daniel’s landscape, the now-famous Jamaica Inn was built on Bodmin Moor in 1750 (when Daniel was 47). It quickly gained a notorious reputation as a hub for smugglers, who used its isolated location to spot approaching excise officers across the empty moor.
Daniel’s own tax resistance – building his rent-free cave home – existed alongside this more dramatic illicit trade. Both represented a Cornish spirit of independence and defiance.