Moretonhampstead

Coordinates: 50°39′37″N 3°46′02″W / 50.6603°N 3.7671°W / 50.6603; -3.7671
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Moretonhampstead
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townNEWTON ABBOT
Postcode districtTQ13
Dialling code01647
PoliceDevon and Cornwall
FireDevon and Somerset
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
Websitehttp://www.moretonhampstead.com/
List of places
UK
England
Devon
50°39′37″N 3°46′02″W / 50.6603°N 3.7671°W / 50.6603; -3.7671

Moretonhampstead is a market town,[a] parish and ancient manor in Devon, situated on the north-eastern edge of Dartmoor, within the Dartmoor National Park. The parish now includes the hamlet of Doccombe (/ˈdɒkəm/), and it is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Drewsteignton, Dunsford, Bridford, Bovey Tracey, Lustleigh, North Bovey and Chagford.[4]

At the

St. Andrew.[6] Along with a few other places in Devon, it is one of the longest place names in England with 16 letters. Moretonhampstead is twinned with Betton in France
.

Toponymy

The Domesday Book of 1086 records the manor as MORTONE.[7] This part of the name derives from the Old English for a town or village in moorland,[8] referring to the town's situation on Dartmoor.

In 1493 the town was recorded as "Morton Hampstead" in the Calendar of Inquisitions Post Mortem,[9] with 'ham' and 'stede' both being Anglo-Saxon words for a home or enclosed area,[10][11][12] but seemingly unnecessary to the historical context of the settlement.[13]

The Oxford Names Companion (1991) speculates that this may be a family name, or a nearby place.[14] However The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names (2004) simply says the reason for the addition is unknown.[15]

The 'Hampstead' part of the name was not always used, with the Recovery Rolls from the Court of Common Pleas in 1692 noting it as "Moreton al. Moreton Hampstead",[9] indicating that both long and short forms may be used. Local noted antiquarian Cecil Torr states that the town continued to be known simply as Moreton to the majority of people prior to the arrival of the railway, which made the station Moretonhampstead in order to distinguish it from other towns called Moreton on the railways network,[16] with 45 other settlements called Moreton or Morton.[17]

History

The central region of Devon was occupied by the

Saxons sometime after 710. Over time, it was divided into a number of estates, and one of these divisions included all land within the boundaries of the rivers Teign and Bovey
, with Moreton as its major settlement.

The present parish of over 6,000 acres (24 km2) is the remainder of an ancient royal estate. It remained a royal estate immediately after the

After that time it was the seat of

Hugh Courtenay, 2nd Earl of Devon (1303–1377). Thenceforth it descended with the Powderham estate and, in the time of Pole (died 1635), belonged to Francis Courtenay (1576–1638),[20] de jure 4th Earl of Devon
.

fulling mill
before the end of the 13th century.

In 1207 King John granted a weekly market and an annual five-day fair,[2] indicating that Moretonhampstead had developed into an important local community. The town grew steadily through the Middle Ages and remained prosperous until the end of the 17th century, when the wool industry began to decline. The town continued to be a local trading centre and a rest stop for travellers on the difficult routes across Dartmoor and from Exeter and Newton Abbot.

A series of fires in the 20th century destroyed many of Moretonhampstead's ancient buildings, but sufficient still remain to demonstrate the Saxon and medieval heritage, and its later industrial prosperity. Much of the town is a designated

Dartmoor National Park
.

The sparrowhawk

When King John granted the town its charter during the 13th century, the rent was set as one sparrowhawk per year. The bird has become something of a symbol for the town and is to be incorporated into works of public art under development by an artist in residence, Roger Dean.

Notable residents

Rev Dr James Fynes (1695 – 1774), a kinsman of the Dukes of Newcastle, served as Rector from 1735 until his death. Previously Vice-President of Magdalen College, Oxford, he married Elizabeth Bertie but they had no children, and his property in Moretonhampstead was inherited by his nephew, also James Fynes (died 1798).[22]

calculating prodigy and engineer: the house where he was born burned down in 1926.[23]

Places of interest

The Church of St Andrew, Moretonhampstead

The Cross Tree

The Cross Tree, immortalised by

Dartmoor Prison at Princetown during the Napoleonic Wars
, "did assemble around the Cross Tree with their Band".

Almshouses

Standing behind the Cross Tree are the famous almshouses, built in solid granite. The date of 1637 on the outside is actually the date they were refurbished. Recent research has shown that the main core of these buildings are at least two hundred years older. Early in the 19th century the building was converted from two tenements into four and the facade was damaged. By 1938 they had fallen into disrepair. In 1940 they were purchased for the town and converted back into two

National Trust
.

St Andrew's Church

The

St. Andrew, is at the eastern end of the town. Its imposing four-stage tower with pentagonal stair-turret was being built by 1418. The entire church is built of granite blocks although the body is roughcast. It has a two-storey porch, battlemented like the tower. Inside, the north and south aisles are separated from the nave by arcades of five bays, constructed of octagonal granite piers. All the windows are of standard Perpendicular design, and according to Pevsner there is "a singular absence of fitments of interest", due to the heavy restorations the church was subjected to in 1856 and in 1904–5. All the ledger stones were removed with the floor flagstones in the first restoration, but above the south door a wall memorial to Rev Francis Whiddon, MA (died 1656) who "was 32 years minister of this parish" survives. There is also a classical monument by Edward Bowring Stephens to a Captain John Newcombe (died 1855), and a tower screen of wood and glass of 1980.[24][25]

Tourism

Moretonhampstead relies heavily on tourism, and has done so for a long time.[26][failed verification] Its position makes it a base to explore both Dartmoor and Devon. The central part of the town stands at an altitude of 700 feet (210 m) but a short stroll within the parish will elevate the walker to beyond 1,100 feet (340 m) and afford views of the surrounding area. Moretonhampstead has four pubs and three cafes. There is a wide selection of hotels, bed and breakfast, self-catering and camping accommodation.

Moretonhampstead has a good range of sporting facilities and the proximity of Dartmoor makes it popular with ramblers and cyclists, in particular for mountain biking.[27]

Events

Moretonhampstead has an annual carnival, held in the fourth week in August which raises funds for local groups and associations. Since 2012 it has also held an annual flag festival: in 2017 it took place in mid-June. Other events include a fireworks night, annual pantomime, food and drink festival and music events spread throughout the year.[28]

Transport

The town lies on the

A382 road, connecting it to the trunk A38 and A30
roads.

Moretonhampstead railway station was opened by the Moretonhampstead and South Devon Railway on the south side of the town on 26 June 1866. It closed to passengers on 28 February 1959, although goods trains continued until 6 April 1964. After this the goods shed and engine shed continued to be used for many years by a commercial road haulage business.

Bus services are from the car park just west of the town centre and include services to Exeter (359/173) and Okehampton/Newton Abbot (178).

Sport and recreation

Moretonhampstead has

King George V
. This facility includes indoor courts for basketball etc., a gym and also conference rooms to rent. It has cricket fields a camping site, football facilities and a skate park.

See also

  • Tozer, a family surname believed to have arisen in Moretonhampstead in the 15th century.

References

  1. ^ a b "Moretonhampstead Parish". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  2. ^ a b "Devon – Moretonhampstead". Gazetteer of Markets and Fairs to 1516. history.ac.uk. 18 June 2003. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  3. ^ "Local Government Act 1972". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 December 2016.
  4. ^ "Map of Devon Parishes" (PDF). Devon County Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 November 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
  5. ^ "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  6. ^ Ecclesiastical Antiquities of Devon: Being Observations on Many Churches in Denonshire. George Oliver and John Pike Jones (editors), 1828, Exeter: E. Woolmer.
  7. ^ Thorn, Caroline & Frank, (eds.) Domesday Book, (Morris, John, gen.ed.) Vol. 9, Devon, Parts 1 & 2, Phillimore Press, Chichester, 1985, Chapter 1:45
  8. .
  9. ^ a b "Moretonhampstead". The English Place-Name Society.
  10. ^ "Old English Core Vocabulary". St Andrews University.
  11. ^ "Stede". Bosworth Toller's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary Online. 20 April 2024.
  12. ^ "ham". Bosworth Toller's Anglo-Saxon Dictionary Online. 20 April 2024.
  13. .
  14. .
  15. .
  16. ^ Torr, Cecil (1921). Small Talk at Wreyland: Volume II. Cambridge [Eng.] The University press. p. 29.
  17. .
  18. ^ Thorn, Chapter 1:1-72
  19. ^ Risdon, Tristram (d.1640), Survey of Devon, 1811 edition, London, 1811, with 1810 Additions, p.128
  20. ^ a b c Pole, Sir William (d.1635), Collections Towards a Description of the County of Devon, Sir John-William de la Pole (ed.), London, 1791, p.263
  21. ^ a b Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitations of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620. Exeter, 1895. p.244
  22. ^ www.moretonhampstead.org.uk
  23. ^ Church of St Andrew, Moretonhampstead, British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  24. ^ The Beauties of England and Wales, or Delineations, Topographical, Historical and Descriptive of Each County, Vol IV. John Britton and Edward Wedlake Brayley. 1803. London.
  25. ^ www.visitmoretonhampstead.co.uk
  26. ^ "Annual events". Visit Moretonhampstead. Retrieved 28 August 2018.

Notes

  1. ^ Since 1207, Moretonhampstead has held the right to hold a regular market,[2] making it a market town. However, the parish council has not elected to give itself the status of a town as it could do under s.245(6) of the Local Government Act 1972,[3] so it does not have a town council and cannot elect a Mayor.

External links