The Bowrings of Moretonhampstead

Moretonhampstead, the graves of the Bowrings. Originally from Exeter, they married girls from Moretonhampstead and are buried in the small chapel. This is now an arts centre. The Bowring family established a trading and import/export business in St. John's Newfoundland which developed into a shipping line transporting goods between Liverpool and St John's. The shipping line was later sold. The Bowrings included a knight of the realm, and they funded social housing and the library in Moretonhampstead. See Wikipedia for more.

Catherine Amery, nee Macmillan, married Julian Amery, a Conservative politician. They are both buried in Lustleigh churchyard. Click for more.

A Scout

Denbury church yard.

John Lethbridge

St. Mary the Virgin, Wolborough, Newton Abbot. The church sits atop a hill and the grave yard slopes steeply but at this time of the year is covered in spring flowers.

John Lethbridge was the first 'deep sea diver'. He designed and built an underwater vessel which enabled him to explore sunken ships and recover huge quantities of precious metals, which made his fortune. He was so wealthy that he was reported as having 17 children. His grave is the smallest one on the left of the trio.

There is a special exhibition running in Newton Abbot's museum with a mock up of his diving gear.

Percival Rowland Cocks

The church on Brentor is dedicated to St. Michael. It was built on a volcanic outcrop and is partially surrounded by iron age earthworks. It stands on St. Michael's line which links churches named after the saint from Cornwall to East Anglia.

George Parker Bidder

President of the Institution of Civil Engineers. Contemporary of I. K. Brunel. Known as the "Calculating Boy" because of his prodigious mental arithmetic skills. Designed and built many railways, docks and bridges in Victorian England.
His clock and a stained glass window are in St. Peter's Church, Stoke Fleming, near Dartmouth where he died. He was born in Moretonhampstead where there is a commemorative plaque.

George Routleigh-Watchmaker

Monument removed to inside the church to prevent further deterioration. It ends...

He departed this life
Nov 14 1802
Wound up
In hopes of being taken in hand
By his Maker
And of being thoroughly cleaned, repaired
And set-going
In the world to come.

St. Petrock Church, Lydford.

Graves with Dates

These graves just have the date of the burial, nothing else.
St Petrock Church, Lydford.

Three Valiant Soldiers

In memory of three valiant soldiers of the 7th Royal Fusiliers who died on Dartmoor in a snowdrift 12 February 1853. Corp Joseph Penton, aged 20. Private Patrick Carlin aged 23. Geo Driver aged 27.

St. Michael & All Saints Church, Princetown.

Dartmoor Prison Graves

Numbered graves for Dartmoor Prison ex prisoners.

St. Michael & All Saints Church, Princetown.

Francis Farquharson V.C.

Major in 42 Regiment. Fought in the Indian Mutiny.

St. Andrews, Harberton

Frances Herbert, Viscountess Nelson

Near Exmouth, the tomb of Admiral Lord Nelson's wife.

St. Margaret and St. Andrew, Littleham

Albert Haslam

As Professor Anderton, travelled the country as a conjurer. Established the fairground business of Anderton & Rowland with his son who adopted the name Captain Rowland. They had a travelling menagerie and cinema before moving onto steam powered rides.

Drowned in the River Sid.

Sidmouth Cemetery.

Bertram Robinson

Went to Jesus College Cambridge. Author, "contributed" to Sherlock Holmes novels. Exhumation requested in 2005.
Did Conan Doyle even write The Hound of the Baskervilles? How much of an influence was his old friend, Bertram Fletcher Robinson, who lived in Ipplepen and first told him about the legend of the Dartmoor hound? When the story was published in book form in 1902, Conan Doyle included an acknowledgement to Fletcher Robinson for telling him of the hound legend. But it went no further than that.

St. Andrews Church, Ipplepen.

Richard Cabell

There is the suggestion that the legend of Squire Cabell was the basis for the Conan Doyle book - The Hound of the Baskervilles. The "sepulchre" for the Cabell family, in the middle distance, is alongside the burnt out ruins of Holy Trinity Church, Buckfastleigh.

St. Gregory the Great

Churchyard, Dawlish

The Hoare Family

Charles Hoare, the banker, was attracted by the climate and scenery of Dawlish. In 1800-4 John Nash built Luscombe Castle for him, about 1 m. west of the church, combining the external appearance of "our ancient baronial fortresses" with all modern comforts inside.

The family has a walled tomb inside the churchyard.

St. Gregory the Great, Dawlish.

William Pye

Commander William Pye served at Trafalgar on HMS Minotaur as Midshipman.

St. Gregory the Great, Dawlish.

Thomas Pearse

Thomas Pearse, serge maker.

Quaker Burying Ground, Finch Foundry, Sticklepath.

Thomas Pearse

Thomas Pearse built a summer house in Sticklepath, next to the Quaker Burying Ground. This notice is inside the house. He is featured in the song about the fair at Widecombe-in-the-Moor; "Tom Pearse, Tom Pearse, lend me your grey mare..."

George Hewson

He served under Admiral Lord Nelson in many campaigns including Trafalgar.

Topsham cemetery.

Thomas Randle

...who was many years in the Royal Navy having served in several ships and as Quartermaster on board the Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar...

St. Margaret, Topsham

Skene Craig

A founder of Melbourne, Australia.

Torquay cemetery.

Sir Edmund Hudson, MA, DSc, FRSE

Educated at Marlborough College, Cambridge and Heriot Watt. A director of ICI. Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Torquay cemetery.

Isaac Singer

Singer sewing machines were big business.

Oldway mansion in Paignton was built by Mr. Singer, who reputedly had 5 "wives" and fathered 24 children, many of them interred in the same tomb.

Torquay cemetery.