St Austell’s medieval patron was Tywardreath Priory, which financed the impressive rebuilding of the parish church in the late 1400s. Nonetheless, it grew slowly, not being granted a market until 1661. Its spectacular growth came later, in the 1800s, as a result of growing china clay extraction.
Population 1861: 3,800
Population 2011: 31,100
Planned population 2031: 36,800
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