A century and several thousand miles of ocean were bridged recently to bring together the great granddaughter of the first chairman of Coverack’s Lambeage Hall with its present incumbent, just as history repeats itself with an urgent fundraising appeal.

The meeting between Lynne Smith and Rod Pierce came about by a quirk of fate, luck and social media - and coincides with the 100 years since the building of the hall and present fundraising to keep it standing.

Back in January 1919, a public meeting was held in Coverack to decide on a way to pay tribute to the servicemen who had served their country during the First World War in a practical and fitting manner.

The Coverack branch of the Comrades of the Great War, a forerunner to the British Legion, was already in existence as several soldiers from the village had returned, maimed in mind, body and spirit. A committee was formed with the sole purpose to raise funds to buy a site for a building in which the comrades could meet, with Captain WH Gibson appointed permanent chairman.

When £75 had been raised it was proposed to buy a plot of land just beyond the cove, known as the "Battery" or the "Lambeage". It was for sale by its owner Ralph Ellis of Penzance and was the natural place for villagers to meet, as the Ellis family allowed common use of the seaward-facing, grassy slope. It was here that local women dried their washing, children played and the Wesleyan Chapel held its summer Tea Treats.

However, Capt Gibson, a Master Mariner in the days of sailing ships, had returned to sea and was known to be trading in China and Japan. He was sent copies of the minutes of the meetings and details of the proposed purchase that required his signature.

Time went by - three years to be precise. Eventually, in August 1922, the committee received sanction from Capt Gibson that he agreed for the transfer of the money to buy the Battery and plans to build the hall could commence.

Fast- forward three generations to 2019 and Capt Gibson's son, William Marlborough Gibson, had emigrated to Australia, with Lynne Smith from Empire Bay, New South Wales, now his granddaughter.

Like so many descendants of migrant families, Lynne embarked on a 'once in a lifetime' journey back to her Cornish roots, with the destination being her ancestors' family home in Coverack. Her grandfather had told romantic tales of his Cornish heritage and the lovely Edwardian house that his parents had built with its landscaped gardens, curving down to the beach.

Lynne's rewind into her past was, in her words, "a sensory overload". She walked in her ancestors' footsteps, discovering the lichen-covered head stone in the graveyard of her great-great grandfather, John Gibson, who had been Coverack's chief officer of the coastguard in 1880s, and explored the lane of cottages and the Watch House where he had lived and worked. Lynne's bonus was chatting to a local woman who, as a small child, knew Capt WH Gibson and his tales of sailing ships in storms round Cape Horn.

The final connection between the past and the present for Lynne was reading a documented chronicle of Coverack and coming across Capt Gibson's role as the chairman for Lambeage Committee in 1919 and searching online the community websites, where she read about the current appeal for funds. Consequently she contacted Rod Pierce to make a donation.

Since the old wooden hall was built, it has been a hub for local clubs, parties, meetings and entertainment and is as used as much today as it was all those years ago when it was built.

However, time and the constant hammering from storms and gales has meant the building is showing its age and there is a risk that the building will become unsafe.

A century after the first fundraising took place, the current committee needs to secure its future with more funds. With £26,000 quoted for securing the foundations and a current shortfall of £7,000, the committee is urging people to join Lynne and make a donation by visiting lambeagehall.org.uk and following the link to the MyDonate page.