Meeth
| Meeth | |
| Devon | |
|---|---|
_-_geograph.org.uk_-_567424.jpg) The old Meeth Halt, by Meeth | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SS548082 |
| Location: | 50°51’19"N, 4°3’51"W |
| Data | |
| Postcode: | EX20 |
| Local Government | |
Meeth is a small village roughly eight miles north-northwest of Okehampton in the west of Devon. It sits to the west of the River Torridge.
The village has a small centre which encompasses the recently re-opened church, village hall and village pub (The Bull and Dragon, which dates from around 1490). A small B&B has just opened in the village.
In the past, ball clay mines were a major source of employment in the village; the mies are just to the west. These however closed in 2004 and their site is now a nature reserve owned by the Devon Wildlife Trust, called Meeth Quarry. The Trust's Ash Moor reserve is also located close to the village.
Railway and hiking way
From 1925 until 1982, the branch railway line from Halwill Junction to Torrington, the North Devon and Cornwall Junction Light Railway, ran through Meeth, allowing clay from the mines to be transported to Bideford for onward transport by sea; passenger service was available until 1965 from Meeth Halt railway station.
The Tarka Trail, a long-distance footpath now finishes/starts in Meeth, using the route of the former railway to reach Bideford, and skirting the Meeth Quarry and Ash Moor nature reserves.