author

Enys Tregarthen

1851–1923

A Cornish writer and folklorist who brought the fairy lore and storytelling traditions of north Cornwall to a wide audience. Writing as Enys Tregarthen and Nellie Cornwall, she turned local legends into vivid, atmospheric tales that still feel rooted in place.

2 Audiobooks

North Cornwall Fairies and Legends

North Cornwall Fairies and Legends

by Enys Tregarthen

The Piskey-Purse: Legends and Tales of North Cornwall

The Piskey-Purse: Legends and Tales of North Cornwall

by Enys Tregarthen

About the author

Born Nellie Sloggett in Padstow, Cornwall, she is now best remembered by her pen name, Enys Tregarthen. Sources agree that she wrote as both Enys Tregarthen and Nellie Cornwall, and that her work was closely tied to the folklore, speech, and landscape of north Cornwall.

Her books helped preserve regional traditions by reshaping local fairy stories and legends for readers, especially in works such as North Cornwall Fairies and Legends and The Piskey-Purse. Modern scholarship has described her as an important but long-overlooked Cornish voice whose writing is valuable not just as fiction, but also as a record of local belief and storytelling.

There is some disagreement in available sources about whether she was born in 1850 or 1851, but the dates 1851–1923 are commonly used in library and book records. I could not confirm a suitable verified portrait image from her Wikipedia page, so no profile image is included.