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A brief history of Alphington

Alphington's historic lanes and buildings

By Rowena Jay

From research carried out in Libraries, Studies Libraries, Records Offices and also by chatting with villagers.

Clapperbrook Lane

Once known as Watry Lane the name quite possibly changed to Clapperbrook Land when the clapperbridge was built. The lane is part of a very old route and originally ran from the village through what is now Marsh Barton Trading Estate, over the bridge crossing the Great Western Railway, along Salmon Pool Lane and along what is now Barrack Road. Travellers from London who wished to bypass Exeter and the City walls on their way to Plymouth used it. They would have crossed the River Exe at a ford called Madford. There is a raised path along part of one side of the lane as it has always had problems with flooding. There were originally fourteen cottages/houses at the top of the lane but the 1960's floods destroyed most of them. The building of the flood relief scheme meant that more properties had to be pulled down and this has left only six residences; there is also one at the bottom of the lane.

Mill Lane

This lane is thought to be at least 400 years old and ran from what is now Church Road to Ide Lane. It is here, where Mill Lane meets Ide Lane and Wheatsheaf Way and Smithfield Road roughly cross that Sobey's Farmhouse once stood. Past residents of this farm included: Henry Trimble Way and his son John Way (from White's Devonshire 1878-1879); and Percy Dadd who use to supply horses and drive the carriages for visiting judges at Exeter assizes. Percy Dadd sold the farm for housing development in the early to mid sixties. Positioned about half way down the lane is The Old Corn Mill. From here about three-quarters of a mile up stream along the Alphin Brook there is still a small weir where a leat ran off to bring water to the mill. The water was held in a pond in the garden of the mill before being sent crashing down to drive the waterwheel. The Old Corn Mill ceased milling in the 1930s and sadly the pond has now been filled in, though you can still see where the water use to enter the mill to drive the water wheel. The miller's

cottage was situated on the opposite side of the lane. Some of the millers included Richard Brown (from White's Devonshire 1850) and William Millford Mallett (from White's Devonshire 1878-1879). Some villagers remember the pond and the swans that swam on it and even today there is evidence of the track that the water took from the mill to rejoin The Alphin Brook. In one particular front garden of the houses that are built alongside the lane the ground is sinking to such an extent that there is a clear hole appearing; this is where a large pipe was installed to allow any water to run away. On the side of The Alphin Brook, set into the concrete wall is a grill where this water will enter the brook. The bridge that crosses the brook at this point is a new one and the old bridge was wooden.

Ide Lane

At the top of Ide Lane is the remains of a bridge, this was where The Teign Valley Railway line crossed the lane. The Teign Valley Railway (Exeter-Newton Abbot branch line) was widely thought to be the most beautiful of all the branch lines in Devon. It was a single track railway running through the villages of Alphington, Ide, Longdown, Dunsford, Christow, Ashton, Trusham, Chudleigh, Chudleigh Knighton, Heathfield and then on into Newton Abbot. In 1882 the first section opened just running from Heathfield to a temporary terminus at Christow. In 1903 the line was extended through to Exeter. The line was at its busiest when the roadstone quarries were open to supply the material to metal England's roads. The high level of freight traffic lasted from the early 1900s until the quarries became exhausted in 1930s. With the arrival of the motorbus the railway's passengers became less and the service was withdrawn in 1958. Eventually the line was completely closed in 1968 because of the Beeching cuts. I was told a story where the train drivers would drop off farmers folk not at the station but close to their farms so that they would have a shorter walk home across the fields. The driver's reward was some vegetables or a bag of potatoes!

Midway Terrace

Is set back from Ide Lane and was originally a row of workman's cottages. They housed the workers who were cutting the Exeter-Newton Abbot branch line of the Teign Valley Railway. During the Second World War an incendiary bomb fell through the roof of a cottage where Mr Rossiter was living, he threw the bomb out and was the only person injured.

Laurel Cottage

Is well hidden from view and previous residents have included: Hy. Dorvill, gent (from White's Devonshire 1850); Misses Martha and Caroline Stockland (from White's Devonshire 1878-1879).

Gidleys

Is thought to be the oldest house in Alphington, is built of cob and thatch and it was named after Bartholomew Gidley who came to  the village in about 1611. The Gidley family name does not appear in the village after 1695. It is thought that the panelling in the dining room came from some old box pews that were removed from the Church in 1876. The pump that was in use until the 1960s can still be seen in the front garden today and the well has never been known to run dry. In the back garden is a ruin of a stone building, which was used for storing thatching materials. Gidleys use to have its own farm but in the mid 1860s when Mr John Coles became the tenant it merged into Sobey's Farm. Another resident  included: James Coles, a builder and undertaker (from White's Devonshire 1878-1879).

Myrtle Cottages

Is a row of three cottages that were built in 1833 or even earlier. They are constructed of cob and brick and were once known as 1, 2 and 3 Myrtle cottages but in the 1950s they were recorded as having Ide Lane numbers. In 1889 they belonged to John Routley who was the tenant at the Admiral Vernon Inn. At the end of this row is another cottage, number 29 and known as Myrtle Cottage. In the past it was owned by the Earl of Devon and after that William Holmes in 1833. Other past residents included: Thomas Hill, gent, (from White's Devonshire 1850); William Godfrey Palmer who was a coal merchant (from White's Devonshire 1878-1879). Before Myrtle Close was built in 1965 it was a market garden owned by the Grimes family.

The Village Hall

This was originally a National School that was established in 1812 to teach the boys of the poor families from Alphington and surrounding parishes. There was only one Master with the most
intelligent of the senior boys passing on their knowledge to the younger ones. At one time Mr Thomas Brewer was a Master at the school. At first the school only taught reading but later on writing and arithmetic were added to the timetable. In 1878 the school became a reading room when the Board School opened in Church Road.

Other old properties in Ide Lane

Tucked away behind a lovely cottage-style garden is a house that was built in 1932. The Griffin Alms Houses these were given to the village in 1936. Burgoyne Cottage use to be a barn and Ide Lane originally ran along the back of the property. William Burgoyne who also built the Admiral Vernon built the actual cottage in 1627. Ventlake is another one of the old houses of the village. Inset into the wall of The Trap House is a Goose Plaque perhaps commemorating the famous Goose Fairs. Parrs Cottages used to stand on the corner of the lane where the new flats are now built. One story I was told about a family who lived in one of Parr's cottages and their six children slept in one bed head to toe.

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