Fremington, Devon
Encyclopedia
Fremington is a village and civil parish
in North Devon
three miles (5 km) west of Barnstaple
. It was formerly a borough
that sent members to Parliament in the reign of Edward III
. The parish includes the neighbouring villages of Bickington and Yelland
, the latter only asserting its identity as separate entity during the 1980s. Fremington hundred was one of the 32 historic districts of the county of Devon
. Geographically, the centre of the village is approximately a mile (2 km) south of its quay, the latter a historic wharf situated on the southern bank of the River Taw
. Fremington is home to Little Bridge House, a children's hospice
run by Children's Hospice South West
.
. The stone pulpit still carries traces of colour, apparently from the soil in which it was buried during the Reformation
. St Peter's medieval tower is positioned at the east end of the church, to the north of the chancel, an oddity shared in North Devon with Barnstaple and Pilton
.
The only other building of note is Fremington Manor, now a retirement home, situated 50 metres east of St Peter's. It is also a nineteenth century remodelling. Fremington's amenities include two pubs, the Fox and Hounds and the New Inn; they are situated almost next door to each other. The 1st Fremington Air Scouts
are also based in the village.
lakes, near an ice deposit which lay over Fremington during the Last Glacial Maximum
. Rare (for south-western England) glacial deposits are found here. Two patches of boulder clay
lie over the centre of the parish's bedrock. The next nearest boulder clay can be found in the Gower Peninsula
, South Wales, approximately 45 miles (72 km) due north of Fremington. The nearest deposit of boulder clay in England can be found in the central Cotswolds
, 6 miles (10 km) due east of Bourton-on-the-Water
and approximately 140 miles (225 km) north-east of Fremington. The existence of the boulder clay is puzzling as the southern-most limit of the Devensian glaciation is theorised to have been located over South Wales. There are few other signs of glaciation in North Devon to support an extension to a more southerly limit. It has been theorised that the surface covering was in some way attached to an ice-mass that drifted across the Bristol Channel and deposited the till
over Fremington. This, however, does not fully explain the presence of the nearly co-located varve clay beds.
The Tarka Trail
cycle track (also part of the South West Coast Path
), which follows the course of the rail line from Barnstaple to Torrington
, passes over Fremington Pill via the old London and South Western Railway
iron bridge (railway line closed 1982; dismantled 1987) at Fremington Quay on the old Barnstaple to Torrington railtrack bed. The original railway was first planned in an Act of Parliament
in 1838, and laid in 1846 connecting the Penhill with Barnstaple at a cost of £20 000. A number of boats are moored here (in the Pill). The 'Quay Cafe' is located here. Whilst rather charmingly built in the style of a railway station, it is not the original one which was located the other side of the Tarka Trail where an original platform still exists. Other features around the Pill include a couple of Lime kilns, now thoroughly fenced off to prevent accidents.
Fremington Quay was once important in the import and export of many goods. It had railway sidings, cranes, etc., for the export of ball clay
and 'import' of coal. Between the early to mid-twentieth century it was the busiest (tonnage) port between Bristol and Lands End. In later life an abattoir was located here. The quay now has been redeveloped with a restaurant and facilities to enjoy wide views over the Taw
estuary. It is now a Conservation Area
having been designated such in 1996.
The camp was originally located here to be within easy marching distance (800 m) from the railway station at the Quay. The site was used by the US Army's 313th Station Hospital for post-D-Day rehabilitation, with room for 2 000 patients. It started receiving casualties on 20 July 1944.
It complemented the Marines and Air Force presence at Royal Marines Base Chivenor
, situated a mile (2 km) northwards on the opposite bank of the River Taw, and the Amphibious Trials and Training Unit of the Royal Marines
at Arromanches Camp, Instow
, 2 miles (4 km) to the west. The camp was closed in autumn 2009.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in North Devon
North Devon
North Devon is the northern part of the English county of Devon. It is also the name of a local government district in Devon. Its council is based in Barnstaple. Other towns and villages in the North Devon District include Braunton, Fremington, Ilfracombe, Instow, South Molton, Lynton and Lynmouth...
three miles (5 km) west of 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...
. It was formerly a borough
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....
that sent members to Parliament in the reign of Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
. The parish includes the neighbouring villages of Bickington and Yelland
Yelland
Yelland is a small village in North Devon between Instow and Fremington in the English county of Devon. Yelland is included within the parish of Fremington.-Character:...
, the latter only asserting its identity as separate entity during the 1980s. Fremington hundred was one of the 32 historic districts of the 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...
. Geographically, the centre of the village is approximately a mile (2 km) south of its quay, the latter a historic wharf situated on the southern bank of the River Taw
River Taw
The River Taw rises at Taw Head, a spring on the central northern flanks of Dartmoor. It reaches the Bristol Channel away on the north coast of Devon at a joint estuary mouth which it shares with the River Torridge.-Watercourse:...
. Fremington is home to Little Bridge House, a children's hospice
Children's hospice
A children's hospice is a hospice specifically designed to help children and young people who are not expected to reach adulthood with the emotional and physical challenges they face, and also to provide respite care for their families.-Services:...
run by Children's Hospice South West
Children's hospice south west
Children's Hospice South West is a registered charity that provides palliative, respite, end-of-life and bereavement care for life limited children and their families from the South West England region...
.
Church
The church, St Peter's, was thoroughly 'Victorianised' in 1867 during renovations directed by the architect Sir George Gilbert ScottGeorge Gilbert Scott
Sir George Gilbert Scott was an English architect of the Victorian Age, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches, cathedrals and workhouses...
. The stone pulpit still carries traces of colour, apparently from the soil in which it was buried during the Reformation
English Reformation
The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
. St Peter's medieval tower is positioned at the east end of the church, to the north of the chancel, an oddity shared in North Devon with Barnstaple and Pilton
Pilton, Devon
Pilton is a suburb of Barnstaple. It is located about half a mile north on the outskirts of Barnstaple in Devon, England. It is home to about 2000 residents, and has its own primary and secondary school...
.
The only other building of note is Fremington Manor, now a retirement home, situated 50 metres east of St Peter's. It is also a nineteenth century remodelling. Fremington's amenities include two pubs, the Fox and Hounds and the New Inn; they are situated almost next door to each other. The 1st Fremington Air Scouts
Air Scouts
Air Scouts are members of the international Scouting movement, of their respective Scouting organisations as a branch, similar to Sea Scout branches, with a particular emphasis on an aviation themed programme and/or flying-based activities...
are also based in the village.
Geology
Fremington is famous for Fishley Pottery made by the family of this name in the Combrew area examples of which can be seen in the Museum of Barnstaple. Excellent, stone-free clay pits (now mainly worked out) exist in the eastern half of the parish and were also owned by Brannam's pottery and usedfor their 'Barumware'. The clay may have formed in varveVarve
A varve is an annual layer of sediment or sedimentary rock.The word 'varve' is derived from the Swedish word varv whose meanings and connotations include 'revolution', 'in layers', and 'circle'. The term first appeared as Hvarfig lera on the first map produced by the Geological Survey of Sweden in...
lakes, near an ice deposit which lay over Fremington during the Last Glacial Maximum
Last Glacial Maximum
The Last Glacial Maximum refers to a period in the Earth's climate history when ice sheets were at their maximum extension, between 26,500 and 19,000–20,000 years ago, marking the peak of the last glacial period. During this time, vast ice sheets covered much of North America, northern Europe and...
. Rare (for south-western England) glacial deposits are found here. Two patches of boulder clay
Boulder clay
Boulder clay, in geology, is a deposit of clay, often full of boulders, which is formed in and beneath glaciers and ice-sheets wherever they are found, but is in a special sense the typical deposit of the Glacial Period in northern Europe and North America...
lie over the centre of the parish's bedrock. The next nearest boulder clay can be found in the Gower Peninsula
Gower Peninsula
Gower or the Gower Peninsula is a peninsula in south Wales, jutting from the coast into the Bristol Channel, and administratively part of the City and County of Swansea. Locally it is known as "Gower"...
, South Wales, approximately 45 miles (72 km) due north of Fremington. The nearest deposit of boulder clay in England can be found in the central Cotswolds
Cotswolds
The Cotswolds are a range of hills in west-central England, sometimes called the Heart of England, an area across and long. The area has been designated as the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...
, 6 miles (10 km) due east of Bourton-on-the-Water
Bourton-on-the-Water
Bourton-on-the-Water is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England that lies on a wide flat vale within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...
and approximately 140 miles (225 km) north-east of Fremington. The existence of the boulder clay is puzzling as the southern-most limit of the Devensian glaciation is theorised to have been located over South Wales. There are few other signs of glaciation in North Devon to support an extension to a more southerly limit. It has been theorised that the surface covering was in some way attached to an ice-mass that drifted across the Bristol Channel and deposited the till
Till
thumb|right|Closeup of glacial till. Note that the larger grains in the till are completely surrounded by the matrix of finer material , and this characteristic, known as matrix support, is diagnostic of till....
over Fremington. This, however, does not fully explain the presence of the nearly co-located varve clay beds.
Railway
Tarka Trail
The Tarka Trail is a series of footpaths and cyclepaths around north Devon, England that follow the route taken by Tarka the Otter in the book of that name. It is a figure-of-eight route, based on Barnstaple, and covers some of path....
cycle track (also part of the South West Coast Path
South West Coast Path
The South West Coast Path is Britain's longest waymarked long-distance footpath and a National Trail. It stretches for , running from Minehead in Somerset, along the coasts of Devon and Cornwall, to Poole Harbour in Dorset. Since it rises and falls with every river mouth, it is also one of the more...
), which follows the course of the rail line from Barnstaple to Torrington
Torrington
-People:* Jeff Torrington, Scottish writer* George Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington, British naval officer and statesman-Places:In Australia:* Torrington, New South WalesIn Canada:* Torrington, AlbertaIn the United Kingdom:...
, passes over Fremington Pill via the old London and South Western Railway
London and South Western Railway
The London and South Western Railway was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Its network extended from London to Plymouth via Salisbury and Exeter, with branches to Ilfracombe and Padstow and via Southampton to Bournemouth and Weymouth. It also had many routes connecting towns in...
iron bridge (railway line closed 1982; dismantled 1987) at Fremington Quay on the old Barnstaple to Torrington railtrack bed. The original railway was first planned in an Act of Parliament
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
in 1838, and laid in 1846 connecting the Penhill with Barnstaple at a cost of £20 000. A number of boats are moored here (in the Pill). The 'Quay Cafe' is located here. Whilst rather charmingly built in the style of a railway station, it is not the original one which was located the other side of the Tarka Trail where an original platform still exists. Other features around the Pill include a couple of Lime kilns, now thoroughly fenced off to prevent accidents.
Quay
Ball clay
Ball clays are kaolinitic sedimentary clays, that commonly consist of 20-80% kaolinite, 10-25% mica, 6-65% quartz. Localized seams in the same deposit have variations in composition, including the quantity of the major minerals, accessory minerals and carbonaceous materials such as lignite...
and 'import' of coal. Between the early to mid-twentieth century it was the busiest (tonnage) port between Bristol and Lands End. In later life an abattoir was located here. The quay now has been redeveloped with a restaurant and facilities to enjoy wide views over the Taw
River Taw
The River Taw rises at Taw Head, a spring on the central northern flanks of Dartmoor. It reaches the Bristol Channel away on the north coast of Devon at a joint estuary mouth which it shares with the River Torridge.-Watercourse:...
estuary. It is now a Conservation Area
Conservation area
A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...
having been designated such in 1996.
Army Camp
There was an army camp in the village, Fremington Army CampFremington Army Camp
Fremington Training Camp is a military camp in the village of Fremington, Devon, England, which was used as a base to train the United States Army Air Corps. It was originally located there to be within easy marching distance from the railway station at the Quay. The site was used by the US Army's...
The camp was originally located here to be within easy marching distance (800 m) from the railway station at the Quay. The site was used by the US Army's 313th Station Hospital for post-D-Day rehabilitation, with room for 2 000 patients. It started receiving casualties on 20 July 1944.
It complemented the Marines and Air Force presence at Royal Marines Base Chivenor
Royal Marines Base Chivenor
Royal Marines Base Chivenor is a British military base used primarily by the Royal Marines. It is situated on the northern shore of the Taw estuary, adjacent to the South West Coast Path, on the north coast of Devon, England....
, situated a mile (2 km) northwards on the opposite bank of the River Taw, and the Amphibious Trials and Training Unit of the Royal Marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
at Arromanches Camp, Instow
Instow
Instow is a village in north Devon, England. It is on the estuary where the rivers Taw and Torridge meet, between the villages of Westleigh and Yelland and on the opposite bank of Appledore....
, 2 miles (4 km) to the west. The camp was closed in autumn 2009.
Statistics
The 1848 'Lewis' survey shows the parish has 6810 acre (2,755.91 ha), of which 999 acre (404.28 ha) were waste or common land. The number of dwellings in the village was static between the first Ordnance Survey series in the 1880s until the second world war. Fremington has since multiplied in size several times over. By 2000, the population of the village (rather than the parish) was approximately 4 250. The A39 trunk road, which forms the main route to north-west Devon and north-east Cornwall, was diverted 2 miles (3 km) south of the village in 1989, relieving the village of its annual summer traffic jams.Transport
Fremington is served by:- First Devon and Cornwall 1/2 - THE ATLANTIC CONNECTION - Barnstaple - Bideford/Westward Ho!/Appledore
- Stagecoach Devon 21/21A - THE NORTH DEVON WAVE - Barnstaple - Bideford/Westward Ho!/Appledore
- Stagecoach Devon 315 - Barntstaple - Exeter