Okehampton
Encyclopedia
Okehampton is a town and civil parish in West Devon
in the English
county of Devon
. It is situated at the northern edge of Dartmoor
, and has an estimated population of 7,155.
. The earliest written record of the settlement is from 980 AD as "Ocmundtune", meaning settlement by the Ockment, a river which runs through the town. It was recorded as a place for slaves to be freed at cross roads.
Like many towns in the West Country
, Okehampton grew on the medieval wool
trade. Notable buildings in the town include the 15th century chapel
of St. James and Okehampton Castle
, which was established by the Norman
Sherrif, Baldwin de Brionne, as the administrative centre of his vast estate in Devon. These passed by marriage to the Courtenay family, who rebuilt the castle as a lavish but defensible country retreat, until in 1539 Henry VIII
seized the estate, and had Edward Courtenay executed for treason. Presently, the castle is owned by English Heritage and is open to the public during the summer season. The town is also home to the Museum of Dartmoor Life
, which has had notable visitors such as Prince Charles. Okehampton elected two members
to the Unreformed House of Commons
. The Reform Act of 1832
abolished its representation as a rotten borough
.
training camp on Dartmoor which can be reached via Okehampton, and is commonly referred to as "Okehampton Camp". It is managed by the Defence Training Estate, and used by a variety of military units, including the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines
(CTCRM), Lympstone
, Devon, and many cadet training units. The Ten Tors
event is run by the Army each year in early May from Okehampton Camp.
club which was established in 1926 after the original side, Okehampton Town, disbanded. They are managed by Stuart Cann and Neil Agnew and train in Simmons Park. The club competes in the South West Peninsula League
which sits at Steps 6 and 7 of the National League System
; four leagues below the top division of non-league football, the Football Conference
. The town also has a rugby club, Okehampton RFC, which is believed to have been founded in 1884.
trunk road now bypasses the town. Okehampton railway station
is on the former northerly rail route from Exeter
to Plymouth
via Tavistock. The line from Exeter remains open for freight traffic to and from Meldon Quarry
, two miles (3 km) west of Okehampton. In summer, and at weekends throughout the year, the Dartmoor Railway
operates a heritage railway
service between Okehampton and Meldon Quarry.
In 1997, Devon County Council
revived a passenger rail service from Exeter, on summer weekends only, in an attempt to reduce motor traffic to the national park
. As of March 2010 there were plans to reinstate a daily service terminating in Exeter. The town is also linked to Exeter
, Barnstaple
and North Cornwall
by increasingly infrequent bus services.
, known for its location on the very outskirts of Dartmoor, and Sticklepath
which runs parallel to the A30 dual carriageway.
West Devon
West Devon is a local government district and borough in Devon, England. Towns in the district include Chagford, Okehampton, Princetown, and Tavistock, where the council is based....
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...
. It is situated at the northern edge of Dartmoor
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an area of moorland in south Devon, England. Protected by National Park status, it covers .The granite upland dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. The moorland is capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The...
, and has an estimated population of 7,155.
History
Okehampton was formed by the SaxonsSaxons
The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic tribes originating on the North German plain. The Saxons earliest known area of settlement is Northern Albingia, an area approximately that of modern Holstein...
. The earliest written record of the settlement is from 980 AD as "Ocmundtune", meaning settlement by the Ockment, a river which runs through the town. It was recorded as a place for slaves to be freed at cross roads.
Like many towns in the West Country
West Country
The West Country is an informal term for the area of south western England roughly corresponding to the modern South West England government region. It is often defined to encompass the historic counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset and the City of Bristol, while the counties of...
, Okehampton grew on the medieval wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
trade. Notable buildings in the town include the 15th century chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
of St. James and Okehampton Castle
Okehampton Castle
Okehampton Castle is a ruined motte and bailey castle situated in Devon, England.The castle has Norman origins and dates from the late 11th century...
, which was established by the Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
Sherrif, Baldwin de Brionne, as the administrative centre of his vast estate in Devon. These passed by marriage to the Courtenay family, who rebuilt the castle as a lavish but defensible country retreat, until in 1539 Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
seized the estate, and had Edward Courtenay executed for treason. Presently, the castle is owned by English Heritage and is open to the public during the summer season. The town is also home to the Museum of Dartmoor Life
Museum of Dartmoor Life
The Museum of Dartmoor Life is a local museum in Okehampton, Devon, southwest England. It covers life in the Dartmoor area.The museum opened in 1981....
, which has had notable visitors such as Prince Charles. Okehampton elected two members
Okehampton (UK Parliament constituency)
Okehampton was a parliamentary borough in Devon, which elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons in 1301 and 1313, then continuously from 1640 to 1832, when the borough was abolished by the Great Reform Act.-History:...
to the Unreformed House of Commons
Unreformed House of Commons
The unreformed House of Commons is the name generally given to the British House of Commons as it existed before the Reform Act 1832.Until the Act of Union of 1707 joining the Kingdoms of Scotland and England , Scotland had its own Parliament, and the term refers to the House of Commons of England...
. The Reform Act of 1832
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...
abolished its representation as a rotten borough
Rotten borough
A "rotten", "decayed" or pocket borough was a parliamentary borough or constituency in the United Kingdom that had a very small electorate and could be used by a patron to gain undue and unrepresentative influence within Parliament....
.
Military presence
There is a substantial armyBritish Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
training camp on Dartmoor which can be reached via Okehampton, and is commonly referred to as "Okehampton Camp". It is managed by the Defence Training Estate, and used by a variety of military units, including the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines
Commando Training Centre Royal Marines
Commando Training Centre Royal Marines is the principal military training centre for the Royal Marines of the British Armed Forces. It is situated near the village of Lympstone, between the city of Exeter, and the town of Exmouth in Devon...
(CTCRM), Lympstone
Lympstone
Lympstone is a village and civil parish in East Devon in the English county of Devon. It has a population of 1,754. There is a harbour on the estuary of the River Exe, lying at the outlet of Wotton Brook between cliffs of red breccia...
, Devon, and many cadet training units. The Ten Tors
Ten Tors
Ten Tors is an annual weekend hike organised and run in early May for 2,400 young people by the British Army on Dartmoor. The majority of entrants are schools, colleges, Scout groups and Cadet squadrons from South West England, though groups from across the UK regularly take part, as do teams from...
event is run by the Army each year in early May from Okehampton Camp.
Sport
The town's football team, Okehampton Argyle, is a non-leagueNon-league football
Non-League football is football in England played at a level below that of the Premier League and The Football League. The term non-League was commonly used well before 1992 when the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League; all clubs who were not a part of The Football...
club which was established in 1926 after the original side, Okehampton Town, disbanded. They are managed by Stuart Cann and Neil Agnew and train in Simmons Park. The club competes in the South West Peninsula League
South West Peninsula League
The South West Peninsula League is a league of football clubs in England, which was formed in 2007 from the merger of the Devon County League and the South Western League...
which sits at Steps 6 and 7 of the National League System
National League System
The National League System comprises the seven levels of the English football league system immediately below the level of the Premier League and The Football League. It contains 91 league competitions and more than 1,600 clubs. It comes under the jurisdiction of The Football Association...
; four leagues below the top division of non-league football, the Football Conference
Football Conference
The Football Conference is a football league in England which consists of three divisions called Conference National, Conference North, and Conference South. Some Football Conference clubs are fully professional, such as Luton Town, but most of them are semi-professional...
. The town also has a rugby club, Okehampton RFC, which is believed to have been founded in 1884.
Travel links
Okehampton's location at the edge of the moor means that it has always been a route centre. The A30A30 road
The 284 miles A30 road from London to Land's End, historically known as the Great South West Road used to provide the most direct route from London to the south west; more recently the M3 motorway and A303 road performs this function for much of the route and only parts of A30 now retain trunk...
trunk road now bypasses the town. Okehampton railway station
Okehampton railway station
Okehampton railway station is a railway station serving the town of Okehampton in Devon, England. Heritage train services currently operate on certain weekdays, weekends and bank holidays...
is on the former northerly rail route from Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
to Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
via Tavistock. The line from Exeter remains open for freight traffic to and from Meldon Quarry
Meldon, Devon
Meldon is a village in West Devon in the English county of Devon. Situated close to Okehampton, its best known feature is the Meldon Quarry, from which granite is still extracted...
, two miles (3 km) west of Okehampton. In summer, and at weekends throughout the year, the Dartmoor Railway
Dartmoor Railway
The Dartmoor Railway is a long railway line in Devon, England. From Crediton the line parallels the Tarka Line to the site of the former Coleford Junction. Heading west it then serves Sampford Courtenay, Okehampton and Meldon Quarry. The route is owned from Coleford to Meldon by Aggregate...
operates a heritage railway
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
service between Okehampton and Meldon Quarry.
In 1997, Devon County Council
Devon County Council
Devon County Council is the county council administering the English county of Devon. Based in the city of Exeter, the council covers the non-metropolitan county area of Devon...
revived a passenger rail service from Exeter, on summer weekends only, in an attempt to reduce motor traffic to the national park
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an area of moorland in south Devon, England. Protected by National Park status, it covers .The granite upland dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. The moorland is capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The...
. As of March 2010 there were plans to reinstate a daily service terminating in Exeter. The town is also linked to Exeter
Exeter
Exeter is a historic city in Devon, England. It lies within the ceremonial county of Devon, of which it is the county town as well as the home of Devon County Council. Currently the administrative area has the status of a non-metropolitan district, and is therefore under the administration of the...
, 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...
and North Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
by increasingly infrequent bus services.
Nearby settlements
Okehampton is characterized by the large number of smaller villages and towns that surround it. Notable examples are the villages of Folly Gate, a small picturesque village which lies close to the village of Inwardleigh and Abbeyford Woods, BelstoneBelstone
Belstone is a village in Devon, England best known for the Nine Maidens stone circle. It lies within the West Devon local government district....
, known for its location on the very outskirts of Dartmoor, and Sticklepath
Sticklepath
Sticklepath is a village on Dartmoor, in the county of Devon, England. Its history is unusual in that, unlike most villages, it did not evolve around a manor. It never had a rectory or a squire...
which runs parallel to the A30 dual carriageway.