Back in the late eighteenth century, 1790 some say,  an orphaned baby was taken into the Poor House at Newton Abbot. The little girl was named, as was the custom, with a surname beginning with whatever letter the Poor House had progressed to, in this case ‘J’. As many of …

Jan Reynolds was a young tin miner who lived in Widecombe. He worked hard but played even harder, in the area he was known as a drinker, gambler and a womaniser. Sadly his lifestyle did not match his income and so he was always short of ‘coin’. In an attempt …

Below the majestic granite outcrop known as Sharp tor and overlooking the Dart Valley sits a lonely farm called Rowbrook. It has always known that during the dark and dismal winter days the River Dart can be heard sighing and moaning as it tumbles down through the rocky gorge. Some …

Much of Dartmoor is covered by peat bogs, for centuries these have always struck fear into the heart of moorland travellers, especially those venturing out at night. In the dark it is only too easy to stray off into the depths of these black, peaty mires and get ‘stogged’ (stuck) …

Take a late October Sunday morning and the A30 road at Whiddon Down, confound matters even more with a contra flow in each direction. Add a 30 mph speed limit for fun and this combination would be bad enough but then spice it all up with a rather nervous bullock …

It was the Eve of All Hallows way back in the dim and distant past when the miller of Hyner sat with his family around their huge wooden table. As the evening drew to a close the candles were lit and the miller’s wife began setting out the evening meal. …

Just above the left bank of the West Dart river stands the old Huccaby farmhouse. It was here in the days long past lived a comely buxom lass who was employed a the dairy maid. It was obvious that such a young woman would be the attention of the moor …

Late July 2007 saw a news story about ‘The Beast of Dartmoor’ hit the headlines, within days it had spread worldwide appearing in various newspapers, blogs and magazines. It seems every expert had an opinion as to what the creature was. I recieved several requests from local papers and radio …

No kidding Sherlock… Sunday the 8th of January 2012 saw the screening of BBC’s production of Sherlock – ‘The Hound of Baskerville‘, (please note: ‘Baskerville’ as opposed to ‘Baskervilles’) to an audience of 8.16 UK viewers. This was a modern take on the famous Sir Conan Doyle’s ‘Hound of the …

One day, a tiny baby boy was found abandoned on the bleak Staldon Barrow. Time has erased the name of the person who found him but he was taken back to safety and frantic efforts were made to find his parents. Sadly, nobody was forthcoming to claim the boy and …