The day is named after the famous Cornish inventor Richard Trevithick, who is most famous for creating the Puffin' Devil: the first steam locomotive (a kind of steam engine that moves).
Camborne Trevithick Day is very much a community event. The first celebration took place in 1984. The day has quickly become an important part of the Cornish calendar, attracting some 25,000 to 30,000 visitors. It is a day of free entertainment to celebrate Camborne’s links with Richard Trevithick and the local industrial and mining heritage.
A carnival atmosphere pervades Camborne as its main streets are closed to traffic for the day and steam engines, street stalls, bands and entertainers take over the town. Rosewarne car park is transformed into a funfair and most of Camborne’s public buildings are home to exhibitions and an offerIng of refreshments. There are two processional dances. In the morning every school is represented in the “Bal Maidens and Miner’s Dance”, and later, after lunch the adults take part in “The Trevithick’s Dance”. The choreography and music is peculiar to Camborne. The music, played by Camborne Town Band, is a combination of the tunes from “Going up Camborne Hill Coming Down”, and a tune first notated in 1820 when Richard was still alive, “The Camborne Worthies”, arranged by Geoffrey Self, once head of music at Cornwall College. The choreography describes that very first journey. The climax of the day comes late in the afternoon with a world beating urban parade of steam locomotives.
