Mac Waters Collection (5300 Items)

Mac Waters has amassed thousands of postcards and images, spanning over 150 years and covering the length and breadth of Cornwall.

Mac is a Cornishman who is imbued with ceaseless enthusiasm and energy for all things Cornish and the preservation of Cornish heritage. Born in St Blazey Gate, as a young boy he remembers helping the Endeen and Matthews families seine fishing in St Austell Bay. He joined the Merchant Navy and by the time he was 21 he had sailed around the world! He later worked for English China Clay at Parkandillick for 34 years.

Mac has been gathering his collection for over 30 years. It features Cornish village and town scenes, churches, landmarks and the Isles of Scilly. It also illustrates aspects of social history and Cornish industry, including shipping, shipwrecks, and lifeboats. Some of the images are extremely rare. Of particular interest are the photographs of the same place, taken from the same angle, through the ages.

Mac speaks regularly to Cornish community gatherings using his postcards and images as a talking point. His collection is a unique record of Cornwall’s social history through the last 150 years.

Mac is a Bard of the Cornish Gorsedh, his bardic name is “Cunteller an Brewyon” “Gatherer of the Fragments”.


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