Journal of the Ottery St. Mary Heritage Society
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Price 50p No. 32 Winter 2009/10 Journal of the Ottery St. Mary Heritage Society Including: The lives of Ottery FROM THE CHAIRMAN Greats p3 Our August Exhibition “Ottery – a history of the south west mining Parish at War” was an outstanding industry, showing through pictorial success with visitors packing the records how the landscapes of hall throughout the entire five-day Cornwall and West Devon were period.A huge thank-you to radically reshaped during the everyone who contributed to the eighteenth and nineteenth event – those who volunteered centuries by deep-lode mining for with research and design, the copper and tin, a vast industry that erectors and dismantlers, packers changed the landscape beyond and providers of transport – and recognition. The War of the last, but not least the volunteers who came along to ensure the And then in November, a near- Airwaves p4 occasion was the best it could be. capacity audience showed up to listen to Chris Wakefield – the title Our Autumn programme of of his talk,“How Ottery Began” monthly meetings have been well certainly aroused the curiosity of attended; our guest speakers many Ottregians, and they were delivering some of the best and not disappointed! His highly most professional presentations. In illustrated presentation covered the September, Barbara Farquharson of medieval period in the town’s the Branscombe project introduced history from the end of the Roman us to a new perspective on the occupation through to the ignominious end to the MSC foundation of Grandisson’s Napoli. From her expanding ecclesiastical college in the 1330s. Competition Spot library of pictures she took us The stunning visual fly-through of returns - p8 behind the media headlines, a digital model of the college as it dominated by environmental issues would have appeared when first and salvage operations, to examine completed brought gasps of how the disaster affected local astonishment from the audience individuals and, through personal and appreciative applause for an stories, the different ways villagers excellent presentation. reacted to the disruption in their lives. .../cont page 8 Letters, articles or any other At our October meeting, Dr submissions to the Journal can be Robert Symes, OBE gave an emailed to www.otteryheritage.org.uk illustrated presentation on the [email protected] 1 Editorial Forthcoming Events Website Unless otherwise noted, all the Society's meetings are held in the Institute,Yonder Street, Ottery St. Mary. The Society has finally bitten the bullet and dragged itself into the 21st century with a website. It’s a homemade affair, 2010 and will probably not win many prizes, except possibly for • Jan. 12th 2010 (Tuesday) 7.30 pm the resources that will eventually be available thereon for Exeter and its Medicine local and family historians interested in Ottery. It is An illustrated talk recommended you try it out, and email the editor of this Speaker: Christopher Gardner-Thorpe journal with comments and suggestions. Keep in mind, though, that it is once again the usual suspects who are • Feb. 16th (Tuesday) 7.30 pm operating the new website, so there may be a while A Potted History of Wiggaton between receipt of a marvellous idea and its eventual A talk on aspects of the history of Wiggaton with artefacts implementation. www.otteryheritage.org.uk crafted from local materials. Speaker:Vaughan Glanville Publications • Mar. 16th (Tuesday) 7.30 pm Not content with our adventures in new technology, the Slavery and Two Ottery Families trustees are keen to step up our publications list, to include, A talk on possible connections between Ottery families and amongst other things, some long overdue local record the Slave Trade publishing, starting early in the New Year with the 1327 Speaker: Gillian Allen and 1332 Lay Subsidy returns (medieval tax lists detailing names and sometimes locations, of 14th century Ottregians) • Apr. 20th (Tuesday) 7.30 pm together with some interpretation and commentary to help The Plight of the Honeybee (in Devon) you get the most from these fascinating documents. I still An illustrated talk on the practicalities of present-day live in hopes of a revived record transcription group, which bee-keeping will make a start on the many records that lie untouched Speaker: Roger Lacey and unread in DRO and elsewhere. Just to whet your • May 18th (Tuesday) 7.30 pm appetite, see the back page under the competition. The Three Hares Emblem Letters An illustrated talk on the myths and mysteries surrounding this sign The journal is the place you can ask questions and send in notes and suggestions, at any time, of any length, in any Speaker: Sue Andrew medium, in any language, from anywhere on the planet. I • June 15th (Tuesday) 7.30 pm want to know what you’ve seen on walks, bits of history Annual General Meeting you’ve heard about, what your Dad/Grandad told you, • July 20th (Tuesday) 7.30 pm and onwards what you liked / disliked about a recent meeting - Programme to be announced anything - really - just anything to offer comfort that we are actually doing what you, the membership, wants done. I was thinking we should quadruple subscriptions at the Heritage Society Trustees Hon Chairman Robert Neal 813686 AGM.Any thoughts? Hon Secretary Chris Saunders 812962 Hon Treasurer Jim Woolley 812176 Coleridge Hazel Abley The Society has initiated a project to secure a more fitting John Pilsworth 812737 Chris Wakefield 815262 commemoration of the most famous and accomplished Betty Williams 814044 Ottregian of all time (so far) - Samuel Taylor Coleridge. I Oliver Wilson 815262 say initiated, because the project is not to be solely a Co-opted members Heritage effort, and is designed to attract broad support, in Membership Sec. Judy Mullinger 813019 Sue Dymond Ottery and possibly further afield.The “Coleridge Articles or letters can be emailed to the Journal at Memorial Garden” (or “Park” - it’s not clear what the final [email protected] choice will be) would be somewhere in the Land of www.otteryheritage.org.uk Canaan, carefully designed to enhance the existing amenity areas, and with luck, and some funds yet to be raised, to include an inspirational memorial to the poet. More Letters, articles or any other submissions to the information from the TIC, or the Heritage Website. Journal can be emailed to [email protected] Editor more information at www.otteryheritage.org.uk 2 Outstanding Ottregians of the Past Lucy Channon on the lives of Ottery worthies to be a brilliant scholar. At Oxford University he devoted himself to the study of Divinity and gained a reputation as a ‘worthy preacher’. He was first appointed as ‘Domestick Chaplain’ to Henry Earl of Pembroke and Knight of the Garter. One of his tasks was to assist the Earl’s wife, Mary Sidney, in an exact translation of the left:The Beaumont psalms into English metre. His next memorial in move was to Wales, where he Gittisham Church, became Treasurer to the church of commissioned by his Llanduff.Thence in 1591 he was wife, (who is also consecrated Bishop of Llanduff. His commemorated - stay in Wales was fairly short, for in kneeling behind 1595 he was ‘translated to the See Henry). Beaumont in Exeter’.Two hundred years later Cottages, north west of John Prince, in writing a brief Alfington, would have biography of Gervais, informs us been named in his that ‘He continued no long time at memory. Exeter, this long enough to do that of this estate. Little is known of his church an irreparable injury; but, Henry Beaumont life but after his death he is we hope, against his will, as being Ottery St Mary has been the remembered for his generosity to over-awed by avaricious greatness birthplace of, or closely associated the poor of Ottery. In March 1590 rather than biased by any private with, several well known people he made a will, He left £800 to interest, which we cannot fairly who have made their mark in the purchase areas of land,‘the rents suppose in so great a man’.The world. Notable among these are of and profits deriving therefrom to ‘irreparable-injury’ was to sell off course the poet Samuel Taylor be given to the poor of Ottery St ‘the rich and noble manor of Coleridge, the diplomat Sir Ernest Mary, Gittisham,Honiton and Crediton’ thus reducing Satow, and Joanna Southcott, the Sidbury’. Henry died a year later considerably the area of Exeter’s prophetess, all of whose stories and his wishes were carried out. property and influence. Despite, or have beer told in previous editions He was long remembered for his perhaps because of this, Bishop of this journal. However, the generous charity to the poor and a Gervais was again ‘translated’ this history of Ottery traces back for commemorative marble monument time to Worcester.After three years centuries, and although records are was erected on the wall of in this office he was finally few, shadowy figures emerge from Gittisham church, where he lies ‘translated to Heaven’. He died of those earlier centuries, of relatively buried in the south aisle. jaundice. He left his large and rare a people who made their mark valuable library to the church of locally, if not nationally. One such Gervais Babington Worcester where he lies was Henry Beaumont. In the latter In the 16th century, John buried.Throughout his life he was half of the 15th century the noted for his preaching:- ‘He was nephew of a Sir Thomas Beaumont Babington, 5th son of Sir John Babington of Nottinghamshire, an excellent pulpit man, for having inherited various lands and estates gotten up the affections of his on the death of his uncle.Among came to dwell in Devon.