Posts from 2018-05-06

Diane Soall

2014-07-19 19:12:00

During the weekend of Saturday 5^th and Sunday 6^th July St Swithun’s held their Gift Day Weekend Exhibitions.

This year’s exhibitionists included the Rural Arts Group, Pyworthy School, Pyworthy History Group, and showing for the first time were the ladies of the Villavin Quilting Group.  The Sunday School children also exhibited a beautiful display illustrating various stories from the Bible.   The children of Pyworthy School’s were beautiful as usual and Key Stage 1’s entries showed their impressions of cave paintings, Key Stage 2’s were about The Medievals and Key Stage 3’s entries focussed on The Tudors.

Entries from the Rural Arts Group included a myriad of subjects ranging from still life in water colours, much loved pets in oils and charcoal, an autumnal landscape in pastels and two monochrome entries showing the beautiful effects that can be obtained using just one colour.

The History Group displayed a  project portraying the part the five men from Pyworthy played in the First World War. This was thought to be an appropriate subject to commemorate the centenary year of WW1.  Our thanks go to In Remembrance' Holsworthy & District 1914-1918 for their work in preparing this project and we are pleased that they were also able to use it in St Peters Church, Holsworthy during St Peters Fair week.    

The dozens of entries from the Villavin Quilters included appliqued and quilted cushions, wall hangings depicting many different scenes, including a washing line and one embellished with gold foil.   There were Tool Wraps, Armchair Sewing Caddies, Table Runners, many bags and many more Quilts each piece a work of art.  If you fancy your hand at making a piece of work like these join the Villavin Crafts workshop and start off with something small and progress to perhaps a super king-size quilt.   For more information on their workshop visit www.vcrafts.co.uk.

St Swithuns certainly took on a very industrious look and on Sunday the Patronal Service was held and donations were received from villagers. 

Cream teas were served throughout the weekend. 

Jackie Parrish

2014-07-15 21:19:00

Pyworthy Local History Group

During the afternoon of Tuesday 8th. July our group were eager to become closely acquainted with some bees at Chilsworthy. Unfortunately due to adverse weather conditions Chris Smith diverted us to 'The Stables', next to the Methodist Chapel, where he and his wife Elaine welcomed us into the lounge area where we all sat comfortably to listen to Chris give a very interesting and entertaining talk on all aspects of 'Bees and Beekeeping'. Chris is a prominent figure in both the Holsworthy and Devon Beekeepers Associations and his knowledge of the subject is extensive.

He related many interesting facts about the history of keeping bees going back thousands of years. We also heard about how various countries in the world 'farm' their bees and Chris told us about the Association's link with the charity 'Bees Abroad' which works with local communities to advise on a sustainable way to keep bees and produce honey. He gave us an insight into various diseases which affect bees and the varroa mite which attacks them. He went into detail about the life of the honey bee we are all familiar with and how much we as humans are reliant on their health and survival.

Chris explained about the different types of hives used and showed us a 'National' hive which is most commonly used, breaking it down into its separate parts to demonstrate how it works and the importance of each part. He also brought along a 'skep' to show us, which was used as a hive in years gone by and is still used today to gather up a swarm of bees which may have congregated in an inconvenient place! After showing us examples of beeswax and what it can be used for, he explained how the honey is extracted and we were all treated to a sample of their locally produced honey, which tempted a lot of us to purchase some immediately!

Elaine kindly provided us with further refreshments which we were able to enjoy whilst putting our questions to Chris. It was altogether a very pleasant afternoon and we hope to be able to 'visit' the bees at some time in the future when the weather permits it.

Jackie Parrish

Diane Soall

2014-07-13 15:20:00

“Pyworthy – my memories  - Zoe Marshall

Pyworthy holds many special memories for me.  My grandparents –Mabel (Burrows) and Charles Gardiner lived in  Pyworthy village at The Villa for over 50 years. They lived there with my Grandmother’s parents for many years and then had my mum – Jean Gardiner (now Shipman).

They were married at St Swithins church and my grandma cleaned at the Primary school in her younger days.  During the Second World War they homed several evacuee children sometimes with their parents as well.  They stayed in touch with a few throughout their lives and as adults one of the evacuees ‘Tony’ attended both their funerals.

I remember from my childhood holidays there going to the post office to buy sweets from Mr and Mrs Cook – then from the following owners too from London who were really lovely.  I enjoyed walking through the churchyard with my Granddad and helping him in the lovely big garden which he kept immaculate. There was also the park at Pyworthy which used to have a rather big slide the biggest I’d ever seen!  I can also recall a lot of people from the village and as I got a little older attended the dances at the Village Hall.

Vera and Ted, Bill and Marg (Pooley), Mr and Mrs Bromell, Frank Gliddon the bell ringer, Mr and Mrs Caan.  Joyce and Jim Gardiner, my aunt and uncle, Kitty Slee.  Many many more not forgetting ‘Inky’ the cat who visited the Villa every day for warm milk and biscuits – he lived for over 12 years and was actually Mr and Mrs Bromell’s cat but they didn’t seem to mind! “

Zoe

Mike Godfrey

2014-06-20 19:17:00

Pyworthy Local History Group

On Tuesday 10^th June a small group assembled on a very pleasant evening at Bideford Quay to meet up with Local Historian Peter Christie for what turned out to be a very informative and fascinating evening.  Peter has a wealth of knowledge about the buildings, inhabitants and the history of Bideford, which he imparted to us with great enthusiasm as we processed around the quayside and many of the adjacent back streets.  We found out how the quayside had originally only extended a few feet in front of today’s quayside shop fronts and had been much lower than the present level.  The quayside has been extended out 3 times, the most recent about 13 years ago.  Each time the height of the quay has been raised to compensate for the effects of narrowing the River.  We were told about the Bridge and the uneven arches thought to be down to the wealth of the particular individuals who paid for each one, although there is no absolute knowledge to confirm this.

Peter is a member of the Bideford Bridge Trust, which funded the bridge upkeep and repairs.  The money for this work came from investments, mainly buildings in Bideford, which were bequeathed to the Trust in past times by wealthy people.  Following the collapse of the two westerly bridge arches, the repair costs almost bankrupted the Trust and the Bridge was taken over by the Department of Transport.  However with true Government incompetence they didn’t take over the buildings or the income there from. This has meant that the Bridge Trust has become very wealthy and is able to fund many charitable projects, as well as develop and renovate many of its buildings within Bideford, with the aim of encouraging more people to live in the town centre to help rejuvenate Bideford.

We learnt that the road that leads North West out of the town was originally a large River tributary stretching from the red brick Art College building on the corner, right across to the Park railings on the other side.  Peter suggested that the Vikings got into the River and this tributary but that this was one of the few places where they were beaten and repelled.  At this point the quayside extended in a westerly direction from the River front with the road known as the Strand forming part of the northerly edge of Bideford.  Small roads such as Rope Walk stretch for several hundred yards into the town and were used as the name implies to make very long ropes for the sailing boats.

Bideford has a wealth of architectural interest and we were encouraged to look upward at the buildings throughout the tour to take in many interesting features that adorn the buildings and reveal clues as to their past uses, many as warehouses for the extensive quayside trade.  Bideford originally had some 52 pubs, many were side by side as were what are now the quayside fish and chip shop and the two or three buildings either side.  Nowadays there are only about 12 pubs left.

During the evening we learnt very many interesting and surprising historical facts about Bideford, too many to mention in this article but all in all it was a very enjoyable evening and was rounded off very nicely with fish and chips on the focus of our visit the Quayside.

Mike Godfrey              

Diane Soall

2014-05-26 14:14:00

Our Group's Visit to Pyworthy Primary School

On Thursday 22^nd May about a dozen or so of our group spent a very interesting afternoon being shown around Pyworthy Church of England Primary School by some of the Year 6 students.  We arrived at 2.00pm and were greeted by the Acting Head Teacher, Celia Luff who suggested that we split up into two groups to make it easier to move around the school.

Each group was shown around by two of the Year 6 pupils who explained which rooms were being used by which pupils.  They have a quite large Art room in the extension, the walls of which contained some very impressive samples of their work. One of the two main classrooms is used by Key Stage 1 students and has groups of tables around which the children work together.   They also have a very impressive Interactive whiteboard which is linked to a computer – so all the class is able to view what is on the computer.      In the similarly equipped Key Stage 2 classroom the children in years 3-6 are taught.   They also have a beautiful light and airy classroom in the conservatory which accommodates the early years’ children. 

Upstairs is a very spacious library, which had just received a new consignment of books and was in the throes of being reorganised.   Off this room is the Staff room.  

Two of our Group, Jackie Parrish and John Burnard, had both been pupils at the school and after being shown around we were all taken into one of the classrooms where the children asked our Chairman questions about what the School was like “in their day”.   Did they wear a School Uniform?  What were their favourite subjects? What were their teachers’ names? …. and many more.  They were all very attentive and extremely polite.   I think the children realised that they are a whole lot better off now than the pupils were in the early days, especially when Jackie explained that they had no central heating in the school when she was there, and that two of the older boys would have to fetch the logs and coal in from the shed to keep the fire burning in the big cast iron stoves which were in each classroom.   Jackie also explained that in contrast to the new toilets now incorporated in the school building, they had to go outside to the toilets which were non-flushing and contained sand and which had to be emptied every so often.  

After question-time, we were all taken into the art room and were served cups of tea or coffee with cake and chocolate biscuits.  For those of us who have only ever seen the school from the outside we were really surprised at how big it is and how many well equipped rooms it contains. Rather like a tardis.

We’d like to extend a really big thank you to Celia Luff, her staff and all of her students for a very enjoyable afternoon.

Diane Soall 

John Burnard

2014-05-26 10:02:00

On 8^th April we were fortunate to have Dr Janet Few give a talk on

WHAT OUR ANCESTORS WOULD HAVE DIED FROM

She began with the sixteen hundreds and The Great Plague and diseases such as Cholera, Typhoid etc.    In the eighteen hundreds and early nineteen hundreds one of the great killers was of course Tuberculosis and also the childhood scourges of Scarlet Fever, Diphtheria, Measles and Polio which were only brought under control in our lifetime when vaccines and antibiotics came on the scene.

This may sound like it was a dreary evening but with Dr Few’s knowledge of her subject and her sense of humour it was anything but. 

She will be coming to speak to us again in the near future on a different subject and we look forward in anticipation.

John Burnard

John Burnard, Our Chairman

2016-04-01 18:30:00

History Group March Meeting

The March meeting took the form of a guided tour around the Greenfield Engineering business at Holsworthy Industrial Estate by kind invitation of Mr Gary Burnard and Greenfield Engineering.

Gary explained that the business was begun in 1987 at Bradworthy in one industrial unit and having outgrown the premises there moved to Holsworthy Industrial Estate where they now operate two sites.

The current workforce is around seventy making it one of the larger employers in the town. Many of whom are local people who have learned their skills with the company.

Gary explained that they did not have their own brands but were able to manufacture components needed by many of the big companies around Britain and also export goods of high quality to very a high standard and work to demanding deadlines regarding delivery.

The machinery involved in their work is mind bogglingly sophisticated, also very expensive, and running into hundreds of thousands of pounds and sometimes millions! Many are imported to their high specifications.

These machines are capable of, Automated Punching, Panel Bending, Robotic Bending, Stud Insertion, Fabrication, Powder Coating etc.

Gary explained that the plans for a component would be received on a flat piece of paper and his computer technicians would draw out the final plans in 3D to very exacting tolerances.

 Greenfield run an apprentice scheme and are keen to work with the local schools to provide work experience on the shop floor for 14 to 16 year olds.

A very interesting evening was had by all and a welcome cup of tea was provided by Mum Sandra Burnard. Many thanks to Greenfield, Gary and Sandra.

Perhaps the last word should go to one of our members who E-Mailed me this note.

“I guess the impressive thing was the large investment in clever machines and technology , and the human energy it must require to do this and keep them going. It is wonderful that Holsworthy can be the location for such a not so small manufacturing company. It is a little frightening to think how short the lifetime might be of these machines as technology keeps changing.

Hats off to Greenfield.”

Mr John Burnard

2015-11-22 20:50:00

The meeting held at Cornerstones on 10^th November was addressed by Mr Mark Thomas of Launceston.

Mr John Burnard introduced Mark and his wife Jenny.  Mark resides at Treguddick Launceston where he farms with his sons keeping pedigree South Devon Cattle and Polled Dorset Sheep. He had been a tenant farmer at Treguddick with his father from 1970 until 2012 when the family had the chance to purchase the farm. He explained that he had been a tenant not of The Duchy Estate i.e. (Prince Charles's Lands) but of another estate based in Cornwall.

A few years ago Mark and Jenny began to get invites to receptions sent out by The Duchy of Cornwall. They were a bit mystified as to why, as they were not tenants of the Duchy Estate, however as good Cornish people they went along.

After a time Mark was taken aside and asked if he would be willing to serve as a member of The Princes Council of The Duchy of Cornwall.

All became clear then as they realized that they had been being vetted.

Mark explained to us about his work and about the Estate, the land owned by the Duchy which is mostly in the south west counties extends to 54,000 hectares plus some 37,000 hectares of moorland and moorland farms on Dartmoor.

The Council is composed of nine members and Prince Charles, who chairs the meetings. Other members who sit include such people as The Duke of Westminster and others with financial expertise and from such walks of life as high ranking lawyers and solicitors.

The Duchy also owns many properties throughout the Country which are let as homes or for holiday homes.

Some of you may have seen the new town near Dorchester called Pound bury, Built by the Duchy with Prince Charles having a large input regarding the architecture.

All this is overseen by The Princes Council of The Duchy of Cornwall.

Mark gave us an informative view into a part of life that not many people are aware of, how he finds time to farm as well as the many other committees he is involved with I am not quite sure.

John Burnard

Diane Soall

2015-09-11 18:42:00

The group were very fortunate this month to have Hilary Vivian, a freelance reporter on the Western Morning News, come and give a talk about her visit to India.    She travelled to Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Mysore, Kodaikanal and Hill Station in the South-east province and had a wide variety of photographs showing all aspects of the Indian culture highlighting the extreme differences in this culture ranging from the very poor people who live and sleep on the streets to the very rich with luxury apartments.  One thing was very evident and that was that most of the people that Hilary met were very happy about having their photographs taken.   Hilary is a keen bird fancier and had some really beautiful pictures of the birds from the areas she visited.

It was a lovely, entertaining evening, enjoyed by our group and our thanks go to Stella and John Burnard, once again, for their hospitality in hosting this event and for the lovely refreshments.

Diane Soall

John Burnard, Our Chairman

2015-07-20 18:41:00

For the July meeting the history group attended the meeting of the Court Leat. This as usual proved to be a very entertaining evening. Subjects that were discussed were as always, a chance to poke fun in an innocent manner at the Court Leat members. If you wish to know more about the goings on of this great and serious seat of justice there is no better place to find out than the report in the Holsworthy Post of 16^th July 2015.                                                                                                                   John Burnard

Diane Soall

2015-06-09 18:37:00

This month our group finally paid our long awaited visit to Hartland Abbey in North Devon. There were 25 of us this time and we were lucky to have a beautiful day to make this visit.

Two of our Members, Marzi and Tony Fiske who live in Derril have known Lord and Lady Stucley for many years and we were very fortunate in having them there during our visit to take us around the Abbey and give us a very interesting account of the history of this very interesting building.

The Abbey was built in the 12^th Century and remained an Augustinian monastery from 1160 to 1539 when it was finally dissolved, having survived longer than any other monastery in the country.

Henry VIII made a gift of the Abbey to the Sergeant of his wine cellar, William Abbott and Lord Stucley gave a very interesting potted history of the Abbey and its owners to the present day.

For those who have never been, the Abbey is well worth a visit.    The gardens are extremely beautiful and well maintained and there is a lovely tea-room with an extensive tasty lunch menu and very efficient staff.    I speak for us all when I say we had one of the most enjoyable visits the group has had and I am sure many of us will be returning to revisit this interesting ancestral home.    

Jackie Parrish

2015-04-26 10:30:00

The History of Pyworthy

     On Tues 14th. April our Local History Group met at 'Court', the home of John and Penny Weighell, to be entertained by Mr. Michael Heard of Kilkhampton. He is well -known in local history circles for his enthusiasm for the history of West Devon and North Cornwall and has had a long connection with the Cornwall History Society.

     Michael gave a very interesting talk in which he 'placed' Pyworthy in different ages of history from pre-history through to the present day describing typical features of a West Devon village like Pyworthy and how it would have functioned during each historical period. He also brought maps, photographs and artefacts to illustrate aspects of his talk. We will all be looking at our village through different eyes from now on.

     Thanks to Michael for a very enjoyable evening and to John and Penny for their generous hospitality (and cake!)

Diane Soall

2015-03-16 18:55:00

Readers of the Pyworthy Post will have seen Rupert Kirkwood’s accounts of his many kayaking trips around the British Isles.  The History Group this month were fortunate in having Rupert give us a very entertaining and enthusiastic report of his trips together with some astounding photographs.  Rupert not only kayaks around the unpredictable waters of our island, he takes his kayak into every inlet and river on the way.    Last year he was even able to kayak on the largest lake in the West Country when the Somerset Levels flooded. He had some impressive photos of his attempt to break the 40 mph speed limit along one of the flooded roads onto the levels. 

Rupert’s photographs included close-ups pictures of basking sharks, dolphins, porpoises, sun-fish, seals, and a host of birds the like of which most of us only see in wildlife programmes on the television.    His enthusiasm for his sport and the wildlife he encounters is to be envied.  

Our thanks go to Rupert for a most entertaining evening.  Our thanks also go to Stella and John for hosting the evening and providing excellent refreshments.

We are hoping to invite Michael Heard along for April’s talk. This will be on 14^th, venue to be announced later.  

Diane Soall  

Chairman's Blog on February's talk

2015-02-20 13:56:00

Captured by Somali Pirates! 

The February meeting was held at Cornerstones on Tuesday 10^th  our guest speaker was Captain Colin Darch from Appledore .

Captain Darch is a Master Mariner, now retired; he has spent the latter part of his working life delivering ships around various parts of the world whilst working for a Danish Company.

In 2007 he was asked to deliver two tugs from St Petersburg in Russia to the south coast of Africa.

Each boat had a crew of five including the captain, a chief engineer, and three other men.

On Captain Darch’s boat this meant him, one Irishman and three Russians who spoke very little English.

Once they were at sea the Captain asked who the cook was. They replied that no one was so he told the Russians they would have to fill the role.

When the first meal was ready it became clear that none of the Russians had a clue how to cook. Their cooking was basically to get a big pot and put it on the stove and throw in whatever they had to hand, give it a stir and leave it until it was cooked.

Not a very exiting prospect when they had thousands of miles to travel and most of it on the open sea.

On the way down the other tug had developed a fault so it had to call in to have some repairs done to it, this meant that Captain Darch had to continue the journey alone

He had been told not to venture closer than fifty miles from the Somali coast. 

When they got near to Somalia they saw a very fast skiff bearing down on them.

Our Captain took evasive action, this tugboat had six thousand horsepower engines and while it was not built for speed and could not outrun the pirates it did punch hard. Also it could manoeuvre sideways so when they got near he put the thrust motors to smack into their boat. There were about five of the pirates on board their boat armed with machine guns.

This went on for quite a time and things got a bit dangerous when they began firing over the heads of the crew on board the tug.

The men on the tug had no armoury so felt it was time to give up, the pirates came on board and told the crew that they were now in charge and would be told what to do.

They instructed Captain Darch to contact his Danish Company and tell them that they wanted a ransom for the ship and crew of 2.5 million euros.

When the Captain had a chance he checked his position and found it to be seventy miles off Somalia.

When the pirates first boarded they kept the crew in the wheelhouse and of course they had to steer and run the boat. After some time the leader said that the crew could go to their cabins and get some sleep.

When Catain Darch went down he found that that they searched his cabin and it was a real mess. Seven hundred pounds of company money was gone along with two hundred of his own, plus laptops etc and his watch.

He went back up and told the leader that he did not mind the money being gone but he did want his watch back. After a while back came the pirate leader with his watch and he gave it back to him. The pirate then said, “You should be more careful captain there are thieves on this boat.”

The pirates held the boat for a total of forty-seven days, but finaly an agreement was reached with the insurers of a ransom for 670,000 euros, a far cry from their demands at the beginning of 2.5 million euros.

As the pirates had no bank accounts the money had to be sent as cash, they did not want it sent overland as this might result in them being robbed so it was sent up from Mumbia by boat.

They then released the hostages and they were allowed to continue on their way. 

It was an interesting evening and a look into a world far removed from ours.

Our thanks go to Captain Darch for making it so interesting.

Diane Soall

2014-12-12 16:44:00

Continuing with the Commemorations of the start of World War I, the History Group this month were fortunate in being able to arrange a visit from Shawn Dymond, from Holsworthy Museum who gave a talk about the project that the Museum are currently working on. The Project, ‘In remembrance’ was originally an idea simply to research the 36 men whose names appear on the Holsworthy War Memorial.  ‘In Remembrance’ now covers the 22 parishes that comprised the Holsworthy Union, the administrative area which existed at that time.

Forming the foundation of the WW1 Centenary commemorations planned by Holsworthy Museum, the project focuses on the part played by the men and women of the Holsworthy area during and after the war.

The ‘In Remembrance’ project, whose slogan is “Honouring the sacrifice, preserving the memory” was awarded a Heritage Lottery Fund grant enabling the ideas to become a reality.  In accordance with the requirements of a Heritage Lottery Grant, projects must encourage the involvement of the local community and the dissemination of information to the wider community.  Details of how ‘In Remembrance’ will do this are contained in their leaflet on the project, a copy of which is available to see on our website: www.pyworthyhistory.co.uk on our Diary of Events link.

Although ‘In Remembrance’ primarily focuses on those who did not return from the Great War, other aspects will consider the role women played; the experiences of those who remained at home, including those who refused to fight on the grounds of conscience; and the survivors, many of whom carried the scars of war – both emotional and physical – for the rest of their lives.

Shawn’s talk was totally enthralling, informative and thought-provoking.  It served to remind us how important it is to remember these brave people and the sacrifices they made;  and to conserve the family and local history of them and the times they lived as well as the events that helped shape the world in which we now live.     The statistical breakdown of the numbers of casualties from Holsworthy clearly indicated that not all those that died were engaged in enemy action.   Some died from illnesses such as diphtheria and influenza, others died from their wounds after returning home and some died from accidents such as drowning.  

Many thanks to Shawn and also to John and Stella Burnard for their kind hospitality in hosting this event.

John Burnard, Our Chairman

2014-11-25 11:44:00

The November meeting of the group was held at the newly refurbished Bridgerule Hall on 12^th Nov when the guest speaker was Mr Brian Wonnacott.

His subject was “My Forty Years at Pebode Vets” and gave us his memories of those past years leading up to his recent retirement from the practice.

Begun in the mid 1800s by the Penhale family it continued to be run by family members until after the Second World War.

Brian explained how he had joined the practice in the 1970s and how it had grown over the years to be one of the largest in England.

Also how vets now tend to specialise in Farm Work, Pets or Equine.

When he joined it was mostly large animal work and this is what he did during his time there.

He explained how things had changed over the years and how the use of vaccines had helped control certain diseases, which were now preventable.

Antibiotics had made a great difference to treatment although some had been withdrawn to prevent a build up of resistance in the human population.

He also explained how he had been involved in the B S E scare and in the 2001 Foot and Mouth Outbreak.

An experience he did not want to go through again.

Thanks were expressed on behalf of the members.

Jackie Parrish

2014-09-19 17:54:00

On Tues. 9th. Sept. the History group met at John Burnard's home to listen to an entertaining presentation given by Terry Faull from North Petherwin. His subject was the Agricultural Workers' Strike of 1830 and what led up to it.

He began by giving us an insight into life in the countryside and in our villages prior to this.  It was very different from the images often portrayed of an idyllic country lifestyle.  Life was very hard, especially for the agricultural worker.  We learnt that every parish was responsible for its own poor people and the Churchwardens were the administrators of the 'Poor Laws'.  People would strive to keep themselves out of the Workhouse where conditions were very harsh.  Terry showed us pictures of workhouses in our local area, including the one at Holsworthy (off Trewyn Rd) which has now been turned into living accommodation and explained that a lot of them became hospitals as did  Holsworthy in the interim period.  Many of us will remember it under the name of Dawfield Hospital.

Terry explained that the agricultural workers and other poorer people needed to boost their wages in order to make ends meet.  One of the main chances for workers' wives and children to earn extra money was by hand-thrashing corn in the winter months.  He showed us pictures of very distinctive barns which were used for this purpose and of the hand-held tool used.  However the introduction of the mechanical 'thrashing machine', invented in Scotland in 1792 and used throughout Britain by 1808, meant that this work became harder to find.  This was the reason for the so called 'Swing Riots' across the country.  Devon and Cornwall were not affected as much as other parts as wages were better here and people were not so reliant on this winter working.  However some riots did occur in places as close as Exeter and Launceston.

To conclude he explained to us that as a result of these riots the Poor Laws were investigated and many village Friendly Societies sprang up.  Also as a direct result 'Primitive Methodism' was started, the forerunner to the Methodist movement as we know it today.  He was also able to tell us that in 1829 a man with the surname 'Oliver' from Pyworthy asked John Hewson, a Primitive Methodist, to come to the village to preach, and was probably the first Methodist to do so in Pyworthy.  This was an interesting local anecdote with which to end his talk.

Terry is obviously very knowledgeable when it comes to rural history and we all learnt a lot from him.  Refreshments were provided by John's wife Stella and her helper Maisie which rounded up a most pleasant evening.            

Jackie Parrish

John Weighell

2017-10-11 15:34:00

John Weighell’s observations

The great Hall built in the original house is one room, open to the roof which was slated when first built, an indication of it being a high-status house. Originally the Hall was one room with a central fireplace with no chimney, smoke from the fire rising and then percolating through the roof, it’s hard to imagine what it was like living in a house with the constant reek of wood smoke and quite a leap of imagination is needed to envision a family and servants sharing one space with no privacy

A chimney was added to the room probably in the 17^th century and at this time as the smoke no longer rose centrally in the room part of the room had a floor added to create a chamber over with privacy for the master and mistress.

The original joinery work is of a high standard with lovely detailing, all done without power tools and using blacksmith made tools that would require a lot of skill to use and time to sharpen and maintain. Whoever did the work certainly was a “good hand”, the rafters, purlins, door frames and doors are all a delight to see and we must remember all done, as we say in these parts “by t’rack o’th’eye".   J.W.

Diane Soall, Secretary

2017-10-11 15:30:00

This month found the History Group members and a few extra non-members travelling in convoy down to Yeolmbridge in Launceston to visit Cullacott Farmhouse.   We were given a thorough and interesting tour of the farmhouse by owners John and Mary Cole whose extensive knowledge about this wonderful building kept us all enthralled.  John and Mary Cole have been running their holiday cottages on their beautiful farm in North Cornwall since 1997.

Cullacott Farmhouse is a Grade 1 listed Medieval Hall House built in the style of a Devon Longhouse with a great number of its original features still surviving.  It is located close to the Devon and Cornwall borders in the parish of Werrington, and is surrounded by outstanding views. It has been in the family for over 100 years. Five generations of their family have lived at Cullacott. John and Mary Mann, the first generation, arrived from West Cornwall in 1910.

Records date from the 14th Century when it was originally part of the huge swathes of land owned by Tavistock Abbey. In 1538, during the Dissolution of the Monasteries, it was given, with other properties, to John Russell who became the 1st Duke of Bedford. Many properties including Cullacott, were sold on and by 1620 the Werrington lands were owned by Sir Francis Drake, nephew of the famous Elizabethan sailor of the same name.

The "modern extension" was built in 1579 at the time of the great Elizabethan re-build, providing grander accommodation for the evolving needs of the family of the day. It provided a retiring parlour, bed chambers and the ultimate in sanitation at the time - a garderobe. The property has evolved through the centuries with little alteration leaving an almost complete medieval house.                       

Richard, Mary and John’s son, and his wife Tanya run an outside events and catering business providing marquees for weddings and other functions such as hog roasts, barbecues and outside mobile bars. Cullacott itself can be used as a wedding or party reception venue using Richard and Tanya's expertise.

At the end of our tour we were treated to a most welcome “Cream Tea” with Devon splits, lemon drizzle cake and fruit buns being just a few of the goodies all home-cooked by Mary and her daughter. 

I know all our members and non-members really enjoyed this visit and it is one to be fully recommended.

John McDougall

2017-06-20 16:52:00

Members and friends of the group recently visited Dartington Crystal factory in Torrington. It is the only working handmade crystal factory remaining in the UK. In the visitor centre there are display cases showing the timeline of nearly 50 years of Dartington Glass, from its start in Dartington up to date.  There is also a very informative short video of the beginnings of crystal making up to the move to Torrington.  On the start of the 'go - as - you - please'  tour of the factory there is an engraver to watch.  We saw him setting up to engrave a horse's head using a very light touch of the stylus.  The display of engraved glass is impressive.  Then we went on to the factory floor where we saw the molten glass drawn from the furnace, blown into moulds, teased out to form a stem and finally a fresh blob of molten glass added to form the foot of the drinking glass.  Each one took less than two minutes, I reckon.  Each person has their own task in the production we saw and they change every two hours to another number.  Various styles of glass were being made at the same time by different teams.  A lot of the staff have spent most of their working lives in this industry.  The furnaces to make the glass are on all the time 24/7.  After the glass has been annealing - allowing it to cool slowly - it is checked.  Flawed glass goes back in to the furnace.  Perfect specimens get  'named' by sand blasting - even 'M & S' was one of the names available.  Then packed up for storage and delivery or for sale in the shop.  Dartington Crystal also own Royal Brierley Crystal and Caithness Glass.  All of these brands are available in the shop, at discounted prices.  It was a wonderful tour.

Diane Soall, Secretary

2017-05-17 17:13:00

Rev. Fr. Christopher Penn. Priest in Charge of

St. Peter and St. Paul, Holsworthy

St. Petroc, Hollacombe

St. Swithun, Pyworthy

St. Pancras, Pancrasweek

St. Bridget, Bridgerule

The History Group had a really interesting and amusing talk by Father Chris this month about his life before he became a Priest.  He had many amusing tales to tell about his extensive time spent in the farming industry and his intention is to write a book about his life.   I can assure you this will be worth waiting for.   Father Chris will be leaving Holsworthy Benefice in January, to take up a position as Rector of two parishes in the diocese of Hereford.

This month’s event was once again held in The Molesworth Arms, so thank you Kit and Monique for allowing us to use the dining room and for the very tasty nibbles at the end of our meeting.

John Burnard, Our Chairman

2017-05-17 17:07:00

For our April meeting we welcomed Mr Terry Faull from North Petherwin. He gave a slide show and talk at the Molesworth Arms entitled The History of The Forgotten Garden and The Holy Well of Lewtrenchard.

He told us that the earliest information of a Holy Well at Lewtrenchard is an entry made in the parish register for 1830 by the then curate Caddy Thomas.

He wrote that the Holy Well behind the church has been re-erected and formerly its water was used for baptisms at the font.

In 1872 Sabine Barring-Gould inherited the Lew estate. He then came back to Lewtrenchard and took on the living as rector. Soon after the well was knocked over during tree felling and buried.

In early 2006 Terry Faull gave a talk to the local history society, Lewdown Past, which included how he had attempted to find the Holy Well but to no avail.

He and a few others struggled though the undergrowth of the Glen behind the church to try and trace the well, they did not find it but did find traces of an old garden and various water features such as ponds and waterfalls.

It is understood that The Glen came about as a result of quarrying the stone to build the former rectory, now the Lewtrenchard Hotel. 

Sabine was a complicated man, he was credited with writing the Hymn Onward Christian Soldiers but he had no time for the Methodists who were a strong force at the time. How he would have felt today when this hymn is being sung by Methodists and others all over the world I shudder to think.

He also wrote over one hundred books ranging from novels to two biographies. 

He planted the garden in 1913 and rebuilt the well, as a record in his Family Bible stated, “Built Holy Well in The Glen”.  This would tie in with the Garden being created at the same time.

Sabine made the garden so that his wife Grace, who suffered from arthritis could take more exercise to try and help her condition.

Many of the employees went to serve in the first world war and the garden became neglected.

So it was that it continued to go back to nature over the next ten decades until The Friends of Lewtrenchard became involved and the garden was restored and the Holy Well also. 

The garden is situated opposite The Lewtrenchard Hotel, by the Church. Admission is free and the total site covers some five acres including woodland. There are gravel paths around the garden and a car park. Also the newly rebuilt Holy Well.

If you want a treat go and have a look for yourselves; I am sure you will not be disappointed.

Our thanks to the Molesworth Arms for hosting us and to Terry Faull for his interesting evening.

Jackie Parrish

2017-05-17 16:56:00

Diane Soall, Secretary

2017-05-17 16:47:00

This month’s talk was held in The Molesworth Arms and given by The History Interpreter, Janet Few on Family History and how one goes about tracing ones family tree. Some of you will know Janet from a previous visit to our Group and also if you ever visited Torrington 1646 (which incidentally is now closed).    Janet’s talks are always informative and amusing and this one was no exception. 

Access to records has been made much easier in recent years due to the ability to search records on-line – for a fee.  Websites such as www.findmypast.co.uk and www.Ancestry.co.uk are very useful tools for searching.  If you are thinking of starting to research your family tree these websites can be accessed free of charge if you are a member of Holsworthy Library.  If you have any birth certificates of your family it makes starting your research a little easier and less expensive.   

John Burnard, Our Chairman

2017-05-17 16:39:00

The September meeting was held on 6^th September and was a visit to Bridgerule Church. Our tour was kindly led by Messrs John and Trevor Bowden who have lived, worshipped and worked on their farm next to the Church all their lives. They both had interesting stories to share with us that they had witnessed over the years.

They explained that some years ago the Church was re-roofed and the slates were re-used to pave the floor. They were small slates and were put on their edges in squares about 6 inches across,(150mm to younger people) this looked as if they would last for ever as you could not see any wear and they were 6 inches deep.

Rev Kingdon who was Rector for seventy years made many alterations to the church during his incumbency, one was to put a heavy screen behind the altar which made the window behind invisible from view.

 It was a very old window of stained glass so it was moved into the north wall where it has pride of place.

Trevor explained to us the art of bell ringing. Around the walls were a number of certificates awarded to past ringing teams, among these were some that commemorate the ringing of Grandsire Triples.

To ring Grandsire Triples on eight bells as there are in the tower at Bridgerule is a mammoth feat. It takes just under three hours to complete and consists of 5040 changes which all have be remembered by the ringers.

This was a lovely evening and thanks go to John and Trevor for an entertaining tour.

Launceston Castle visit - July

2016-07-21 15:09:00

Our meeting for July was held on Sunday 17^th and was a visit to Launceston Castle. Eight members attended the tour which was a smaller number than usual the reason being that we visited the castle two years ago. The weather was not as kind as it could have been, as we left Pyworthy in sunshine and when we arrived at Launceston it was raining and continued to do so. However with the help of  “brollys” and coats we continued the tour. 

The Castle dates back to the Norman Conquest and is a reminder of the Earls (later Dukes) of Cornwall. Little of the castle survives, the mound or (“motte) with its stone keep, the ruined gatehouse and some lengths of stone curtain wall. The site was highly defensible in terms of eleven century warfare.

In later years it became a jail and one of its most famous prisoners was George Fox founder of the Society of Friends or Quakers. Fox was arrested in 1656 for distributing religious pamphlets in the town. He refused to remove his hat when brought before the magistrate, whereupon he was imprisoned for several months. He called the “pit into which he was put “Doomsdale” and recorded it in his journal as “a nasty stinking place”. Such were the conditions of prisons in the fifteenth century.

Despite the weather we had an interesting time.

John Burnard

Diane Soall

2016-06-28 12:06:00

This week’s visit with the group took us to Bradworthy.  There were about a dozen in our group which included three members from the Bradworthy History Group including Daphne Nichols whose knowledge of the history of her village is extremely extensive.

Bradworthy is an excellent example of a Saxon village and has two village squares and lies some eight miles from Holsworthy.  The main square is reported to be the largest village square in the County.

Our tour started at the Church, which is dedicated to St John the Baptist.  There have been some recent repairs to the Church and whilst the builders were laying some new slate flooring they uncovered a crypt containing some perfectly preserved coffins.  They also discovered many human remains under the old flooring and these are now buried in the churchyard.  Their History Group are in the throes of indexing their gravestones and we are only too aware of how complex a job this is, especially when confronted with Devon’s famous rain.   In the churchyard is a small headstone in memory of John Cann, who, according to the inscription went through all the Peninsular War and was at Waterloo. He died in the village at the age of 101.

Bradworthy has a very imposing Memorial Hall which is situated in the centre of the village, overlooking the square which offers convenient parking. The refurbished hall and lounge bar are ideal for recreational or leisure use.  Upstairs there is a large room which the History Group use for their photographic displays and storage of their precious documents.   We were very envious of this space.  Daphne and her colleagues made us feel very welcome and at the end of our visit they kindly supplied refreshments of tea, coffee and biscuits.   We were fortunate to have spent a lovely evening, with good weather and thank Daphne and her colleagues for their time. 

Diane Soall 

John

2016-06-17 13:33:00

For our May meeting we made a visit to the home of the Chichester family at Hall Bishops Tawton.

Hall is an estate of some 3000 acres, within the parish and was the former Manor of North Tawton Devon.

It was for several centuries the seat one of the Chichester family of Raleigh near Barnstaple.

The mansion house is a Grade 11 listed building of neo-Jacobean design and was built between 1844 and 1847.

by Robert Chichester and replaced an earlier building.

The manor of North Tawton was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as one of the holdings of the Bishop of Exeter.  Within this manor was the estate of Hall which the Bishop granted to his lawyer Simon de Hall,”a man very learned in the laws (who) grew so gracious with the Bishop”. 

The feudal overlord remained the Lord of the Manor until the mid-1500s. Simon de Hall died leaving no male heir and his sole-heiress was his only daughter Thomasine-de-Hall who had married Richard Chichester.

The property has now come down via the female line to the present owner.

Sadly this has meant that due to death duties etc the house has fallen into some disrepair.  We were kindly welcomed to a guided tour which had been arranged by Ms Margaret Shambrook of The Coast and Country Walkers and we had been invited to join.

Thirty six people attended being eighteen from each group. We split into two groups with Mrs Chichester taking the house group around and Mr Chichester guiding around the grounds and buildings. He explained that in its heyday there had been 14 gardeners and four walled gardens, all but one had been seeded to lawns as they could only afford one gardener and he did other jobs as well.

The servants quarters at the back of the house had been abandoned and it was sad to see the ceilings falling down.

The current owners only use some of the rooms so was partly unfurnished but it must have been lovely when it was used for society parties ect.

After the tours we were served a cream and cake tea by our hosts, complete with Devon Cut-rounds (which I had not seen for years,) in the baronial hall on a long table which sat thirty people, complete with taxidermy heads of antelope from all over Africa.

So ended a memorable day, Thanks must go to our hosts and to Margaret Shambrook and The Coast and Country Walkers.