Tag Archives: Dartmoor

‘Hath not the diuell (Devil) hys Chapell close adioning God’s Church?‘ – Nash 1593 It has been said that there was at one time a church house in every ancient parish of this country and by 1961 G. W. Copeland had identified at least 64 in Devon, (Copeland, 1961, p119). …

Walk up amongst the heather on a hot summer’s day and the moor will literally buzz with the noise of bees busily collecting pollen. With such an abundance it is hardly surprising that Dartmoor folk fully utilised this resource and that the bee has found itself firmly embedded in tradition …

Having recently just completed a webpage on the ‘Pits of Dartmoor‘ it does seems logical to follow it with a page on the Beams and Gerts of Dartmoor. Mainly due to the fact that both beams and gerts began life as pits before they actually formed. I must admit it …

“Regaining the road, I go on towards Moreton, taking another circuitous route to visit the fine old cross on Week Down, just above Middlecott. It has an incised Maltese Cross on both sides at the intersection of the arms, which are probably more modern than the cross itself, as the …

Back in the October of 2009 the sensational headline of ‘Atlantis and Mini Stonehenge Found in Devon‘ hit the archaeological world. It was referring to the discovery of some Bronze Age monuments when the Tottiford reservoir was drained for purposes best known to South West Water. At that time I …

The first legend attached to this and also the derivation of its name is as follows. There were once three local spinsters living nearby. These were not spinsters in the sense of single ladies but ’spinsters’ in the woollen sense, i.e. wool spinners . One morning before breakfast the three …

    There were many medieval manors on Dartmoor and Rushford is one of those timeless places where it seems time has stood still, although most of the original structures have long gone there are still vestiges that appear to last throughout time. You can literally walk in the foot …

Drive up past Ephraim’s Pinch and you will arrive at what must be the most accessible Bronze Age relic on Dartmoor, it is literally 20 yards from the road. In the summer the small stone circle becomes a favourite picnic spot but in winter it is a magical place to …

  I can clearly remember the day I first went in search of ‘The Pulpit’ as it was just after I began letterboxing, I had come across what was then (and still is today) one of the best letterbox stamps I had ever seen. It was a rubber cut stamp …

On what is now the golf course stands a loan stone cross. It actually marked the route of the old monastic track from Tavistock to Buckfastleigh. In the days of the Puritans a local vicar decided this popish symbol should be removed as it was causing personal offence. So he …