Your query Joe prompted me to investigate the Society further and I found an article in Wikipedia which confirms that the Fox family, the owners of the Perran Foundry, were it's founders. Apparently it was the first use of the word 'polytechnic' in Great Britain. Within the article there is a link to the Annual Report of the Society for 1858 which is available to read for free on Google books and mentions many individuals. Searching 'polytechnic' in various newspaper archives brings up the names of members of several prominent Cornish families as Presidents of the Society. I will now have to read the section of your book referring to the Perran Foundry! Sue