Fremington, Devon
| Fremington | |
| Devon | |
|---|---|
 Sign on the village green | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SS513324 |
| Location: | 51°4’19"N, 4°7’25"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 4,310 (2011) |
| Post town: | Barnstaple |
| Postcode: | EX31 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | North Devon |
Fremington is a large village in northern Devon, or at least large by North Devon standards, the historic centre of which is three miles west of Barnstaple. The village stands between the south bank of the tidal estuary of the River Taw and a small inlet of that river known as 'Fremington Pill'. Fremington Quay, half a mile north of the village centre, was formerly a port on the River Taw.
Fremington was formerly a borough which for a time in the reign of King Edward III (1327–77) sent members to Parliament, a distinction earned from its quay and the right to hold certain fairs or markets. The village gives a name to the Fremington Hundred, one of Devonshire's 32 hundreds.
The village, along with neighbouring Bickington and Yelland, all on the B3223 main road from Barnstaple to Instow, have, according to William Hoskins (1959), been spoilt by almost uninterrupted ribbon-building to provide housing for commuters to Barnstaple. Still, some old houses survive near the villahge centrem around the church.[1]
Parish church
The parish church is the Church of St Peter, built in the 13th century of which period the tower remains. The nave is of the 15th century, and enlargemtns and alterations were carried out in 1813. It is a Grade II* listed building.[2]
Its tower, unusually, is positioned at the east end of the church, to the north of the chancel. The church was subject to a thorough Victorian restoration in 1867 to the designs of the leading architect Sir George Gilbert Scott.[3]
The stone pulpit of the church was buried during the Reformation but later disinterred and reinstalled in the church. As a result, it retains traces of its original mediæval colour.
About the village
Fremington has two public houses, The Fox and the New Inn, situated almost next door to each other.
Fremington House, fifty yards east of St Peter's Church and clearly visible from the main road, is the former manor house, built by Richard II Acland (1679–1729), who served as Member of Parliament for Barnstaple between 1708 and 1713. It is a large, early Georgian red-brick mansion, re-modelled in the 19th century by Acland's eventual heirs, the Arundell-Yeo family. It is now a retirement home.
Little Bridge House in the village is a children's hospice run by Children's Hospice South West.
Clay works
Fremington is famous for "Fishley Pottery", made by the family of that name in the Combrew area, examples of which are in the collection of the Museum of Barnstaple and North Devon. Excellent, stone-free clay pits (now mainly worked out) exist in the eastern half of the parish and were also owned by Brannam Pottery and used for their "Barum Ware".
The clay may have formed in varve lakes, near an ice deposit which lay over Fremington during the last Ice Age or previous glaciations such as the Anglian (MIS12) or the Wolstonian glaciation (MIS6)[4] Such glacial deposits are unusual in Devon: apart from the two patches of boulder clay which lie over the centre of the parish's bedrock here, the next nearest boulder clay deposits are in the Gower peninsula of Glamorgan, some 45 miles due north of Fremington across the Bristol Channel, while east of here the nearest deposit is in the central Cotswolds, 140 miles north-east of Fremington. The existence of the boulder clay is puzzling as the southernmost limit of the Devensian glaciation is believed to have been located over South Wales. It has been suggested that the surface covering was in some way attached to an ice-mass that drifted across the Bristol Channel and deposited the till over Fremington, but this does not fully explain the presence of the nearly co-located varve clay beds.
Fremington Quay
Fremington Quay was once significant in the import and export of many goods. It had railway sidings, cranes, and other apparatus used for the export of ball clay and import of coal. Between the early to mid-twentieth century it was the busiest port (based on tonnage) between Bristol and Land's End. An abattoir was formerly located here. The quay has been redeveloped as an amenity facility with restaurant and provides wide views over the River Taw estuary.
The quay has been a Conservation Area since 1996.
Culture, sport and leisure
The Fremington great meat pie is described in a song included in Devon Tradition (Topic Records 12TS349), 1979.
Sporting and open land facilities are provided by Fremington Parish Council across all of the localities of the village, as well as having a village hall that may be hired by any of the residents of the whole parish. Allied is a Community Group who engage in charitable fundraising.[5]
The 1st Fremington Air Scouts group is also in the village.
Military history
Between 1943 and 1945 Fremington House and grounds was used by the US army as "Fremington Training Camp", a hospital and rehabilitation centre.[6]
On the departure of the Americans in 1945, Fremington House and grounds were used by the British Army as the "School of Combined Operations", commanded by an Admiral. In the late 1950s it was used by Amphibious Squadrons of the Royal Army Service Corps and Royal Corps of Transport. The mansion house served as the officers mess of 18 Company (Amphibian).[6] In the 1970s it served as an Army training camp. In 1980 Fremington House was sold by the Army and became a nursing home. The army camp, which occupied about 50 acres of land, remained, but closed on 1 October 2009. It had undergone a review by Defence Training Estates South West was said by David Harris, South West Army spokesman, to be "past its sell by date". He added: "The Fremington site is worn out and has come to the end of its economic life...Buildings at the camp are 1940s stock, old wooden huts that are very expensive to maintain. It's just not worth pumping any more money into...The camp is largely seasonal, with the majority of occupation taking place in the summer months".[7]
In its time the base was complemented economically by the still current Marines and Air Force presence at Royal Marines Base Chivenor, a mile northwards on the opposite bank of the River Taw, and the Amphibious Trials and Training Unit of the Royal Marines at Arromanches Camp in Instow, two miles to the west. The camp was closed in autumn 2009.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Fremington, Devon) |
- Fremington Parish Council
- Information on Fremington, Devon from GENUKI
- Devon County Council Local History of Fremington
References
- ↑ Hoskins, W.G.: 'A New Survey of England: Devon' (1959, first published 1954), page 399
- ↑ National Heritage List 1163217: Church of St Peter
- ↑ Hoskins. p.399
- ↑ (Campbell et al., 1998, Quaternary of South West England). Rare (for south-western England)
- ↑ fremingtoncommunity.com Retrieved 15 July 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "18 Company Royal Army Service Corps - HOME PAGE". http://18coyrasc.btck.co.uk/HISTORYOF116COY18COYSQNANDFREMINGTONCAMP.
- ↑ "Nine jobs will go as Fremington army camp closes". 29 May 2009. http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/jobs-Fremington-army-camp-closes/story-11800661-detail/story.html.
- Brain, Pauline: 'Some Men who Made Barnstaple (N. Devon Art Potters, 2010)