Hatherleigh | |
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Hatherleigh church | |
Location within Devon | |
Population | 1,306 (Parish, 2001) |
OS grid reference | SS5404 |
Civil parish |
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District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | Okehampton |
Postcode district | EX20 |
Dialling code | 01837 |
Website | Community page website |
Hatherleigh is a small market town in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. In 2011 the parish had a population of 1306.
It hosts an arts festival in July, [1] and a carnival in November featuring two flaming tar barrel runs. [2] The Walruses meet on New Year's Day to jump into the River Lew to raise money for local good causes, this tradition which started in the 1980s came to end on January 1, 2018. An annual half-marathon called the Ruby Run takes place usually in June between Holsworthy and Hatherleigh, starting from each town in alternate years.
Hatherleigh Market has weekly sales of sheep, cattle and poultry with increased sales on Tuesdays. It is the smallest town in Devon. The market formally closed in February 2018 due to the site being sold to make way for a new housing development, the Tuesday pannier market continues and there will be provision and a new building in the development. In September 2019 the demolition of the site began as of March 2020 only one building of the market remains to temporary house the pannier market, the new development is moving at pace with many of the new buildings now rising from the ground.
Hatherleigh is home to two pubs, The Tally Ho and The George. The George was burned down in an arson attack on 23 December 2008 and has subsequently been rebuilt and re-opened in 2010. More than 100 firefighters from across the county were drafted in to help fight the blaze which was still burning well into the early hours of Christmas Eve. Hatherleigh also has a cafe, two hairdressers, craft shops, a beauty salon, a butcher, a newsagency, a vets, medical centre, a convenience shop and a petrol station.
The parish church is dedicated to St John the Baptist and has a western tower topped by a shingled spire. The spire was destroyed in the Burns' Day Storm of 1990 and a replica of the original now stands in its place. The nave and aisles are divided by granite arcades. The font is Norman and the original wagon roofs remain. [3] Since 2024, a disused vestry in the church grounds has housed a gymnasium. [4]
An impressive obelisk one mile (1.6 km) east of the town commemorates Lt Col. William Morris (d. 1858 in India): it was built in 1860. [5] [6]
Hatherleigh was the beginning of the 7th stage of the Tour of Britain in September 2009 and record numbers turned out to watch the famous race begin. Hatherleigh had often been on the course of the Tour but this was the first time a stage had started in the town.
Hatherleigh saw the Olympic torch pass through the town on 21 May 2012. [7]
There is an electoral ward with the same name. The population at the 2011 census was 2,218. [8]
There is no railway station within Hatherleigh's boundaries. However residents can use the nearby railway station in Okehampton now that the Dartmoor Line has reopened with regular services to Exeter.
The village is part of the Ruby Country which covers 45 parishes around the market towns of Holsworthy and Hatherleigh. These two towns were at the centre of the 2001 Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak, and although agriculture was directly affected, most local businesses suffered considerable financial hardship. As a result, the Ruby Country Initiative was established, a not for profit partnership, to help create a more robust and sustainable local economy, and to create an identity for the area. [9]
Barnstaple is a river-port town and civil parish in the North Devon district of Devon, England. The town lies at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool from which it earned great wealth. Later it imported Irish wool, but its harbour silted up and other trades developed such as shipbuilding, foundries and sawmills. A Victorian market building survives, with a high glass and timber roof on iron columns.
Moretonhampstead is a market town, parish and ancient manor in Devon, situated on the north-eastern edge of Dartmoor, within the Dartmoor National Park. The parish now includes the hamlet of Doccombe, and it is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Drewsteignton, Dunsford, Bridford, Bovey Tracey, Lustleigh, North Bovey and Chagford.
Tavistock is an ancient stannary and market town in West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy, from which its name derives. At the 2011 census, the three electoral wards had a population of 13,028. The town traces its recorded history back to at least 961 when Tavistock Abbey, whose ruins lie in the centre of the town, was founded. Its most famous son is Sir Francis Drake.
Black Torrington is a village and civil parish in Torridge, Devon, England, situated between the towns of Holsworthy and Hatherleigh. It is located on and named after the River Torridge. In the 2021 UK census, the population of Black Torrington was recorded as having been 528.
Thornbury is a small village and civil parish in the local government district of Torridge, Devon, England. The parish, which lies about five miles (8 km) north-east of the town of Holsworthy, comprises the five hamlets of Thornbury, Woodacott, Brendon, Lashbrook and South Wonford. These five hamlets are spread over an area of some 6 square miles (16 km2), with a distance of three miles (5 km) from Brendon to Thornbury Church. Hence, the community is quite widespread, with the only focal point being the Green at Woodacott Cross. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Milton Damerel, Bradford, Cookbury and Holsworthy Hamlets. In 2011, its population was 290, in 120 households, little changed from the 291 residents it had in 1901.
Holsworthy is a market town and civil parish in the Torridge district of Devon, England, 36 miles (58 km) west of Exeter. The River Deer, a tributary of the River Tamar, forms the western boundary of the parish, which includes the village of Brandis Corner. According to the 2011 census the population of Holsworthy was 2,641, growing to an estimated 3,287 in 2019.
Bovey Tracey is a town and civil parish in Devon, England. It is located on the edge of Dartmoor, which gives rise to the slogan used on the town's boundary signs: The Gateway to the Moor. It is often known locally as Bovey. About 10 miles (16 km) south-west of Exeter, it lies on the A382 road, about halfway between Newton Abbot and Moretonhampstead. The village is at the centre of the electoral ward of Bovey. At the 2011 census, the population of the ward was 7,721.
Colyton is a town in Devon, England. It is located within the East Devon local authority area, the river River Coly runs through it. It is 3 miles (5 km) from Seaton and 6 miles (10 km) from Axminster. Its population in 1991 was 2,783, reducing to 2,105 at the 2011 Census. Colyton is a major part of the Coly Valley electoral ward. The ward population at the above census was 4,493.
North Tawton is a small town in Devon, England, situated on the river Taw. It is administered by West Devon Council. The population of the electoral ward at the census 2011 was 2,026.
Holsworthy was a railway station in Devon, England, on the now-closed railway line from Okehampton to Bude. It opened in 1879 to serve the market town of Holsworthy and closed in 1966, a victim of the Beeching Axe.
Ruby Country is the name given to the rural inland hinterland of north-west Devon, UK. It covers 45 parishes around the market towns of Holsworthy and Hatherleigh. These two towns were at the centre of the 2001 Foot and Mouth Disease outbreak, and although agriculture was directly affected, most local businesses suffered considerable financial hardship.
Tetcott is a civil parish, small settlement and former manor in Devon, England. The parish lies about five miles south of the town of Holsworthy and is bordered on the north by the parish of Clawton, on the east by a small part of Ashwater, and on the south by Luffincott. It forms part of the local government district of Torridge, and its western boundary is the River Tamar which forms the Cornish border. In 2001 its population was 110, half that of a century earlier.
Clawton is a village and civil parish in the far west of Devon, England. It forms part of the local government district of Torridge. The village lies about three miles south of the town of Holsworthy on the A388 road. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north-west by the parishes of Pyworthy, Holsworthy Hamlets, Ashwater, and Tetcott. Its western border follows the River Tamar which forms the county boundary with Cornwall. In 2001 its population was 326, slightly down from 389 in 1901.
Luffincott is a civil parish in the far west of Devon, England. It forms part of the local government district of Torridge and lies about six miles south of the town of Holsworthy. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Tetcott, Ashwater, St Giles on the Heath and Northcott. Its western border follows the River Tamar which forms the county boundary with Cornwall.
Hollacombe is a village and small civil parish in the local government district of Torridge, Devon, England. It lies about 3 miles south east of the town of Holsworthy and is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Cookbury, Ashwater, and Holsworthy Hamlets. In 2001 its population was 59, compared to 69 in 1901.
Pancrasweek is a village and civil parish and hamlet in the far west of Devon, England forming part of the local government district of Torridge and lying about three miles north west of the town of Holsworthy.
East Putford is a small settlement and civil parish in the local government district of Torridge, Devon, England. The parish, which lies about halfway between the towns of Holsworthy and Bideford, is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Parkham, Buckland Brewer, Bulkworthy, West Putford, and Woolfardisworthy. In 2001 its population was 103, slightly lower than the 125 residents it had in 1901.
West Putford is a small settlement and civil parish in the local government district of Torridge, Devon, England. The parish, which lies about 8.5 miles (13.7 km) north of the town of Holsworthy, is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of East Putford, a small part of Bulkworthy, Abbots Bickington, Sutcombe, Bradworthy and Woolfardisworthy. In 2001 its population was 181, compared to 216 in 1901. The eastern and northern boundaries of the parish mostly follow the River Torridge over which is the 13th-century Kismeldon Bridge. Tumuli on the high ground provide evidence for early inhabitants here.
Sutcombe is a village and civil parish in the local government district of Torridge, Devon, England. The parish, which lies about 5.5 miles north of the town of Holsworthy, is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of West Putford, Abbots Bickington, Milton Damerel, Holsworthy Hamlets and Bradworthy. In 2001 its population was 299, compared to 351 in 1901.
Wembworthy is a small village, parish and former manor in Mid-Devon, England. It is situated in the valley of the River Taw, 8 miles north-east of the towns of Hatherleigh and 12 miles south of South Molton. St Michael's Church is the parish church, much rebuilt in the 1840s. The vestigial remnants of two mediaeval earthwork castles survive within the parish, one in Heywood Wood, of motte and bailey form, the other to its south of ringwork and bailey form.