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Lympstone

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"LYMPSTONE, a pretty village, with several large and handsome houses, is pleasantly seated on the eastern bank of the broad estuary of the river Exe, about 2 miles N. by W. of Exmouth, and 8 miles S.S.E. of Exeter. It has in its parish 999 inhabitants, and 1866 acres of land, including Sowden hamlet, and rising picturesquely from the principal street, which extends on a level near the estuary. [It is] a very considerable fishing station, having about 60 small fishing boats, and large beds of oysters in the estuary, brought there to fatten, from the sea coast near Exmouth. The village may be considered as a suburb of the watering place of Exmouth, and has any commodious lodgings, for the accommodation of visitors, who throng here during the proper season. The manor . . . passed from the late Lord Heathfield to Sir Thomas F.E. Drake, Bart., its present owner; but a great part of the parish belongs to Capt. Wright, Chas. Gifford, W.H. Hull, Wm. Spicer, W.H. Peters, and Thomas Porter, Esqrs., and a few smaller owners. The Church (St. Mary,) is a fine old structure, with an embattled tower, and five bells. . . . The rectory, valued in K.B. at £15. 13s. 4d., and in 1831 at £300, is in the patronage of Thomas Porter, Esq., and incumbency of the Rev. Edmond Strong, M.A. of Clist St. Mary. . . . " [From White's Devonshire Directory (1850)]

A parish in East Budleigh Hundred, under the Peculiar jurisdiction of the Dean and Chapter of Exeter.

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Biography

Adams, Dawn. Samuel Haycraft of Lympstone: theatrical pioneer, Devon Family Historian, vol. 185, (2023) pp.6-9.

Bhanji, Sadru. The Nutts of Lympstone: brothers in piracy. Trans. Devon. Assoc. 128, (1996) pp.51-63. [1630-1640]

Brooking-Rowe, J. William Lethbridge. [Obituary] Trans. Devon. Assoc. vol. XXXIII, (1901), pp. 34-35. [Transcript]

Harpley, Rev. W. Rev. John Guenett [Obituary] Trans. Devon. Assoc., 1889, Vol XXI, pp.69-70. [Transcript]

Rochester, Ralph. For Love of Williamina, Agre Books (2001) 128p. [ISBN 0-9538000-3-2] [Georgian Lympstone and the story of the final days of Williamina Belsche's life in the village. Williamina was the first love of Sir Walter Scott and a prominent member of Edinburgh society who sought relief for TB in Lympstone.]

Watkin, Hugh R. In memoriam: Oswald J.Reichel. Devon & Cornwall Notes & Queries 12:7, (1923) pp.289-292, plates: port. [Local historian, 1840-1923]

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Cemeteries

Lewis, D. Lympstone Memorial Inscriptions: transcribed by Lympstone church members with computer input by Diana Lewis, (1997) [Devon FHS Library 929.5/DEV]

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Church History

Keep, David J. Nonconformity in Woodbury and Lympstone. Trans. Devon. Assoc. 109, (1977) pp.51-57. [1685-1975]

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Church Records

Parish Registers going back to 1654 are held in the Devon Record Office.

Transcripts of the Parish Registers going back to 1654 are held in a special collection in the Westcountry Studies Library.

The Devon FHS publishes indexes covering (as of June 2004): Marriages 1754-1837, Burials 1813-1837 - for details see their Devon Parish List.

Other churches and chapels (with pre-1840 records):

  • Wesleyan Chapel: Registers for c1820-37 - see Budleigh Temple, Exeter Mint PRO RG 4/517, 1208)

Entered into the IGI (as of Jan 1993): Parish Church Christenings 1654-1875, and Marriages 1654-1875.

Sellman, R.R. Lympstone, Devon: notes from the parish records and other sources. Typescript (1989) [1], 51p: maps. [Westcountry Studies Library - xB/LYM/0001/SEL]

Sellman, R.R. Lympstone, Devon: edited transcript of parish registers 1653-1905 and family reconstitutions. Typescript (1989) 191p. [Westcountry Studies Library - sx929.3/LYM/1653]

The Deanery of Aylesbeare: An index of baptisms, marriages and burials in the parishes of Aylesbeare, Bicton, Branscombe, Broadclyst, Clyst Honiton, Clyst St.George, Clyst St.Mary, Colaton Raleigh, East Budleigh, Farringdon, Harpford, Huxham, Littleham, Lympstone, Otterton, Ottery St. Mary, Pinhoe, Poltimore, Rockbeare, Salcombe Regis, Sidbury, Sidmouth, Sowton, Stoke Canon, Topsham, Venn Ottery, Whimple, Withycombe Raleigh and Woodbury. With photographs of the churches and extracts from White's Devonshire Directory 1850 and Lewis' Topographical Dictionary of England 1844, CD-ROM, Exeter, Devon FHS (2012). [Aylesbeare Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Bicton Bapt: 1813-1843, Mar: 1755-1835, Bur: 1813-1852, Bur: 1725-1845 (BTs); Branscombe Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1545-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Broadclyst Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Clyst Honiton Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1836, Bur: 1813-1837; Clyst St. George Bapt: 1813-1837, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Clyst St. Mary Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1756-1840, Bur: 1813-1837; Colaton Raleigh Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; East Budleigh Bapt: 1813-1841, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; East Budleigh Salem Chapel, Bur: 1832-1837; Farringdon Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1836, Bur: 1813-1852; Glenorchy Independent Exmouth, Bur: 1784-1818; Harpford Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1755-1837, Bur: 1809-1837; Huxham Bapt: 1813-1852, Mar: 1758-1836, Bur: 1813-1864; Littleham (near Exmouth) Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Lympstone Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1836, Bur: 1813-1837; Otterton Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Ottery St. Mary Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Pinhoe Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1844, Bur: 1813-1838; Poltimore Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1800-1837; Rockbeare Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Salcombe Regis Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Sidbury Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1830, Bur: 1813-1837; Sidmouth Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Sowton Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1800-1837; Stoke Canon Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Topsham Bapt: 1813-1840, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Venn Ottery Bapt: 1813-1841, Mar: 1755-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Whimple Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1836, Bur: 1813-1837; Withycombe Raleigh Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1755-1837, Bur: 1813-1837; Woodbury Bapt: 1813-1839, Mar: 1754-1837, Bur: 1813-1837.]

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Description & Travel

Lympstone Village website - an extensive general information site.

Lympstone Village Design Statement, from East Devon District Council.

Section on Lympstone from Samuel Lewis: A Topographical Dictionary of England (1831), provided by Mel Lockie.

You can see pictures of Lympstone which are provided by:

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Gazetteers

The transcription of the section for this parish from the National Gazetteer (1868), provided by Colin Hinson.

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Genealogy

The Online Parish Clerk scheme's representative for this parish is Keith Searle, who invites queries and lookup requests.

This parish is one of the growing number of places for which the Devon Heritage website provides census or parish register transcriptions, articles, and/or illustrations, etc.

Bhanji, Sadru. The Nutts of Lympstone, brothers in piracy, Trans. Devon. Assoc. 128, 1996, pp. 5163. [17th c.]

Honer, Douglas E. A seafaring family: an account of the sons of William Keslake of Lympstone. (1981) 9 leaves, plates: ill, map. [Westcountry Studies Library - px929.2/KES]

Parkhouse, Roy. The Lympstone Connection, The Author (2002). [Bass Family] [Devon FHS Library p929.2/BAS]

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History

The Lympstone Story (archived copy) - The Early History of Lympstone in Devon by Rosemary Smith.

Lympstone's chequered past - from Devon24 (archived copy).

Coles, Angela. Lympstone: A Brief History & Family Names, Devon Family Historian, vol. 101, (2002) pp.29-32. [Includes names from Wor1d War 1 and 2 war memorials, and various other lists of names.]

Delderfield, Eric Raymond. The Raleigh Country: A brief history of Exmouth, Budleigh Salterton, East Budleigh, Otterton, Bicton, Lympstone and Topsham, with a short lifestory of that great Englishman, Sir Walter Raleigh. (Reprinted, 2nd ed.). Raleigh Press: Exmouth (1949) pp. 96 [BL 010358]

Delderfield, E. The Raleigh Country, ERD Publications (1992) 163 pp. [Lookups] [Index]

Edwards, E. Devonshire - Containing Historical, Biographical and Descriptive Notices of Exmouth & its Neighbourhood, including the Exe, Littleham, Withycombe Raleigh, East Budleigh, Otterton and Bicton, Sidmouth and Sidbury, Gittisham, Ottery St. Mary, Lympstone, and Topsham; with Notices of the Pedigree of the Rolle, Raleigh, and Courtney Families, &c. Contains Notices of some Picturesque and Antiquarian Excursions in the neighbourhood of the Exe Estuary, and along the adjacent coast, including Budleigh Salterton, Dawlish, Teignmouth, Torquay, &c., Exeter, S. Drayton & Sons (1867) 362 pp.

Gentry, F.D. Take Care of your Fire and Candle [11 fires in Devon towns]. Devon Books (1985) 138p. [ISBN 0861147596] [Devon FHS Library 929.35]

Insull, M.E. Lympstone Heritage: A short history of the village. Gainsborough: Caldicott Ltd. (1965) 104p: ill. [Westcountry Studies Library - B/LYM/0001/INS]

Scott, Elizabeth. Lympstone, a village story. Trans. Dev. Assoc. 88 (1956) pp102-129, plates: ill.

Smith, Rosemary. The Lympstone story. Lympstone: Lympstone Society (c/o Sowden House, Lympstone, Exmouth, EX8 5BE) (1995) 34p: ill. [ISBN 0950410217]

Looking at Lympstone. Lympstone (c/o Hon. Sec., Slipway Cottage, Lympstone, Exmouth, Devon): The Society,1975, [4] p. 1 map. ISBN: 0950410209.

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Maps

View a map of the boundaries of this town/parish.

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SX993842 (Lat/Lon: 50.648752, -3.425716), Lympstone which are provided by:

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Military History

Lympstone's sacrifice for wartime effort - from Devon24 (archived copy)

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Names, Personal

Lympstone contributors to a 1678 brief for the rebuilding of St Paul's Cathedral.

Allen, Jenepher. Lympstone Names, Devon Family Historian, vol. 186, (2023) p.48. [Extracted from the deeds of a Lympstone house]

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Occupations

Lympstone Apprentices Register - 1802-1837, Exeter, Devon Family History Society, (Booklet & PDF A282). [Foreword]

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Schools

St Peter's School, Lympstone, founded 1882 - web-site.