St Thomas is a large 3700 acres (15 km²) civil parish

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 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...

, England

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...

, on the western side of the river Exe

River Exe

The River Exe in England rises near the village of Simonsbath, on Exmoor in Somerset, near the Bristol Channel coast, but flows more or less directly due south, so that most of its length lies in Devon. It reaches the sea at a substantial ria, the Exe Estuary, on the south coast of Devon...

, connected 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...

 by Exe Bridge. It has a number of pubs, places of worship, a couple of schools and a large shopping precinct. The population, according to the 2001 census

United Kingdom Census 2001

A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....

, is 6,246.

St Thomas ward is currently politically represented by County and City Councillor, Rob Hannaford and City Councillor Adrian Fullam.

It originally consisted of two detached parts, the main part of which was by 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 the west of the River Exe

River Exe

The River Exe in England rises near the village of Simonsbath, on Exmoor in Somerset, near the Bristol Channel coast, but flows more or less directly due south, so that most of its length lies in Devon. It reaches the sea at a substantial ria, the Exe Estuary, on the south coast of Devon...

. The urban area that built up here but was not originally part of Exeter. The other part, about a mile to the west of the main body of the parish, contained the hamlet of Oldridge and was transferred to the parish of Whitestone

Whitestone, Devon

Whitestone is a small village in Devon, approximately 4 miles west of Exeter. It is in the parish of Whitestone; one of the 45 parish and town councils of Teignbridge District Council....

 in 1884.

St Thomas the Apostle became an urban district

Urban district

In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....

 in 1894 with the passing of the Local Government Act 1894

Local Government Act 1894

The Local Government Act 1894 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level under the Local Government Act 1888...

, and was incorporated into the municipal borough

Municipal borough

Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002...

 of Exeter in 1900. The name survives for the central area of Exeter west of the river.

A St Thomas Rural District

St. Thomas Rural District

St. Thomas was a rural district , in the County of Devon, England from 1894 to 1974. The offices were in Southernhay East, inside the City of Exeter, but outside the County of Devon....

 existed from 1894 to 1974.

St Thomas is served by Exeter St Thomas railway station

Exeter St Thomas railway station

Exeter St Thomas railway station is a suburban railway station in Exeter, United Kingdom, serving the suburb of St Thomas and the riverside area. The station is elevated on a low viaduct with entrances on Cowick Street. The station is unstaffed with the former station building now used for offices...

Parish Church of St Thomas the Apostle

The parish church of St Thomas is larger than any of the parish churches in the city of Exeter proper. The present exterior is Gothic of 1646 with a north aisle of ca. 1810 and a chancel of 1829. An arcade remains from the earlier church of 1412. There are three varieties of Gothic style here, 17th century, Decorated (ca. 1810), and Perpendicular (Victorian). John Betjeman

John Betjeman

Sir John Betjeman, CBE was an English poet, writer and broadcaster who described himself in Who's Who as a "poet and hack".He was a founding member of the Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture...

said little about it in his Collins Pocket Guide to English Parish Churches: the South (1968): only "fittings".