Saturday, 31 October 2015
Get involved with Devon Archives
The Devon Archives at Sowton invite anyone interested to a Volunteer Celebration on Monday 16th November.
New recruits welcome!
New book about Devon pubs
Akeman Press has just published Devon Pubs: A Pictorial Retrospective
by Andrew Swift and Kirsten Elliott. This features archive photographs
of over 450 of the county’s
pubs (including three in Starcross)
– some
long gone, some still thriving – and also covers such diverse subjects
as the history of cider making, Devon’s lost breweries, church house
inns, the folk song revival, the curious tale of Devon white ale, the
story of Uncle Tom Cobley and much more. During over a decade’s worth of
research, the authors not only travelled the length and breadth of
Devon (as well as visiting three islands) to find out what the pubs
featured in the book are like today, but also trawled through old
newspapers, census returns, directories and other archive material to
trace their histories. The result is an indispensable guide to an
unjustly neglected aspect of the county’s history. The book, which runs
to 384 pages, costs £15 and is available through bookshops or direct
(with free postage in the UK) from Akeman Press, 58 Minster Way, Bath
BA2 6RL. A press release is enclosed and further details can be found
at www.akemanpress.com.
To celebrate the publication of Devon Pubs,
a book launch will be held at the Tom Cobley Tavern, Spreyton at 7.30pm
on Wednesday 4 November. The authors will be signing copies of the book
and everyone is cordially invited to the event. Further information and
details of how to find the Tom Cobley are at www.tomcobleytavern.co.uk.
Sunday, 25 October 2015
Dawlish History Day
Dawlish History Day on Saturday 31st October at the Strand Centre.
What do you know about the Dawlish story, and would you like to pass it on to others, or learn a bit more?
What do you know about the Dawlish story, and would you like to pass it on to others, or learn a bit more?
Jumble jumble everywhere
Saturday, 24 October 2015
![]() |
Helping to set up the jumble sale in St Paul's |
![]() | ||
Helping to set up the jumble sale in St Paul's |
Thankyou Starcross, for this magnificent display of generosity. Most of the donations came from the village. Many thanks as well, to those from further afield who gave. Thankyou everyone who supportedour jumble sale, by donating items, spending money at the sale, and helping to set out, sell, and clear up.
Thankyou to everyone at St Paul's for everything they did to make today's jumble sale such a great success.
An army of folk laid out the clothes&books on the pews, and toys&bric-a-brac on tables across the front of the church. Then they organised the raffle and served teas&coffees.
There was only one carload of jumble left at the end of the sale. Thankyou to the Westbank Charity Shop for accepting the leftovers.
Starcross History and St Paul's had half each of the proceeds of the raffle and the sale - which meant £101 each.
There will be another Jumble Sale in around 6 months time... or even sooner? Watch this blog for details.
Thursday, 22 October 2015
JUMBLE SALE
JUMBLE SALE in St Paul's Church EX6 8QB
Saturday October 24th from 2pm
The team from St Paul's Church will swing into action to provide teas&coffees & biscuits, as well as the manpower needed for the stalls in case there aren't enough volunteers from Starcross History.Where to leave your jumble and RAFFLE PRIZES and CARRIER BAGS
St Paul's will be open a little before the sale starts - to take your jumble on the day.
and
Jumble and raffle prizes and plastic carrier bags may be left anytime at Myrtle Cottage EX6 8QT
Monica can collect it from your house
Please email Starcross History or phone Monica on 01626 890650
The cash will go towards the upkeep of St Paul's Church, and to Starcross History because we have had to buy a projector, and the badge sales (20 badges @ £10 didn't seem like an unreachable target... ) haven't made any cash yet, and we've joined Exeter Scrapstore, and the cost of room hire for our meets is £20, but we need to pay Starcross Parish Council in advance for this.
Let's hope Starcross History can make enough to cover our expenses, and perhaps even enough to be able to affiliate to the Devon History Society. Affiliation means that our badge-holding members can go to Devon History Society events at a reduced fee, and also it's a good cause for us to support
The leftovers will be taken to the Westbank Charity shop on The Strand and The Force Cancer Charity's shop in Fore Street, Heavitree, Exeter.
Saturday, 17 October 2015
Kelly's Directory online
Take a look at this amazing amount of freely available online
information.The mispelling STABCBOSS must be a computer
glitch, rather than an historic spelling.
They had trouble filling the position of
Parish Clerk... There was a Starcross Co-op. 150 children
went to the school. There was a master mariner called
Cruse, and the superintendent at the idiot asylum
was called Locke...
STABCBOSS is a village, pleasantly seated on the river Exe, about ij miles from its mouth, and was formed December 4, r829, into an ecclesiastical parish from the civil parishes of Kenton and Dawlish ; it has a station on the South Devon section of the Great Western railway, and is 8 miles south-east from Exeter, 14 north from Daw- lish and 202* from London, in the North Eastern division of the county, Exminster hundred, Wonford petty ses- sional division, St. Thomas union, Exeter county court district, rural deanery of Kenn, and archdeaconry and diocese of Exeter. The road from Exeter to Dawlish runs through the village, forming its principal street, which is lighted with gas by the Starcross and Kenton Gas Light and Coke Co. Limited, established in 1877 with a capital of 2,400. The church of St. Paul, erected in 1828, is a large building of stone in the Norman style, consisting of chancel, nave, north and west porches and a -western turret containing a clock and 2 bells : the clock was erected in 1865 by the parishioners as a memorial to the Rev. William Powley, 32 years incumbent here : the carved oak pulpit and other fittings were executed by Hems, of Exeter : the stained east window is a memorial to the Coles and Ash families, 1828-52 ; and there are others to the Eales and Bishop families 1856-8, and to Capt. Rose Henry Fuller R.N. d. October 27, 1860: there are modern monuments to the Rev. James Coles, Messrs. Richard and Charles Thomas Eales and Capt. Sweetland : the church was restored and re-seated about 1896, under the direction of Messrs. Rowell and Sons, architects, of Newton Abbot, and has sittings for upwards of 600 per- sons, 350 being free. The register dates from the year 1828. The living is a vicarage, net yearly value 184, with residence and about sJ acres of glebe, in the gift of the Deans and Chapters of Exeter and Salisbury alter- nately, and held since 186^ by the Rev. Edward Copleston Bond' M.A. of Exeter College, Oxford. The Wesleyan chapel is situated in the Strand. Here are two good hotels, v< the Courtenay Arms " and the Railway hotel. A pleasure fair is held on Whitsun Wednesday yearly. The original parish charities amount to 22 yearly, in addition to which ,500 stock was p'aced in the hands of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners in 1881, by the late Sir John Lewis Duntze bart. of Exeleigh (d. 1884), for the benefit of seven aged parishioners, regular attendants at the church : there are also clubs for distributing clothing, coals and blankets to the poor. Exeleigh is the seat of Rev. Edward Ohatterton Orpen M.A. The Rev. the Earl of Devon M.A. is lord of the manor and 1 sole landowner. The chief crops are wheat, barley and roots. The soil is sandy; subsoil, yellow gravel. The area is u, 800 acres. The population in 1891 was 978, inclusive of 188 inmates and' 33 officials of khe asylum. Under the provisions of the "Divided Parishes Act, 1885," by Local Government Board Order 16,546, the ecclesiastical district of Cofton, including Cockwood, Middlewood, Westwood, Eastdon, the Warren and Week, amounting to 739 acres, was taken from this parish and added to Dawlish, March 25, 1885. Parish Clerk, .vacant. Post, M. 0. & T. 0., T. M. 0., S. B., Express Delivery, Parcel & Annuity & Insurance Office. (Railway Sub- Office. Letters should have R.S.O. Devon added). Miss Elizabeth Kingdon, sub-postmistress. Letters by mail cart from Exeter arrive at 5.40 a.m.; 9.1 a.m. by T.P.O. (to callers only) & 3.25 p.m.; dispatched at 10.50 a.m. & 4.30 & 7.25 p.m. ; box closes at 7.10 p.m. ; Sundays at 7.10 p.m. Wall Letter Boxes, Mount Pleasant, cleared at 8 a.m. & 5.35 p.m. week days; Sundays, 8.30 a.m.; Cofton, cleared at 10 a.m. & 6.20 p.m. ; Sundays, 9.45 a.m. ; Eastdon, cleared at 7.30 a.m. & 6 p.m. ; Sundays, 8 a.m THE WESTERN COUNTIES IDIOT ASYLUM. The foundation stone of this building was laid on April 9, 1874, by Lady Anna Maria Oourtenay; it is built of grey limestone, relieved by dressings of buff brick & Bath stone, in the Early English style, & was opened in June, 1877 ; it consists of a central block with north & south wings, the central block comprising the ad- ministrative department & the residence of the super- intendent ; the northern wing is appropriated to boys & the southern to girls ; the dining hall, a fine apartment, is too by 20 feet in area, and contains an organ, the gift of friends of the children; considerable additions were made in 1896, so that the asylum is now available for i'8o boys & 90 girls ; the entire cost has exceeded 32,000 ; the institution is supported by the payments for the maintenance of the patients, augmented by volun- tary contributions ; Sebastian Coseng Snow, treasurer, Exeter Bank, Exeter; Edgar Richard Senhouse laps- comb L.R.O.P.Lond., M.R.C.S.Eng. medical officer; Ernest William Locke, resident superintendent & sec. ; Mrs. Alice L. Mayer, matron SCHOOL. Board (formerly National) School, transferred to the Daw- lish Board in 1875, & an infants' school & master's resi- dence erected in 1876, for 150 children ; average attend- ance, 30 boys, 38 girls & 30 infants ; William Passrnore Towill, master ; Mis* Caroline Emma Towill, infants' mistress Railway Station, Alfred Hitchcock, station master Carriers to Exeter. Mark Capener, every day. but thura. returning the same day, from the ' Bull ' ; & Louii Carjlake, every day, returning tain* day DEVOS 41* fi44 fcTARCROSS. PRIVATE RESIDENTS. Anning Mrs Baker Edward John Besley Mrs. Hnrpridge Bishop Richard Preston, The, Cottage Bond Rev. Edward Copleston M.A. (vicar), The Vicarage Brown Cul. Wm. Thomas, Elm court Colley Mrs. Staplake Cookson Mrs. Regent house Davey George Drew Jn. Gould B.A. Northbrook ho Dunsford Mrs Euan John S Grace Edwin, Strand Hooper Mrs. Southbrook house Jennings Mrs Lipscomb Edgar Richard Senhouse Locke Ernest William McClaughlin Mrs Martin Thomas, Ilex house Monro Alexander Aylmer Muller William Charles, Soho house Orpen Rev. Edward Chatterton M.A. Exeleigh ; & Devon & Exeter club, Exeter Pitt Miss Preist Daniel Russell Vincent, Grove lawn Splatt George Laskey Thomas Mrs. Staplake Mount Towill William Panmore Wollacott Edward. Faleide Youlden William Paryem Weeks COMMERCIAL. Anning Jsph. Percy, farmer, Tiverlnd Anning William, farmer, Cofford frm Assembly Rooms (Charles William Hamerton, proprietor) Bazley Henry, assistant overseer & rate collector, school attendance officer & agent Commercial Union Fire & Life insurance, Hope cottage DEVONSHIRE. Bowerman Henry H. tailor Browning John, boot maker & china & glass dealer Callaway Mrs. Emma, laundry Carnall John, gardener to Mrs. Thomas, Staplake mount Carslake Louis, carrier Chown William, Ship inn, & butcher Coles John Bailey, builder, contractor, carpenter & joiner & stone mason Coombe William, Alexandra Hotel P.H Crews William, coal & potato merchnt Crispin Harry, head attendant at the Asylum Crispin John Edwin, baker & grocer Cruse Henry, master mariner Drew John Gould B.A. solicitor, Northbrook house Elliott James, blacksmith Farley William Henry, gardener to the Rev. E. C. Orpcn M.A Fiiield Mary (Mrs.), dress ma. Strand Fletcher Emily (Mrs.), laundress Ford Michael Albert, basket maker to the Asylum Gale William (Mrs.), market gardnr. 2 Rose cottages Greenslade Louisa(Mrs.),refshmt.rms Gribble Susan (Miss), apartments Hamerton Charles William, Courtenay Arms hotel Harding Caroline (Mrs.), baker Haydon William Jn. frmr. Staplake Henton William Henry, wheelwright Hill William, fanner, Venn bridge Hooper & Tupman, grocers &c. see Starcross Co-operative Stores Kerswell Charles, shoe maker to the Asylum Kingdon Elizabeth (Miss), stationer, Post office Lipscomb Edgar Richard Senhouso L.R.C.P.Lond., M.R.C.S.Eng. sur- geon, medical officer & public [KELLY'S vaccinator, Kenton district, St. Thomas union, & medical officer to the Western Counties Idiot Asylum Locke Ernest William, resident supt. & sec. Western Counties Idiot Asylum Morrish Ernest John, carpenter Mortimore Geo. gardnr. to the Asylum Palfrey Frederick Vowler, contractor Parkhouse Wm. coal & manure inei Payne Henry, apartments Pearce Edward, boat owner Reynolds Walter, mason Reynolds William, mason Rowe Frank, chemist & drggst. Strand Howe George, general dealer, Folly cot Rowe Marwood & Geo. wheelwrights Ruth Wm. Geo. H. insurance agent Sercombe John & Sun, basket makers Serle George, boat owner SheppardRobt. Ingram, boot & shoe ma Shoemack Edward, market gardener, i Hose cottages Starcrass Co-operative Stores- (Hooper & Tupman, proprietors), grocers & provision dealers Starcroiss, Kenton & Powderham Cot- tage GardenSoc.(J.G.D.rew, lion. sec) Steer William John, apartments Tupman Frank, grocer &c. see Star- cross Co-operative Stores Venn Mary Ann & Elizabeth (Misses), drapers Voysey Jessie Payne (Miss), dress ma Wedlake John, master tailor to the Asylum Westcott Brothers, market gardeners, Southbrook gardens Western Counties Idiot Asylum (Ernest William Locke, resident supt. & sec) Whitton Frank, Railway hotel Wood Sophia (Miss), apartment*
Kelly's Directory online
Friday, 16 October 2015
Volunteers needed at the Devon Heritage Centre







New volunteers are required for a number of areas of the service’s work, including processing and cataloguing new collections of documents, digitisation and conservation, as well as helping with the Devon Remembers Heritage Project, which is the archive service’s contribution to Devon County Council’s commemoration of the centenary of the First World War, Devon Remembers.
The Devon Remembers Heritage Project will run until early 2019, and will encompass a range of activities which volunteers will be able to get involved in, including the possibility of indexing newspapers for the period, which are held by the Heritage Centre.
Light refreshments will be served during the afternoon.




Thursday, 15 October 2015
Catalogue of 1997 Sale at Powderham
A fascinating record of the sale of some of the contents of the castle. No-one bid for it.
Here's the ebay link to the Phillips catalogue of 1997 for a sale of treasures at Powderham Castle.

Here's the ebay link to the Phillips catalogue of 1997 for a sale of treasures at Powderham Castle.
This catalogue is for the auction on 15th and 16th
September 1997 from Powderham Castle, Kenton, Nr Exeter. With 120
pages, 1191 lots are catalogued, including Cars, Paintings, Clocks,
Furniture, Sculpture and Jewellery. Many of the lots are illustrated
including some in colour.
Thursday, 8 October 2015
It's the 21st Birthday of National Poetry Day
Here's a couple of poems about our Swan of the Exe sculpture
Collaborations
Amalgamations
By notions of history and art
Very much from the heart
A wackin' burd
Made perhaps fantastically, absurdly bold
Sea monster or swan
Whichever the plan,
A folly of old
A folly of new
with plastic jetsam and flotsam, orange, white and blue
The Swan of the Exe by Vicky Jocher
Amalgamations
By notions of history and art
Very much from the heart
A wackin' burd
Made perhaps fantastically, absurdly bold
Sea monster or swan
Whichever the plan,
A folly of old
A folly of new
with plastic jetsam and flotsam, orange, white and blue
Harp, aliens, carp and a... monster? by Monica Lang
Look! That harp plays all by itself
No-one’s there. ssss’ MAGIC Mum
ssss’MAGIC Dad
ssssssssssss
Look at the jellyfish
It’s not a jellyfish
It’s got aliens
inside
Ooh. Glittery fishes
Mirror carp
Colourbright dragons
Don’t forget the bags Mum and Dad
the next time we go to Sainsburys
You can Save the Planet too, Mum
and Dad
That’s what the sculptures are for…
out-with-the-kids but NOT SHOPPING
nor armchairSkytelly
content
They drag at their fags and their kiddie’s new clothes
Come away from those
women in hats!
from their scissors
lump hammers and mess
There’s Wetherspoons
only down there
Come away from the
sculptings and seagulls and sand
Come away from the
Grand Teignmouth Pier
old buckets and worn spades
faded jeans and a picnic basket
chattering smiling laughing stopping
to admire our oh-it’s-a-monster
no it’s a swan
actually.
their children make her more feathers
out of our plastic milkbottles
and take photosThursday, 1 October 2015
Starcross Oral History Project - volunteers please
The information on this new website is very helpful for the Starcross Oral History Project but we need some more volunteers.
- Would you interview someone?
- Do you have some memories you would like to record? They can be memories of Starcross and area, or, if you live here now, they canbe memories of your life. We'd love to hear from you.
The new website for the Oral History Society
(quite a few of the links don't work yet)
"
Welcome
Oral history is the recording of people’s memories, experiences and opinions. It is:
- A living history of everyone’s unique life experiences
- An opportunity for those people who have been ‘hidden from history’ to have their voice heard
- A rare chance to talk about and record history face-to-face
- A source of new insights and perspectives that may challenge our view of the past.
The Oral History Society promotes the collection, preservation and use
of recorded memories and plays a key role in facilitating and developing
the use of oral history
...
"
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)