Abbotsham
Encyclopedia
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
. In 2001 its population was 434.
Amenities
Abbotsham has one Post Office and General Store. There is a primary school, a church and a pub. There is also a village hall. Private business include a pre-natal scanning clinic. One bus service serves Abbotsham; the Stagecoach 319 from BarnstapleBarnstaple
Barnstaple is a town and civil parish in the local government district of North Devon in the county of Devon, England, UK. It lies west southwest of Bristol, north of Plymouth and northwest of the county town of Exeter. The old spelling Barnstable is now obsolete.It is the main town of the...
to Hartland
Hartland, Devon
The town of Hartland, which incorporates the hamlet of Stoke to the west and the village of Meddon in the south, is the most north-westerly settlement in the county of Devon, England....
. From May to October 2007, Stagecoach Devon
Stagecoach Devon
Stagecoach Devon Ltd, part of the Stagecoach Group, is a bus operator serving the East Devon, Exeter and Torbay, and more recently Tiverton and Barnstaple, areas of South West England. It was formed in 1995 with the purchase of Devon General and Bayline. Its headquarters is in Exeter...
ran a commercial service, the 21B, from Barnstaple
Barnstaple
Barnstaple is a town and civil parish in the local government district of North Devon in the county of Devon, England, UK. It lies west southwest of Bristol, north of Plymouth and northwest of the county town of Exeter. The old spelling Barnstable is now obsolete.It is the main town of the...
to Westward Ho!
Westward Ho!
Westward Ho! is a seaside village near Bideford in Devon, England. The A39 road provides access from the towns of Barnstaple, Bideford and Bude...
via Abbotsham. However, this service was withdrawn.
History
The area was called Hama in the Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
. The village formed part of the original endowment of Tavistock in the late tenth century, from which it takes its name. St. Helen parish church, originally built by the Normans, was rebuilt in the thirteenth century and features many carved statues and bench-ends.
A mile to the north of the village is Kenwith Castle, built c1760 in the Georgian Gothic style and now part of a hotel complex.
Thomas Arthur
Thomas Arthur
Thomas Arthur VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.-Details:...
VC
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
(real name McArthur), (1835-1902), recipient of the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
during the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
, was born in Abbotsham.
Abbotsham Road Station
Abbotsham once had its own railway station at Abbotsham Road on the Bideford, Westward Ho! and Appledore RailwayBideford, Westward Ho! and Appledore Railway
The Bideford, Westward Ho! and Appledore Railway was most unusual amongst British railways in that although it was built as a standard gauge line, it was not joined to the rest of the railway network, despite the London and South Western Railway having a station at Bideford East-the-Water, just...
, which was built entirely on this peninsula with no direct connection across the River Torridge
River Torridge
The River Torridge is a river in Devon in England. It was the home of Tarka the Otter in Henry Williamson's book. The Torridge local government district is named after the river....
to the British railway network. The locomotives were furnished with skirts to protect pedestrians as at one point the line ran along the quay at Bideford. The line had eleven halts which largely served visitors visiting the coast or travelling to swim off the beaches around Westward Ho!
Westward Ho!
Westward Ho! is a seaside village near Bideford in Devon, England. The A39 road provides access from the towns of Barnstaple, Bideford and Bude...
. The railway, authorised in 1896, was opened as far as Northam
Northam, Devon
Northam is a small town in Devon, England, lying north of Bideford and south of Westward Ho!. It is thought to have been the site of an Anglo-Saxon castle, and is said to have been where Hubba the Dane attacked Devon and was repelled . A little over a mile away along the coast is a town called...
by 1901 and to Appledore
Appledore
-Places in England:* Appledore, Mid Devon, near Tiverton* Appledore, Kent* Appledore railway station* Appledore, Torridge, Devon, near Bideford-Ships and shipbuilding:* Appledore II , schooner based in Camden, Maine...
in 1908. It closed in 1917.