North Bovey
| North Bovey | |
| Devon | |
|---|---|
 The village green at North Bovey | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SX741840 |
| Location: | 50°38’29"N, 3°46’60"W |
| Data | |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Teignbridge |
North Bovey is a village in the eastern part of Dartmoor, in Devon, on the River Bovey, from which it takes its name.
The village may be found a mile and a half south of Moretonhampstead, and eleven miles west of the county town, the City of Exeter. It stands above the eastern bank of the River Bovey. In 2001 the population of the parish was 274, compared with 418 in 1901 and 519 in 1801.
Parish church
The parish church is built of granite and is dedicated to St. John the Baptist. It dates from the 14th century, and was restored early in the 20th century by Sir Charles Nicholson.[1]
This is one of the several churches around Dartmoor that has a representation of the tinners rabbits on one of its roof bosses.[2]
The Rev. William Henry Thornton was rector of North Bovey for fifty years. He was the author of Reminiscences and Reflections of an Old West-country Clergyman; Torquay, 1897 & 1899.[3]
About the village
On the village green is an ancient stone cross which was thrown down during the Civil War and spent some time afterwards as a bridge over a local stream. In 1829 it was retrieved and installed into a socket-stone which had remained in situ on the village green, though it is not considered likely that it is the original cross that was mounted here as it appears to be older than the base.[4]
The parish encompasses part of the eastern side of Dartmoor, an area rich in Bronze Age remains such as Grimspound, right on its boundary. The mediæval Bennett's Cross, on the road between Moretonhampstead and Two Bridges is one of the markers of the parish boundary, and the Birch Tor and Vitifer tin mining area is nearby.
In the north of the parish, the small settlements of Beeson and Shapley were mentioned in the Domesday Book.
There are several preserved Dartmoor longhouses in the parish, notably at Lettaford and Westcombe.[1]
Also within the parish stands Bovey Castle, designed by Detmar Blow and built in 1905–7 for Viscount Hambledon, son of William Henry Smith (1825–1891) founder of W. H. Smith, the newsagent. It is now a grade II* listed building and a hotel with an 18-hole championship golf course.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about North Bovey) |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Nikolaus Pevsner: The Buildings of England: Devon, 1952; 1989 Penguin Books ISBN 978-0-300-09596-8page 599–601
- ↑ St. Leger-Gordon, Ruth E. (2001) [1965]. The Witchcraft and Folklore of Dartmoor (Reprint ed.). Newton Abbot: Peninsula Press. p. 45. ISBN 1 872640 11 7.
- ↑ Transcript of The Rev. William Henry Thornton; Devon & Cornwall Notes & Queries; 9:3, (1916) pp. 65-68; Genuki
- ↑ Harrison, Bill (2001). Dartmoor Stone Crosses. Tiverton: Devon Books / Halsgrove. pp. 233–4. ISBN 1-85522-791-6.