TO BEE OR NOT TO BEE

by Colin Burbidge

Dr. James Dangar, one of Murchington’s biggest landowners with over 200 acres and for many years Head of Exeter Diocese Training College was an enthusiastic bee keeper and was glad of any chance to spread the word. On November 4th, 1891, the Devon & Exeter Gardeners Improvement Society met at the Guildhall Exeter for a lecture “Bees & Beekeeping” by Dr. Dangar, which the Western Times faithfully reported the following day.

Dr. Dangar delivered his lecture which was serious, amusing, and instructive throughout. Beginning with an explanation of the structure of the bee, of which there were 100 varieties.

In classical times he said Virgil wrote a great deal on Bees, but in talking about a King Bee, Virgil made a mistake, for whatever they might do, kings did not lay eggs (laughter).

Dr. Dangar explained the different methods of obtaining a queen bee, advised on feeding and illustrated his remarks with diagrams and apparatus, and concluded by saying it was of no use to keep bees in towns. A friend of his Mr. Ralph Sanders tried to do this; he would frequently say “It’s no use Dr. Dangar I can’t keep those bees”. “What’s the cause of this”? Dr. Dangar asked.

“Oh, it’s the Heavitree Brewery (laughter) The bees would go to the brewery and find the beer so good and drink so much, they would tumble in. Those that did not fall in came home in so drunken a condition they could scarcely crawl into the hive”

Neither could bees be kept anywhere near a mine, owing to their liking for arsenic and consequent poisoning.

Discussions followed and Dr. Dangar answered a number of questions. Mr. Carlile asked as to the best method of curing a bee sting. Dr. Dangar replied that “If you make up your mind not to care for a bite, you become impregnated through your system- just as in the case of vaccination- that by and by you don’t feel it much” (laughter) He never got stung but protected himself by gloves and a veil and was always perfectly confident when handling bees. To persons who were nervous, however, he said distinctly “do not keep bees at all”, and to persons who would get stung the most valuable remedy was ammonia.

Mr. Carlile said he found tobacco mixed with spittle to be a good remedy. After further questions the meeting broke up with warm thanks to Dr. Dangar.

Rural Overcrowding in the late 19th century – ‘PIGGING TOGETHER’

Material sourced by Colin Burbidge

Overcrowding of families in unsuitable dwellings was a continuous problem in the late Nineteenth century for the forerunners of today’s local authorities. This was a national problem, not confined to city slums, but also common in rural areas - people on low wages with large families suffered most. Unsurprisingly a small hamlet like Murchington did not escape altogether. Murchington came under the wing of Okehampton Guardians and their Rural Sanitary Board.

On 5 January 1881 the “Western Times” newspaper reported a typical case. A labourer from Murchington was summoned for overcrowding by Mr. Yeo, Inspector of Nuisances for Okehampton Guardians, under the Public Health Act. On a previous visit on 16 July 1880, he  had been told by the labourer’s wife that there were 7 in the family, herself, and husband, 2 grown up sons, aged 20 and 17, a grown daughter and 2 children. They all slept in one bedroom, which was 14 feet by 12 feet and 7ft 3inches high.

It was a serious case, but far from unique. On 14 March 1884, the “Western Times” reported another severe case of overcrowding presented to the Sanitary Board by Mr. Yeo involving a limestone quarryman who occupied a cottage at Meldon. The cottage had one living room and one bedroom in which slept the quarryman, his wife, sons aged 23, 21, 19, and 18, 2 more sons aged 10 and 8 and another daughter aged 6. The bedroom measured 12 ft by 12ft 3inches and had no proper ceiling. There were 3 beds in which to sleep all 9 people. The cubic measure was 165 cubic feet per person, very much below the proper amount for a sleeping room.

The Board called on their Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Bennett, to visit and report.  Additionally, there was a second cottage at Meldon which had a large hole in its thatched roof through which the rain came freely. The ceiling would very soon fall in if not attended to. The Sanitary Board ordered steps to be taken to stop the overcrowding at Meldon, closing both cottages as uninhabitable. The newspapers do not comment on the fate of the Meldon families thereby displaced.

A fortnight later, on 28 March 1884, the “Western Times” carried an editorial prompted by the quarryman’s predicament, which strongly echoed the sensational language of Andrew Mearns’s pamphlet The Bitter Cry of Outcast London, then grabbing headlines nationwide:

“While on local matters we regret to have to draw attention to the condition of some dwellings of the poor in rural districts. The case is referred to on our 2nd page by the Okehampton Guardians. In a 2-room cottage where father, mother, 6 sons, from 22 years old downwards, and a 6-year-old daughter all sleeping in one room, a bed had lately been made up for a daughter of 17 in the lower room, to give birth to an illegitimate child.

When the poor are huddled together in this way modesty is an undeveloped sentiment.

The habits of “a savage’s life” would give a girl a better chance of acquiring the safeguard of her sex than this “pigging” which the Sanitary Authority of Okehampton have now under their eye at Meldon Quarries.

The Prince of Wales is a member of the Royal Commission which is charged with enquiry as to the dwellings of the poor. We hope his Royal Highness will not imagine that the rural districts are in a satisfactory state in this respect”

Historic Lecture on Dartmoor and the Three Boys

by Colin Burbidge

This report is from the Western Times 3rd Feb 1865 and summarises a lecture by the Rev. John Ingle, who was the first owner of the original St Olaves estate in Murchington in the late 1860s. He particularly focuses on the area of Dartmoor that is accessible by foot from Murchington.

 At the Athenaeum in Exeter, on Tuesday evening, the Rev. John Ingle conducted a large audience on very interesting and pleasant, tour over the moorland region of Dartmoor. The lecture was illustrated with chalk and sepia sketches, drawn specially for it by one of the rev. gentleman's pupils at Mount Radford School.

Starting at Fingle Bridge, Mr. Ingle noticed that at the top of the interesting encampment opposite, a beautiful view is commanded of most delightful scenery. The bucolic mind has a peculiar penchant for some kinds of geology, and, unhappily, the stones of which the walls are formed, being porphyritic granite, are admirably adapted for roads, and hence are fast disappearing. From Fingle Bridge to the cromlech at Drewsteignton and Chagford the lecturer had taken some pleasant walks, and he now gave a description of what he had seen. Passing the romantic Holly-street Mill, you come to Gidleigh House which is in the midst of varied and most delicious scenery, but in very dilapidated condition.

Visitors to Gidleigh generally made a "great mistake” in going to the front of the house and taking the wrong route on their way to Moor ; they should not go within two or three gunshots of the house, but when they get to the rustic cart bridge leading to the more private grounds of the house, should turn off to the left and go up through the woods, where they would enjoy a walk that can hardly be surpassed. Visitors should go partly by the river side, and then they would immediately get on the best part of the Moor. Getting towards Kestor you come across a cluster of the most curious remains on the Moor, viz., " Hut Circles " which must have been very miserable places to live in. Mr. Ingle next gave description of the towering rock capped hills, and the wild and rugged scenery to be seen from their heights. Glancing at the antiquities of the Moor, he spoke of the stone avenues, the crosses, and the ancient trackways. Formerly there were three stone pillars known as the "Three Boys," but now only one is to be seen, the others having departed—grown to men, he supposed—(laughter). It was painful, distressing, and vexatious to see the way in which these ancient and curious remains had been taken down!

No one could go far on Dartmoor without a feeling of solemnity coming over him. The deep colouring, the stillness around, the vastness of the wild desolate view, and the constant play of light and shade gave a special character and beauty to the scenery. If they wanted to commune with nature and look from nature up to “nature's God." go when and where they would, they would always find what they wanted on Dartmoor. On the motion of Sir John Bowring, the lecturer was accorded a unanimous vote of thanks which were conveyed by the chairman P. C. De La Garde Esq.

THE UPPER TEIGN ON CANVAS

By Colin Burbidge and Jane Elliott

During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries artists increasingly came to Dartmoor to paint the wild and rugged scenery. Indeed, some would say these artists were responsible for helping to make the area a popular tourist destination. The Victorian artist William Widgery was painting scenes along the Teign river at just the time that St Olaves was being created by John Ingle. His oil painting of Fingle bridge, just a few miles downstream from St Olaves can be seen in the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter. He and his son Frederick Widgery were noted for their ability to capture the soft damp quality of the Dartmoor light.

The following report from the Exeter & Plymouth Telegram on 18 April 1870 gives a sense of the popularity of William Widgery’s work in the late nineteenth century.

Devon & Exeter Graphic Society  Art Exhibition

A share of the honours of this exhibition are due to Mr. William Widgery, who is host himself in any collection of modern Devonshire pictures. He has a fine conspicuous oil painting hung opposite the entrance to the gallery, a fair example of his style of landscape, illustrative of the scenery of the upper waters of the Teign. Mr.Widgery has, in a manner, established his right to distribute among the lovers of English landscape-painting, glowing views of that previously almost undiscovered artist's paradise. No picture-fancier travelling through beauteous Devon in these days would consider he had done his duty by himself or by the county if he left the west country without, carrying away with him a memento of the bright visions of the higher shallows of the Teign from Widgery's easel. The tall painting of luxuriant greenwood, precipitous and rugged declivity, ferns and falling water, which occupies the chief place among those which he has contributed to this gallery, is taken from a spot near Chagford, not likely to be found by the tourist unless he availed himself of the aid of an artist-guide.

William Widgery “the Upper Teign from Gidleigh Park”

© Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery, Exeter City Council.

There are many such secluded bits of nature, too romantic for common reality, in that region, scarcely ever seen except by those who dwell in the remote villages upon the outskirts of Dartmoor. Mr. Widgery, by long study of this description of scenery, knows how realize it upon the canvas as to bring away just the impression it makes upon the mind. Anyone who had wandered about that country would know, when he saw this dribbling of water down the hill, the green hue of the sunlight through the tall trees, the bits of wildflower, the rocky basin wherein the stream widens and rests and gets smooth for a moment before it descends again, and the limited peep of dappled blue sky straight above, that he  was looking upon a piece of Devon scenery, and those who are at all familiar with Devonshire art in our day would recognize in it the hand of Widgery.

William Widgery was born in North Molton where his father was a farm labourer. He came to Exeter as a young man and at first worked as a builder. In his spare time, he copied paintings by famous Victorian artists such as Sir Edwin Landseer. Dartmoor was his major inspiration, especially the area around Lydford where in 1880 he built a house and studio.

THROWLEIGH FETE THEN AND NOW

by Colin Burbidge & Jane Elliott

It is a shame that this year we have a wet Saturday for the annual Throwleigh Fete. Hopefully after the downpour in the night it will brighten up this afternoon.

However if we travel back in time, this report from the pages of the newspaper ‘The Western Times’ paints a vibrant picture of the fete as it was almost 100 years ago – in ‘brilliant weather’…

Whiddon Down! I wondered if Daniel, of Uncle Tom Cobley fame, had anything to do with this truly rural spot, and whether I should find him, with his confreres, jogging up the road to Throwleigh Fete. I did not, so my supposition was negative, but I went to Throwleigh with pleasurable anticipation. The two-and-a-half miles walk to the Downs of Throwleigh, and over the hill's brow, where the nuts are already growing in profusion, brought me within sight of this Devon village. It was good to be alive; breathing English air under an English Heaven, The Throwleigh of my imagination was just the same in reality; the modern idea had not encroached on this pretty home of country life. Serene, sincere, Throwleigh Downs were “en fete”, and here, naturally enough, was gaiety, and something of the commercial, but nothing, not even the most raucous bookmakers shout—could spoil my countryside which was so big, and which stretched all around. Throwleigh annual fete showed that those responsible were not one whit lacking in knowledge of what would be most likely to attract. Every possible effort was made to ensure success.

Throwleigh was gaily bedecked with flags and bunting in pleasant contrast with the simple rusty-grey stone of the church and other landmarks. There could not have been a more convenient spot for the day's revels than the Downs (lent by kind permission of Mr. J. Powlesland). Rousing selections were played by the Chagford Silver Band. The attendance greatly increased as the afternoon wore on, though the brilliant weather caused many to miss the sports in favour of the important task of saving the hay.

Every credit is due for the way in which the arrangements were made by the President, Dr. J. Rashleigh, Esq., M.D, J.P and the committee. The sports side included events of every description, affording chances to all. There were local events and a sprinkling of open events, both horse and foot.  At the conclusion of the sports Mrs. Elizabeth Rashleigh presented the prizes. A fitting ending to the day's enjoyment was a dance held on the floor at the Rashleigh’s charming residence. (From the Western Times August 5th, 1927).

Sweet pea winners - Throwleigh Fete August 2018

Egg throwing competition: Throwleigh Fete 2018

In 1927 Dr J Rashleigh played a major role in organising the Fete as president of the committee. He had purchased Throwleigh Rectory with 9 acres of Glebe land, 25 years before in 1902. Following major renovations, in August 1903 he and his first wife held a ‘housewarming’ as the following extract from the Western Times reports.

 Invitations were issued to all the villagers to join in the festivities. About 3.30 the Chagford Band arrived, and soon after the sports began. There was an event for married women, being a pig hunt, the catcher to become its owner. The pig was well greased, and ten competitors started in pursuit. This race was very exciting, and the pig made good progress until it  got into long grass, with its course being greatly impeded, it soon fell into the arms of Mrs. Dicker.

 A sumptuous tea was next provided for women and children, as well as for men, in a large marquee. Most of the men indulged in cricket. After tea Mrs. Rashleigh distributed prizes to the children for skipping, etc., till every child on the grounds was the possessor of very nice present. Then the gong sounded for dinner. This, too, was held in the same marquee, food consisted of good old English fare, roast beef, and plum pudding, etc., which did great credit to the cook. While, the men and women, upwards of 130 in number, were enjoying their hot dinner, the youngsters enjoyed games. Dinner over, all were invited on to the terraces, where the men enjoyed their pipes, and cigars which were liberally supplied, while the women admired the extensive alterations and grandeur of the house. About 7.30 a large number of Chinese lanterns which surrounded the South-East lawn were lit, and then dancing commenced with great gusto to the enlivening strains of the band. This continued till nearly 10, and all were now thoroughly tired, Mr. R. Dunning proposed a vote of thanks, this was heartily responded to with many hearty cheers and the singing of "For he's a jolly good fellow. (From the Western Times 28th August 1903)

Following divorce from his first wife in 1921, Dr. John Rashleigh married his second wife Elizabeth Grant in August of the same year, and they would be active supporters of both Throwleigh and the county of Devon for many years to come. Together they organised Throwleigh Village Fete with great success for many years.

Rashleighs (formerly the Rectory)                                   © Chris Chapman

BURIED TREASURE ?

by Colin Burbidge

The news in early July 2021 of a £450 million new factory to make batteries in the UK as part of the electric vehicle revolution has focussed minds on the value of home-produced ores such as tin.

According to the International Tin Association “Over the next decade tin has many opportunities in lithium ion and other batteries, solar PV, thermoelectric materials,  hydrogen-related applications, and carbon capture”

 Just over 100 years ago, a similar dialogue was being aired over Devon and its tin resources.

From the Devon & Exeter Gazette 10th April 1917

To the Editor of the Gazette

Sir,—You will have seen the Ministry of Munitions has at last established a branch to deal with the development of mineral  producing ores for the manufacture of metals. This gives Devon— especially Dartmoor—its greatest opportunity. … There has never been anything in the way of successful and profitable working of Devon mines, except that was it easier to  buy foreign ores. The war has practically put an end to this, and without labouring the reasons, we have now got to help ourselves to our own ores. For quality, the Cornish tin smelters know that Dartmoor tin ore cannot be beaten. Th« usual average price obtained for Dartmoor tin ranges from £8 to £11 per ton more than highest Cornish price.

Chagford district, perhaps, yields some of the brightest tin ore. From Sands Gate near Sandy Park—very rich tin ore was produced many years ago. Then, also, from the disused mines on the Moretonhampstead side of Chagford rich deposits were worked. It is of interest just now to relate that when the late Mr. Browning of Moor Park Hotel, Chagford in about 1908-09, had a pit made for his garage, a tin lode was exposed, and I had the pleasure of seeing a specimen which Mr. Browning had taken, and it was certainly a very good stone. Another case— an extraordinary one—was from a small trial pit dug at Murchington : the lode was known to be there by an old tin-miner. In company with an expert metallurgist from London a sample stone was taken from this shallow pit, broken from the lode, and assayed at  54% tin. I could  give, many other instances of good deposits.

 For the present I would say "Help yourselves to what is your own. 'Germany will never again be allowed to scour  the mineral wealth of Devon."

 Yours truly, T. SETTLE,

(Late Manager Golden Dagger Tin Mine Dartmoor,  And the Gooseford (Arsenic) Mine, Okehampton.)

A week later, in response to this letter the following Editorial appeared in the Exeter & Plymouth Gazette, clearly not everyone was as optimistic about mining tin ore on Dartmoor as Mr Settle…

A good deal of interest has been taken in a  letter which appeared in the Gazette a few days ago from Mr. T. Settle of Leeds, but formerly of Exeter, who referred to Devon's opportunity now that the  Ministry  of Munitions has at last  established a branch to deal with the development of mineral property-producing ores for the manufacture of metals under the leadership of its Controller Sir Lionel Phillips, Bart.. Mr. Settle referred to certain properties in North Bovey, Sandgate, near Sandypark, and Murchington, In connection with that I have received a communication from a geologist and metallurgist in which he says “The question of production of all classes of ore of service in the arts and commerce is one which calls for the utmost  consideration and especially so at the present time. The position of Dartmoor is somewhat unique: it is a fact well known to geologists that on the Moor there are many outcrops of tin stones, and that they are close to the surface, but almost universally they go no deeper

In cases where they do go deeper, lodes are so poor that no power can make a mine a paying concern: it would be well for the public to know this. If a Company were to be formed and to sink money into such an adventure, their coin would certainly be “sunk on Dartmoor." that is the experience of all who have embarked on mining in that quarter. Granite is a matrix of tin, but the Dartmoor granite is poor to a degree this respect. There have been very many attempts to raise ore in that locality - All have been comparative failures from the ore point view, and practically all from the financial standpoint.” I do not know what reply Mr. Settle, who has had great experience in Dartmoor mining, will make of the above statement, but any correspondence on the matter cannot be but helpful. I am glad, however, to be able to state that several people owning property on Dartmoor are taking a keen interest in the move being made by the Ministry of Munitions, and in one case I understand that a gentleman owning a tin sett of 900 acres on the Moor is ready to grant a licence for working it and this will, no doubt, be taken up immediately.

 Exeter & Plymouth Gazette 17th April 1917

Dartmoor Granite - a ‘matrix of tin’

For the geologically minded: further reading on tin and granite:

Formation of tin ore deposits: A reassessment

Bernd Lehmann

THE VILLAGE WITH NO NAME

by Colin Burbidge

From the pages of the “Western Times” 21st, 25th & 26th June 1912

A little over 5 to 6 miles west of Murchington, in the late spring of 1912, a new village was taking shape. You would find it, between Oxhead Ridge and Hanging Stone Hill, and close to Teignhead, a wild and remote part of Dartmoor. It had a number of cottages, a church with a 30-foot spire, a public house, a windmill complete with 20ft wheel, and a hospital. The pub is called “The Cows Head”. The pub sign was attributed to be the work of a Corporal Wheeler. The Village has a number of cut-out residents, including one lady dummy in skirt and blouse with a hat trimmed with red and green ribbon.

Looking south from Gartaven Ford, Dartmoor: the village with no name was slightly west of here on the bleak northern moor

The village which has no name is the product of 2 months hard work by officers and men of Okehampton Artillery Camp, and its sole purpose is to provide men of the 37th Howitzer Brigade with realistic targets, and about half a day’s firing  to destroy the work of 2 months. The guns will be located at Culliver Steps near Belstone and the range to the mystery village is about 6000 yards. From Higher Tor an indistinct view of the village could be had. It looked like a patch of white, black, and brown on the side of Oxhead Ridge covering some 4 to 5 acres. The clever design of these properties made from timber frames and clad with painted canvas, is that they are collapsible.

 At the appointed time teams of soldiers would haul on steel guy wires, raising the buildings to the perpendicular, and thus they become three dimensional. When the Artillery attack starts teams of signallers using flags, morse and telephone will observe and relay the accuracy of shelling back to the gunners at Belstone. As in war conditions the gunners will be forbidden to shell the hospital, thus making extra demands on their gun laying accuracy.  Originally the destruction of the village was due on June 20th, however bad weather, with gales and heavy rain has forced to postponement of the attack.

On June 26th Lieut. Phillips of the Commandants office said it was impossible to say when the action might take place. Strong winds and heavy rain continued the delay, until the first week in July, when the attack finally took place. A number of long-range photographs were taken of the bombardment and formed a 2-page spread in the Illustrated London News issue dated July 6th, 1912. The picture below is of  the dummy church being shelled.  

  © Illustrated London News Ltd. / Mary Evans

THE MURCHINGTON RUNAWAYS (Part 2)

by Colin Burbidge

To have one runaway Robert Northcott might consider himself unfortunate, but in 1846 it happened again at Murchington:  

(Western Times 6th April 1846)

 The Throwleigh Apprentices Register shows that James Bond, was assigned to Mr. Northcott on December 3rd, 1835. No parental names were registered.

On November 18th, 1846,  a report was published in the same newspaper: “Reports received by the Poor Law Board on Vagrancy”, in it a Dr. Boase classified vagrants by age group.

“The young English vagabond, probably runaway apprentices, these are from

17 to 23 years old, they defy authority, refuse work, and break windows.

To them gaol in winter is desirable retreat. These are the most disorderly and debauched of all.”

Runaway apprentices suffered a variety of punishments if caught. The Western Times reported some as follows:

May 31st, 1828: “Three apprentices ran off from their master and engaged themselves at Plymouth on board a vessel bound for Van Diemen’s Land. One of them having received severe chastisement from the ships master with a rope end, he contrived to escape on shore and returned to his master begging pardon for his offence and promised never more to offend”

May 24th, 1845: “Mr.W.H. Woodman was summoned by his apprentice Ellis, for ill usage

He had beaten him with a stick and left several contusions on his arm. There appeared to be fault on both sides, and as Mr. Woodman promised the Bench he would treat the lad better in future, no fine was inflicted.”

May 1847: “Francis Legg an apprentice of Mr. J. Smallridge was apprehended by Inspector Fulford for deserting his master. This being the second offence, he was committed for 14 days hard labour, and the master solicited their worships to cancel the indenture, which was done.”

Feb 21st, 1857 “At Exeter Guildhall John Thomas Spry aged 18 was charged by John Rich his master with absconding on January 2nd. Defendant said he was kept without a breakfast on the morning he left, and that generally his food was insufficient. This was contradicted by the complainant. Defendant was fined £1.1s with £1 6d costs which was forthwith paid by his friends. Complainant then offered to give up the defendant’s indenture if he were paid £9. The defendant’s friends paid the money, and the indenture was accordingly cancelled.”

 What of our two Murchington runaways?  Despite a search of the following two decades in the British Newspaper Archives, their names do not appear again in print after the runaway notices. Recaptured and punished, or free and on the run, we cannot know.

THE MURCHINGTON RUNAWAYS (Part 1)

By Colin Burbidge

The following notice appeared in the” Western Times” on April 9th, 1842.

Robert Northcott aged 55, a farmer from Higher Murchington had under his control a group of four young men, almost certainly all Indentured Apprentices.

All four appear on the 1841 census as being resident with Robert & Elizabeth Northcott and their 2 daughters, and all four are described on the census as agricultural labourers.

They were: Apollas Elston then aged 16, James Bond aged 13, John Bond aged 21, and William Lee aged 21.

The Poor Relief Act of 1601 (Old Poor Law) had given parish officials the power to bind a child to a master. Originally children could be apprenticed from the age of seven but in the early nineteenth century the age was raised to ten. The child was originally bound until the age of 24 but this was lowered to 21 in 1778.

Most pauper apprenticeships were arranged to remove the child as a financial burden on the parish. Many children were sent miles away from home to work as cheap labour in factories or merely as unpaid servants (they were not generally apprenticed to learn a specific craft or skill, which required the apprentice’s family to pay a fee). Other pauper children were contracted out to local families for a period of seven years and were often used by the master as menial, low paid labour. However, the child did receive board and lodging until the age of 21 in the case of boys and the age of 21 or marriage, if a girl. The pauper apprentice also gained legal settlement in his master’s parish. An Act of Parliament in 1801 required the keeping of an apprenticeship register, although not many survive.

With the advent of the New Poor Law in 1834, responsibility for pauper children was placed in the hands of the newly established Poor Law Unions.

Apollas Elston took a risk in absconding, for early in the nineteenth century it was, and for a long time had been, illegal for apprentices to resign. A "runaway apprentice" could be arrested and returned to his master, to continue working for room and board and instruction until he was 21. Hiring someone else's runaway apprentice was a tort under the law, and the rightful master could sue the illicit employer and be awarded monetary damages. The following note appeared in the “Western Times” on September 23rd, 1848, showing what could befall a runaway:

“John Cornelius, apprentice to Mr. W. Anning owner of coal vessels, was sent to prison school for a month for running away from his master’s service”

 To be continued……..

CONTAGION in THROWLEIGH (1893)

The lane from Throwleigh to to Acre Cottage

by Colin Burbidge

On December 19th, 1893, the “Western Times” reported an outbreak of smallpox at Throwleigh. The Medical Officer of Health for the Okehampton Sanitary Authority, Dr. Young said there were two serious cases of smallpox. It had occurred in a small cottage 500 yards from the village and 100 yards from the main road. It appeared that a boy from a nearby village had brought the disease. In addition to the two persons with the disease, there were four more people in the house. They had been exposed to the contagion, and it would be unwise for them to go about the parish. He proposed they be isolated for a fortnight., and a nurse would be procured to attend the patients. Dr. Young said notices should be posted around the village warning of the outbreak. Dr. Young said the outbreak was serious and probably more cases would be reported. Mr. Hooper (the Sanitary Inspector) left that afternoon for Throwleigh with bedding etc, and other things necessary to deal with the cases.

 On January 1st, 1894 Dr. Young reported to the authority that he had been unable to trace the infection further back than the boy who took the disease to Acre Cottage. A further two cases had occurred, however they were both of a mild type. The cases at Acre Cottage were now convalescent. He suggested handbills advising re-vaccination to be posted about the district.

The Board unanimously adopted the recommendation of the Medical Officer.

On March 16th, the “Western Times” reported Dr. Young as saying one of the Throwleigh patients had fatally succumbed to the disease and it was too early to say they were “out of the woods”. The healthy persons living in the infected houses deserved some praise for submitting to more or less complete imprisonment, which they cheerfully underwent.

He acknowledged the help received from Mr. Dunning the Guardian of Throwleigh Parish, and Dr. Hunt the District Medical Officer, had it not been for their endeavours he was sure the spread would have been more extensive.

On the 30th of March 1894, the “Western Times” reported that no fresh cases of smallpox had occurred at Throwleigh or been notified for over 2 months, and Dr. Young considered they were now quite free from any further risk. All infected houses had been disinfected and the bedding etc, destroyed.

 Footnote.

In 1898 a new Vaccination Act introduced a clause allowing people to opt out for moral reasons - the first time "conscientious objection" was recognised in UK law.

Opposition to vaccinations has endured despite overwhelming medical evidence of their success.

In 1899, notification of various infectious diseases, including smallpox, became compulsory.

As the use of vaccines spread - along with improved sanitation - smallpox was pushed out of Europe and North America.

Apart from a death, (linked to a Birmingham laboratory) the last case was recorded in Somalia in 1977.

OFF THE BEATEN TRACK

Sourced by Colin Burbidge

Arthur Wilde a former JP from Sussex, came to Moretonhampstead at the outbreak of WW II and enjoyed walking on Dartmoor. Being an able writer, he put his thoughts on paper, which the “Western Times” published under the heading “My Moreton Scrap Book” during the early 1940’s. What follows is part of an article entitled “Off the Beaten Track” from 22nd May 1942.

 Princep’s Folly

“My friend and I have lately been exploring the byways so that we could browse amid the antiquity of old habitations. We were off the beaten track the other Sunday and found ourselves at the foot of Gidleigh Tor. The Tor seems now to be known as Princep’s Folly, because a house was built on the summit over 90 years ago, by Thomas A. Princep. Judging from the boundaries of this old dwelling, it was not a large house and to gain added strength, its walls had been incorporated in some massive natural rocks. As we stood there I wondered what prompted the building of a house in such a lonely and exposed spot. I understand Mr. Princep never lived there and after his death his widow sold the contents, and the house was demolished. A few steps from the ruins of the house is an old tower, octagonal in shape and roofless, it is entered through a doorway with a pointed arch, and an elderberry is thriving so well inside that it has already outgrown the tower itself.

Map showing Gidleigh Tor (Thanks to Steve Foster - treksandtors)

Higher Murchington Farm

May wildflowers in the hedgerow at Murchington

 My friend was already acquainted with Mr. Arthur Endacott, and we had the pleasure of his company along the lane that led to his father’s farm at Murchington. I was charmed with their home, which was approached along a path bordered by clumps of aubretia and wallflowers, and I was able to gratify a long-held wish to sit before a real Devonshire fireplace. At Higher Murchington Farm the fireplace is so big that a person of fair height is able to stand upright in it. I liked the stout blocks of stone that must have been selected and cut to build it, and its builders certainly intended it to last for centuries.

The lane to Higher Murchington Farm - May 2021

I was particularly interested when Mrs. Endacott showed me the baking oven at the side- the first I have seen.

The very sight of this oven seemed to make me smell the delicious loaves of bread being taken out of it, and this took me back to my boyhood in Lancashire where my family loved bread baked at home.

We enjoyed our chat with Mr. Endacott as he sat on one of the chimney seats and felt we could have stayed for hours in the company of those good, homely folk. Alas all good things come to an end, but their cheery farewells put us in good heart for our tramp to Moreton town.

Footnote: A year later George Endacott retired from farming due to ill heath, all stock and equipment was sold at auction

Reproduced by kind permission of the Trinity/Mirror Group

The Ancient Cross at St. Olaves Murchington

by Colin Burbidge

For a good many years in the grounds of St. Olaves Murchington stood an old Cross. It was still marked there on the 1886 and 1890 Ordnance Survey map.

 John Chudleigh’s book “Devonshire Antiquities” published in 1893 has an illustration of this cross as it stood against a wall at Murchington, showing a square tenon at the lower end of the shaft.

It was also mentioned in this extract from a small book “The Ancient Stone Crosses of Dartmoor”.

“A few years ago, in the garden of St. Olave's, a pleasantly situated residence,

then belonging to the Rev. W. T. A. Radford, rector of Down St. Mary,

was a fine old cross. It was not a Dartmoor cross, having been brought

from the parish of Bow, which is many miles distant. This was done,

I have been informed, by the Rev. J. Ingle, a former owner of the property.

About three years ago Mr. Radford sold St. Olave's to the Rev. A. G. Barker

 and shortly afterwards, the rector of Down St. Mary, saying that Mr. Radford

had authorized him to remove the cross, took it away, to his own parish

and placed it in the churchyard there, where it now is.

There seems, however, to have been a misunderstanding somewhere,

as Mr. Barker afterwards ascertained that no permission to remove it had been given”.

This account is not entirely accurate. In 1896 the Rev. W.T.A. Radford died and was succeeded as Rector of Down St. Mary by the former missionary Bishop of Madagascar, Robert Kestell-Cornish.

In his Will Rev. Radford left his estate (gross value £15,000) and any property to his remaining son, who was also named William Tucker Arundel Radford.

Ancient Cross at Down St. Mary

In late August 1897 Rev. Kestell-Cornish officiated at the marriage of young Mr. William Radford to Mary Baker, daughter of Commander Robert Baker R.N.

By this time William Radford and his bride were living at St. Olaves Murchington. The Rev. Kestell-Cornish would have been familiar with St. Olaves and the ancient cross that was there. Rev. Kestell-Cornish had asked permission from William Radford (the younger) if he could acquire the ancient cross. To clarify the matter following the first inaccurate account Rev. Kestell- Cornish wrote to the periodical “Devon Notes & Queries”, with reference to the dubious circumstances connected with the removal of this cross from St. Olave's to the churchyard of Down St. Mary.

THE BOW - DOWN ST. MARY CROSS (Ancient Stone Crosses of Dartmoor, etc., D. N. & Q., p. 134.) where Bishop Kestell-Cornish is the Rector, the Bishop writes us:

 “I see in the July number of Devon Notes and Queries an account of the removal of an old cross from St. Olave's, Murchington, to the churchyard of Down St. Mary.

This account is not quite accurate and implies that on a quasi-authority from Mr. Radford I removed the cross from St. Olave's and placed it in Down St. Mary Churchyard without any reference to Mr. Barker. But this is precisely what I did not do. I had been informed by a mutual friend that Mr. Radford would allow me to have the cross, but that I must remove it before a certain date, because on that day the property would pass out of his hands, and I felt that it would not be fitting or courteous to take any steps without consulting the prospective owner

This led to my sending a letter to Mr. Barker, who answered me most kindly, and at his invitation I drove over to St. Olave's for luncheon, and it was then and there agreed that I should send for the cross, which I should receive from Mr. Barker. This was done, and after some delay, owing to the remissness of the man employed to make the base, it was placed where it now stands. You will see, therefore, that I was most careful not to act upon Mr. Radford's kind offer of the cross without the full concurrence of the Rev. A. G. Barker.

 The Cross can still be seen in Down St. Mary churchyard.

The Upper Teign - Children of the Mist

 Sourced by Colin Burbidge

The following beautifully composed extract describing the Upper Teign, is from Eden Phillpotts’ book “Children of the Mist”, set around a mill near Chagford, it was published in 1898 the first in an 18-book cycle based in and around Dartmoor.

Phillpotts was born in 1862 in India and died at Broadclyst in Devon in 1960. Phillpotts was for many years the President of the Dartmoor Preservation Association and cared passionately about the conservation of Dartmoor.

Chapter 4 “By the River”

“The wooded valley lay under a grey and breezy forenoon; swaying alders marked each intermittent gust with a silver ripple of upturned foliage, and still reaches of the river similarly answered the wind with hurrying flickers and furrows of dimpled light. Through its transparent flood, where the waters ran in shadow and escaped reflections, the river revealed a bed of ruddy brown and rich amber. This harmonious colouring proceeded from the pebbly bottom, where a medley of warm agate tones spread and shimmered, like some far-reaching mosaic beneath the crystal.

Looking into Blacksmith’s pool from Milfordleigh Woods

Above Teign’s shrunken current extended oak and ash, while her banks bore splendid concourse of the wild water-loving dwellers in that happy valley. meadowsweet nodded creamy crests; hemlock and fool’s parsley and seeding willowherb crowded together beneath far-scattered filigree of honeysuckles and brambles with berries, some ripe, some red; while the scarlet corals of briar and white bryony gemmed every riotous trailing thicket, dene, and dingle along the river’s brink; and in the grassy spaces between rose little chrysoprase steeples of wood sage all set in shining fern. Upon the boulders in midstream subaqueous mosses, now revealed and starved by the drought, died hard, and the seeds of grasses, figworts, and persicarias thrust up flower and foliage, flourishing in unwonted spots from which the next freshet would rudely tear them. 

Through these scenes the Teign rolled drowsily and with feeble pulses. Upon one bank rose the confines of Whiddon; on the other, abrupt, and interspersed with gulleys of shattered shale, ascended huge slopes whereon a whole summer of sunshine had scorched the heather to dry death. But fading purple still gleamed here and there in points and splashes, and the lesser furze, mingling therewith, scattered gold upon the tremendous acclivities even to the crown of fir-trees that towered remote and very blue upon the uplifted skyline. Swallows, with white breasts flashing, circled over the river, and while their elevation above the water appeared at times tremendous, the abrupt steepness of the gorge was such that the birds almost brushed the hillside with their wings. A sledge, laden with the timber of barked sapling oaks, creaked and jingled over the rough road beside the stream; a man called to his horses and a dog barked beside him; then they disappeared, and the spacious scene was again empty, save for its manifold wild life and music.”

 Reproduced by kind permission of The Royal Literary Fund

“DOING DARTMOOR” - A talk given in 1863

by Colin Burbidge

Reverend John Ingle, Rector of St. Olaves church in Exeter was a man of many parts, combative priest, incessant letter writer, pamphleteer, occasional lecturer, and soon to be a landowner at Murchington. In November 1863 he gave a talk on “Dartmoor”

View of Dartmoor from Scorhill stone circle

On November 6th, 1863, The “Western Times” published a witty review of his lecture.

 “DOING DARTMOOR” 

“The pleasantest three half hours the Literary Society and its friends have enjoyed at a lecture for a long time were spent on Wednesday night hearing the Rev. John Ingle give a free and easy account of his rambles and scrambles on Dartmoor. John Ingle is a favourite in the lecture room as was proved last night by the crowded state of the theatre which was thronged from floor to ceiling.

A Dartmoor Tor

He has a manly presence, a goodly crop of beard flourishes in the soil meant for its growth: his voice is clear, and he reads well, though he is no slave to his manuscript, makes himself at home with his audience; lightens his graver talk with gleams of wit and humour. Would you believe it, if you were not told that this same genial clever “companion de voyage” is that Priest Ingle the curate of St. Olaves who delivered that poor bit of half-popish talk about All Saints Day! How two such ill-agreeing characters should be beneath one hat must move our special wonder.

Doing Dartmoor is becoming quite the fashionable thing in Exeter, as many a weary leg, wet jacket and wasted purse could bear witness this last summer. A “Handy Book of Dartmoor” is likely to become a desideratum. Mr. Ingle’s lecture would furnish the substance of such a book. He describes how you might get there –by steam, by team or by ten-toes.

Nor does he forget the commissariat, it is no land where meagre diet or short commons are agreeable; and it is not a land flowing with milk and honey.

His counsel is that intending travellers to Dartmoor bethink them of the claims their stomach will make on them and provide accordingly. He and a friend were there for four days, and bacon and egg, egg and bacon was all the variety they had to play upon.

Mr. Ingle generously offered to give the benefit of his experience to anyone intending to make a tour of our Dartmoor Alps. This brings me back to the Handy Book – let him compile such a book and the traveller will find the convenience of having it always to hand. The lecturer was heartily applauded.”

View across Dartmoor

Reverend James George Dangar and the Economy of the Beehive

by Colin Burbidge

View over Higher Murchington farm with Fairview beyond

Murchington Chapel - now a holiday home

The Reverend James George Dangar was a very prominent landowner at Murchington His estate included “St. Johns”, “Woodlands”, “North Down” and “Higher Murchington” farms, 2 small holdings “Fairview” and “Woodlands Farm “in all, a total of 225 acres. In 1890 he also donated land for the building of Murchington chapel.

 Dangar was keenly interested in nature, horticulture, and science. On March 24th `1893 he gave a lecture to the Exeter Literary Society which was subsequently reported in the Western Times.

 Lecture on the Economy of the Beehive

He illustrated his remarks throughout by means of diagrams thrown on the screen, explaining most clearly actions of the bees, their constitutional habits, and the structure of their hive. In passing he humorously remarked that if people would exercise patience when stung by a bee, the insect would presently remove its sting itself. Instead of so restraining themselves, however people invariably brushed the bee away, killing it and affording themselves considerable trouble extracting the sting. Scientific beekeeping is no longer the occult art that it was only a few years ago; cottagers, as well as others, are now entering more than ever into the economy of the beehive, and with improvements which have been made of late years in apicultural apparatus, and instructions issued in simple leaflets on the subject, there can be no doubt that the move which has been already made will gain in power. In conclusion, he remarked that beekeeping should naturally be preceded by a careful study, not only of the anatomy but also the habits of the bee. An elementary knowledge of Botany was also most useful to enable one to grow the flowers most suitable. Beekeeping, however, was a pursuit, which was most difficult to follow in a large town; for there were not enough hedges, flowers, or orchards to feed the bees. Dr. Dangar also expressed the hope that the time had gone by for the destruction of the bees at the close of the year. Smoking the bees out was not only a most brutal; it was also a most wasteful process—(applause). Dr. Dangar invited the audience to inspect a beehive which he had on the platform with him.

On the motion of Mr. J.  Jerman the chairman, Dr. Dangar was heartily thanked for his lecture.

 Dr. Dangar’s Beekeeping lectures were much in demand for example, at the Crediton Technical Movement, as Honorary Secretary of the Devon & Exeter Beekeepers Association he gave a course of 5 lectures in Crediton Town Hall, in December 1894 and January 1895, and again in May 1895.         

In October 1906 Dr. Dangar retired after 38 years as Principal of Exeter Diocesan Training College (later Saint Luke’s, which is now part of Exeter University).

The Chase

by Colin Burbidge

Whatever your views on hunting, in the 19th century it was an integral part of rural Devon life. It was enjoyed by gentry, clergy, farmers, labourers, and tourists. It also gave work to many in impoverished areas of the county. This is an account of one day’s hunt on the Upper Teign with the Cheriton Otter Hounds, on Wednesday 17th May 1893, as recorded in the “Western Times.” 

Rushford Bridge

The rain on Monday and Tuesday night had considerably swelled the streams and given a deep tint of brown to the water. Wednesday’s meet was at Rushford Bridge with a good field. We went by the main stream to Chagford Bridge and after a climb we passed through Murchington and down to the Blackaton Brook. After drawing for a mile, we found no signs, so a return was made to the river. The Rev. A.G. Barker who presently resides at Gidleigh had an encouraging report of otters in his waters and more than this he had made preparations for the refreshment of the field, and a few minutes were spent in the consumption of cold viands and excellent liquors. Meantime the Master, Mr. Budgett found his hounds growing more interested and a challenge from an old hound proved an otter was not far ahead. Feathering through the shrubs that clothed the banks of the rocky stream, the pack pushed through the rustic bridge and up to the great boulders. At an old and very formidable clitter the hounds marked again, and the sharp yapping of the terriers apprised us of an otter within. A few minutes of suspense followed, then the gliding shape of an otter was seen in a small pool; and the hounds closed in and took to the water. On the larger boulders experienced watchers kept their eyes fixed on the current, and soon hallooes arose as the otter showed itself for a few seconds. The hounds clamoured, the horn rang out, and it made for a big boulder in mid-stream.

Blackaton Brook

A good view as it came through shallow water showed an otter of about 16lbs weight and a lightish colour. The hounds barked but the otter was in a place of temporary security, and only the terriers could get anywhere near it. Some time passed but this otter could not be moved. Blowing the hounds away, Mr. Budgett left the hovel for a time to give the otter a chance of emerging. But even this plan failed, though when the hounds returned they showed plainly by their music that the otter had not left. Again, the terriers were tried and again the otter refused to budge. As we went down a forward watcher viewed a cub otter, from this we inferred we had been hunting the bitch. Where the dog otter had concealed himself was difficult to say. The charm of hunting in this wild valley, is always the mitigation of disappointment. There are few, if any, parts of the district hunted by Mr. Cheriton’s pack that can compare in natural beauty with these upper waters of the Teign.

The Upper Teign in May

 “clitter”: a large, fractured boulder. 

The Devon Line that never was: Exeter, Teign Valley, and Chagford Railway (Part four)

by Colin Burbidge 

By early 1898 the operational plan for the Chagford branch line was revealed, as was reported on February 21st in the Western Times:

“It is intended to work the Chagford Branch by means of electricity, the fast-flowing River Teign providing the motive power, and by this arrangement the charming scenery of the Valley will remain unimpaired by smoke and noise of an ordinary locomotive. Negotiations are in progress with the Elieson Electric Motor Company (makers of electric tram cars)

 which it is confidently believed will result in an Agreement to work the line upon terms favourable with the cost of working by steam, and the novelty of this system will no doubt attract many visitors, creating a large amount of traffic”.

There was now considerable concern that the cash sums required under the contract with Dickson Brothers would not be met. On February 28th Exeter’s town clerk Mr. Gidley, in the Western Times, made a last-ditch plea for subscribers:

“Sir, Let me impress upon your readers the fact that the time for making up the required local subscription of £30,000 is running short, and if we want the railway (and we have the evidence of two public meetings here, to say nothing of meetings at, Chudleigh, Chagford and Dunsford), it really is a case of “now or never”. Certainly, if this opportunity is let slip we shall not get another so advantageous.”

On Tuesday 15th March 1898, the Directors of the Railway Company held their 6 monthly Board meeting at their offices in Victoria Street London, The Hon. C.M. Knatchbull-Hugesson in the Chair.

 The Western Times had their own representative present and he reported on the meeting.

 The Chairman summed up the situation.

“We were led to believe before the line started that at least £30,000 would be subscribed in the Exeter neighbourhood, but up to the present only £12,000 had come from Exeter and only £800 from the Chagford District which the branch line was to serve. If the Contractors had known this at the outset, they would not have begun the line. The proposal to abandon the Chagford branch need not be permanent. Let Exeter come forward to take up 5000 shares, but I have my doubts that Exeter will do it. Anyhow the most productive part of the line would be made.”

The proposal to abandon the Chagford branch and change the company name to Exeter & District Railway was approved.

It would require another Act of Parliament to authorise the abandonment of the Chagford line and to rename the company, both of which were granted.

Footnote:  on June 30th, 1903 The Exeter section of the line, 8 miles in length, was opened for traffic and worked by the Great Western Railway.

The Devon Line that never was: Exeter, Teign Valley, and Chagford Railway (Part three)

by Colin Burbidge

In the prospectus of August 1894, published in the Western Times of August 2nd, an agreement was outlined between the Great Western Railway and the directors of Exeter, Teign Valley & Chagford Railway. The GWR would agree to operate its rolling stock over the line between Exeter and Lea Cross for which it would charge 50% of the gross receipts of that line for both goods and passenger traffic. The GWR would give a ticket rebate of 10% between Bristol and Plymouth and 5% on the remainder of the GWR network. They would also allow free use of their Exeter station to the ETV&C railway.

Moretonhampstead in 2018

The GWR were not willing to operate on the Chagford branch of the line, because they argued, they already carried passengers to Chagford via their horse drawn GWR bus service between Moretonhampstead station and Chagford, and they were not prepared to jeopardise that arrangement.

The GWR were also making demands of both the Board of Directors and the contractors - Dicksons of London. The line from Exeter to Lea Cross was to be initially single track, however the GWR insisted that it be prepared as for double track running. The Board were required to purchase extra land to allow for a double track bed, any road bridge would need extra spans to cover a double track layout and the tunnels would need to be wider and higher, all of which would take Dicksons longer to accomplish.

 Exeter Chamber of Commerce took a close interest in the progress of the project, and on 5th December 1895 the Chairman, Mr.C.B. B. Sanders and Mr Mallett reported in the Western Times, on their visit to the site of the works.

“The line is proceeding very slowly, and the men working there considered that there was no need to think of a fresh job in their lifetime. Nothing more was required than the tangible support of the moneyed classes of Exeter”.

  In August 1896 Engineer Mr. Lidstone reported progress to the Board, part of which appeared on August 4th in the Western Times.

“At the Leigh Cross end about a mile and a half of heavy work has been completed. Considering the amount of work to be done at the Perridge tunnel, the Contractors deemed it advisable to concentrate on the completion of that part of the work.

Already 9 shafts have been sunk on the approached to the tunnel, and over 300 men have for some time been engaged in day and night shifts.

It is expected the hill will have been pierced within a few months, and until the tunnel is pierced the Company is precluded by its Act of Parliament from proceeding with the work on the Exeter side.”

To be continued ……….

The Devon Line that never was: Exeter, Teign Valley, and Chagford Railway (Part two)

by Colin Burbidge

The plans for the Exeter, Teign Valley & Chagford Railway project were well known and there was some enthusiasm for it at an early stage. From 1883 there was a Bill of some sort before Parliament for the planned railway, and it had numerous readings and numerous adjournments.

 In December 1887, the then Town Clerk of Exeter, Bartholomew Gidley published in the “Western Times” the following call to arms, in part he wrote:

“The opportunity offered is one not likely to recur; The cost of the railway will be somewhere about £240,000, and the offer of the contractors is to make the line (18 miles) and accept payment as to £30,000 only in cash and the rest in shares and debentures of the Company. Can we hesitate! Surely it is worthwhile for every one of us who is concerned to lend a helping hand, I am myself prepared to subscribe for £500 worth of shares on the contract being signed and I entreat my fellow citizens not to let the chance go by.”

 In Chagford on September 11th, 1894 Mr. Colville Hayter- Hames presided over a crowded and successful meeting, to support the planned railway. The “Western Times” was on hand to report the evening in their issue of 13th September.

Mr. Hayter-Hames forecast “that no place in Devon was more attractive than Chagford, and if it had rail communications with the outer world it would soon become a second Malvern”.

Mr. Lidstone, Engineer for Dickson’s the Contractors was of the opinion that:
“The probability was that the Chagford branch would be opened up before the Exeter side of the line owning to the tunnelling required there. It was important that they should have easy communications with Exeter and this line would bring them within 17 miles of it, whereas now they had to travel 35 miles to it”.

Map showing the proposed route of the Exeter, Teign Valley and Chagford Railway, Devon

 A motion was passed in support of the Railway scheme, and Mr. J. Ponsford in supporting,

remarked “A good many years ago I put £100 into a scheme for cutting a railway to Chagford and lost it. Now I am going to put more money into this scheme, and I have no fear of losing it”.

Mr. Aggett mentioned a report that the South Western railway company would work the Chagford branch.

 Mr. Hurrell, (solicitor for the Exeter, Teign Valley & Chagford Railway) replied:

“He did not know what Company would work the line. The Great Western Railway were not going to work it, and it was open to any company to offer to do so”.

 The Great Western Railway company were in fact the cause of several problems for the current scheme, its directors, and contractors.

 To be continued…….

The Devon Line that never was: Exeter, Teign Valley, and Chagford Railway (Part one)

by Colin Burbidge

After many false starts, Friday August 18th, 1894 saw the Royal Assent given to …

The formation of the Exeter, Teign Valley & Chagford Railway.

The London Stock Exchange announced that the company came into being with a capital of £240,000.  with the purpose of connecting the City of Exeter with the already extant Teign Valley Railway, the first 10 miles would connect with that line at Lea Cross and from there an 8-mile branch line would terminate at Chagford.

The Pepperpot Market House in the centre of Chagford (March 2019)

 The Valley of the Teign had long been known for its Mineral deposits, silver-lead ore, barytes, and Manganese. Owing to the cost of carriage by road, these works were closed. However, with the favourable conditions of bulk transport by rail they might soon be open again.

As reported in the Western Times in August 1894 the rail company has already had promises from Messrs William Easton & Co and the Teign Valley Barytes Mining Company of large loads of granite, macadam stone and barytes.

The Directors had appointed main contractors James & John Dickson of London, and the arrangement was that Dicksons would accept a cash payment of £30,000 and the balance would be in shares in the company. Such an arrangement gave the contractors the incentive to press on swiftly with the work, since until the line was carrying traffic, the shares were in essence worthless.

November 7th, 1894 was the date set for the ceremonial cutting of the 1st sod of turf. The event was followed in detail by the “Western Times” who informed their readers that Lady Northcote had been invited to do the honours. At 11.30am there would be a grand procession including the Band and a Company of the 1st Volunteer Regiment of the Devonshire’s, followed by the Directors, The Mayor, Sheriff, the Bishop of Exeter, and other worthies. In wet weather the procession ended in a large marquee in a field in Alphington Road near the GWR Railway bridge, the site of the new line, close to St. Thomas Station, Exeter.

The railway bridge of the Teign Valley line crossed Church Road (Alphington).

The cutting ceremony having been completed there was a special luncheon at the London Hotel, Exeter, followed by a gala football match between Exeter and Blundell’s School 1st XI and in the evening at the County Ground, despite more rain, a firework display provided by Messrs. James Paine & Sons of London.

Now began, not only the groundwork, but the negotiating with numerous landowners and local councils to purchase the land needed for the lines. In parallel, the initial £30,000 needed to be raised and large numbers of shares also required selling. In places like Dunsford, Chudleigh and Chagford enthusiastic public meetings were held to drum up support and encourage people to invest.

 To be continued……….