Steve's World Blog Information and articles on cities, towns and villages around the world.

The most populated town in Cornwall, St Austell is also a good base for exploring the county, being close to such well known attractions as the Eden Project, the St Austell Brewery and Mevagissey’s Lost Gardens of Heligan. St Austell itself has a long history, though it was not mentioned in the Domesday Book, and it certainly had a church in Norman times, as remains can still be seen, the present Trinity Church however dates from the 15^th century. As with many Cornwall towns, St Austell was much involved in the mining industry, especially copper and tin, but unlike others, this was replaced by clay mining as it became an important centre for the China Clay industry. These days tourism is more significant and the beautiful surrounding coastline is a big attraction with such pretty fishing villages as Mevagissey being an obvious place to visit. To the west of St Austell on Cornwall’s northern coast, the surfing resort of Newquay is a popular destination with miles of sandy beaches and ideal surfing conditions. Newquay is also well known for its nightlife, which is very lively, especially during the summer months. St Austell Map.