Sampford Peverell
| Sampford Peverell | |
| Devon | |
|---|---|
 The Grand Western Canal at Sampford Peverell | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | ST028143 |
| Location: | 50°55’12"N, 3°22’59"W |
| Data | |
| Postcode: | EX16 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Mid Devon |
Sampford Peverell is a village in eastern Devon, to the east of Tiverton, and just west of the M5 motorway, by which, less than a mile from the village, sits Tiverton Parkway Station, a station formerly named 'Sampford Peverell'. Tiverton Junction Station is to the south at Willand. The Grand Western Canal runs through the middle of Sampford Peverell.
The village's name reflects the inclusion of the manor in the Honour of Peverel, the lands of William Peverel and his family. His great-grandson, Hugh Peverell (the name had changed spelling), is buried in the parish church.
The parish is surrounded, clockwise from the north, by the parishes of Hockworthy, Holcombe Rogus, Burlescombe, Halberton and Uplowman.[1]
Church and rectories
The parish church is St John the Baptist.
The two rectories were built in 1836, at the expense of the Grand Western Canal Company, in compensation for cutting through the grounds and demolishing the south wing of the Old Rectory which had been built for the use of Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII.[2][3][4]
The Great Western Railway opened Sampford Peverell railway station in 1932 but it closed on 5 October 1964; the site has since been reused as Tiverton Parkway railway station (opened in 1986).
Poltergeist hoax
In 1810 it was reported that the house of a John Chave in the village was experiencing dramatic poltergeist activity. The case was discussed in the national press of the time, and Chave's house gained such notoriety that in 1811 it was besieged by a mob of rowdy navvies. In the scenes that followed, Chave was forced to open fire on the crowd in self-defence, killing one person, a George Helps, who lies buried in the churchyard. The paranormal activity turned out to be noises made by smugglers behind a false wall.
The house in question no longer stands, but its location can be pinpointed courtesy of a village information board that denominates it 'The Ghost House, Higher Town - now demolished'.[5]
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Sampford Peverell) |
References
- ↑ "Map of Devon Parishes". Devon County Council. http://www.devon.gov.uk/devon_districts_2002_.pdf. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
- ↑ National Heritage List 1106393: Sampford Peverell: The Old Rectory
- ↑ Jones, Michael K.: 'The King's Mother: Lady Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby' (Cambridge University Press, 1993)
- ↑ Margaret Beaufort – The Sampford Peverell Society]
- ↑ Codd, Daniel: 'Paranormal Devon' (Amberley Publishing, 2013) p.30-34 ISBN 9781848681668
- Stabb, John: 'Some Old Devon Churches' (1908–16)