Tamsin was born at Gwennap, near Redruth. We don’t know much about her early life, but as an adult she became famous for being a ‘pellar’, which is the word used in Cornwall for a witch or wise woman.
In 1835, Tamsin married James Thomas, who also claimed to be a pellar. The couple moved to Helston, where people often visited them for their help. Fisherman would ask for charms to keep them safe at sea and farmers would seek cures for sick animals. Young women would ask Tamsin to predict who their future husband would be.
Tamsin’s reputation as a pellar spread far and wide. People would visit her from all across Cornwall and beyond.
Traditions and Hearthside Stories of West Cornwall – William Bottrell (1870)The inhabitants of the Scilly Isles came over in crowds for the purpose of consulting the white witches of Cornwall, and that they might obtain their protection, charms, spells, and counter-spells.
Tamsin was so popular as a pellar that people still came to see her when she could no longer rise from her bed. She died on 6th October 1856.
Cornwall has a long and rich history of witchcraft and folklore. The Museum of Witchcraft at Boscastle in north Cornwall explains this history.