Ruby Country parishes and villages

Some Ruby Country parishes have their own websites providing general information for residents and visitors alike.  Some parish websites provide access to up to date newsletters keeping you fully informed of what is going on and businesses operating in the local areas.

Ashwater

Ashwater is a Ruby Country rural parish in north-west Devon, a few miles south east of Holsworthy. It is covered by Torridge District Council, and is in the Hundred of Black Torrington and the Deanery of Holsworthy . As well as the village itself, the parish includes several hamlets, such as Henford, Quoditch and part of Ashmill, which lies directly on the boundary between Ashwater and Broadwoodwidger parishes.

Bradworthy

Bradworthy is a large parish sitting in the north-west of Ruby Country.  Shaped like a large ancient oak tree it has a varied and interesting history.  The village is a busy community and has everything on hand for visitors and residents alike.

Bratton Clovelly

Bratton Clovelly is a rural  Parish in West Devon, England, on the North Western edge of  Dartmoor National Park, with Okehampton being the nearest town and shopping centre some 9 miles away. The parish covers an area of about 2931 ha (29.31 km²) and the current electoral roll is about 353.

Bridgerule

The parish of Bridgerule is at the western edge of Ruby Country on the border with Cornwall.  Close to Bude, a visit to Bridgerule will give you the best of both worlds; a seaside holiday with many opportunities to explore the rural Devon countryside.

Germansweek

Located in West Devon in the south of Ruby Country, the parish of Germansweek contains Roadford Lake.

Hatherleigh

Hatherleigh is a small market town in the east of Ruby Country and is home to a well established livestock and general market, which take place on Tuesdays.  The parish website also contains information for the surrounding parishes of Meeth, Highampton, Exbourne and Jacobstowe.

 

Holsworthy Hamlets

Milton Damerel

Milton Damerel is a Parish rather than a Village, made up of a number of hamlets. The Parish covers some seven square miles, with a population of approximately 450 in the Torridge District of rural north-west Devon. It is approximately five miles from the market town of Holsworthy and 13 miles from Bideford. The A388 is the main road through the middle of the Parish from the south-western boundary at the Holsworthy Beacon cross roads to the River Torridge at the north-eastern boundary at Woodford Bridge.

Northlew

Northlew, on the edge of Dartmoor is a lively place, with many young families and lots going on.  The village has an attractive main square surrounded by traditional buildings, some of them thatched, a pub, primary school and two churches. The village lies 7 miles northwest of Okehampton and 5 miles west of the ancient town of Hatherleigh. The village is named after the River Lew which runs through the valley and is crossed on entry to the village.

Petrockstowe

The parish of Petrockstowe is located in the borough of West Devon to the east of Ruby Country.

 

St Giles on the Heath and Northcott

St. Giles on the Heath and Northcott are located on the south western corner of Ruby Country on the border with Cornwall. St Giles on the Heath gave rise to the great Devonshire family of Cary who originated here in the 12th century

Sutcombe

Sutcombe parish is located in the north-west of Ruby Country close to the village of Bradworthy.

 

Shebbear and Buckland Filleigh

The website for the parishes of Shebbear and Buckland Filleigh is a one stop website aimed as a resource for locals and visitors alike. If you are looking for accommodation, a tradesman, a loaf of bread, social events or just background information, you will find it all here.

Thornbury Hamlets

Thornbury Hamlets located in peaceful north Devon, is made up of Thornbury, South Wonford, Woodacott, Lashbrook and Brendon. It truly is off the beaten trail, yet there are many reasons to visit.

There are other Ruby Country parishes without websites.  Ride the Ruby Country is working with all Ruby Country parishes to collate useful information and details of activities and events taking place across Ruby Country.  Visit the news and events pages for up to date information.

West Putford

WEST PUTFORD lies on the W. slopes of the upper Torridge valley. Kismeldon Bridge, a mile upstream, is the first important bridge over the youthful Torridge and is mentioned in 1279. The name is interesting, for it goes back to an early Christian cross in this lonely country (cristelmael, “cross, crucifix”) which may have marked a ford at this point.

Abbots Bickington

ABBOTS BICKINGTON formed part of the original endowment of Hartland abbey temp. Henry II, which retained it until the Dissolution. Culsworthy was a small Domesday estate.

Bulkworthy

BULKWORTHY is a small parish in the upper Torrige valley, formerly a chaplery of Buckland Brewer. The church (St. Michael) was largely rebuilt at the cost of Sir William Hankford (d. 1423), and a S. aile added about a hundred years later. In 1873-4 the church underwent “a thorough restoration”, when the remains of the rood-screen were cleared away and some of the carved bench-ends buthered to make the pulpit.

Newton St Petrock

Newton St Petrock is an ecclesiastical and civil parish in the Torridge District of Devon in England, occupying approximately . It has a population in 2001 of 163.

 

Pancrasweek

Pancrasweek is a civil parish in the far west of Devon, England forming part of the local government district of Torridge and lying about three miles north west of the town of Holsworthy. It is bordered clockwise from the north by the Devon parishes of Bradworthy, Holsworthy Hamlets, a small part of Pyworthy, and Bridgerule. Its western border mostly follows the River Tamar which forms the county boundary with Cornwall. The parish consists of small scattered settlements. Part of the Lower Tamar Lake lies within the parish. This artificial lake was constructed in the 1820s to supply water to the Bude Canal, but it is now a haven for wildlife and is popular for coarse fishing.

Pyeworthy

Pyworthy is a village and civil parish in the far west of Devon, England. It forms part of the local government district of Torridge. The parish lies to the west of the town of Holsworthy. It is surrounded clockwise from the north-west by the parishes of Bridgerule, a small part of Pancrasweek, Holsworthy Hamlets and Holsworthy, and Clawton. Its western border follows the River Tamar which forms the county boundary with Cornwall. The 13th-century church is dedicated to Saint Swithin.

Holsworthy

The town is situated near the county border with Cornwall, nine miles from the coastal resort of Bude, 18 miles from Bideford and 27 miles from North Devon’s most populous town, Barnstaple

It has a thriving outdoor pannier market every Wednesday, along with one of the largest livestock markets in South West England. The livestock market had been held on the same site from 1905 until 2014 when the site was sold for retail and residential development and the livestock market moved to an new out-of-town site.

Cookbury

Cookbury is a village and civil parish in the local government district of Torridge, Devon, England. The parish, which lies about five miles east of the town of Holsworthy, is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Thornbury, Bradford, Ashwater, Hollacombe, and Holsworthy Hamlets.

Meeth

Meeth lies above a bend in the River Torridge near the confluence with the Ockment. It was mentioned in the Domesday Book, so there was an established community before the Normans came. It is likely that Meeth was one of the early Christian communities in North Devon.

Bradford

Bradford is a village and civil parish in the local government district of Torridge, Devon, England. The parish, which lies about six miles east of the town of Holsworthy has part of its eastern boundary formed by the River Torridge, and it is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Milton Damerel, Shebbear, Black Torrington, Ashwater, Cookbury and Thornbury.

 

Peters Marland

The parish church, in the village, is dedicated to St Peter. It was extensively restored in the 1860s by the Moore-Stevens family and is, according to W. G. Hoskins, “entirely without interest”.

Ball clay is quarried in the east of the parish, as it has been for many years. There was a brick and tile works here until 1940; many houses in Great Torrington are built of its cream-coloured bricks. The North Devon and Cornwall Junction Light Railway served the works between 1925 and 1982. Today the former railway line forms part of the Tarka Trail series of footpaths and cycle tracks.

Iddesleigh

The landscape historian W. G. Hoskins, writing in 1953, described the village as “an excellent example of a cob and thatch village, most attractive to explore”, and in 1973 S. H. Burton wrote that it gave the appearance of being “thatchier” than anywhere else in Devon. Situated on a south-facing slope, the village has good views of northern Dartmoor, including its highest point, High Willhays.

Broadwoodkelly

Broadwoodkelly is a village and civil parish in the West Devon district of Devon in England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 218. The village is situated about 9 miles (14 km) north of Okehampton.

Much of the church is 15th century, but it has two piscinae 700 years old, an ancient granite baptismal font, an elizabethan table, and a stained-glass window dated 1523.

Highampton

The Parish of Highampton is a microcosm of Devon itself. A small population and a large land area set in beautiful countryside
Highampton is a parish of approximately 110 dwellings, with around 236 on the electoral role, spread over an area of about four square miles.

Sheepwash

At the heart of the village is an attractive open square. The church tower dominates the skyline behind the comely thatched roofs at the far end of the square which is bordered on its northern edge by the popular Half Moon Inn that provides facilities for fishing on the nearby River Torridge.

Black Torrington

Black Torrington is a village and civil parish in north Devon, England, situated between the towns of Holsworthy and Hatherleigh. It is situated on and named after the River Torridge. Within the village is a small but well maintained 15th century Church of England parish church named after St Mary.

 

Clawton

Clawton is a village and civil parish in the far west of Devon, England. It forms part of the local government district of Torridge. The village lies about three miles south of the town of Holsworthy on the A388 road. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north-west by the parishes of Pyworthy, Holsworthy Hamlets, Ashwater, and Tetcott. Its western border follows the River Tamar which forms the county boundary with Cornwall.

Tetcott

Tetcott is a civil parish, small settlement and former manor (once the home of the Arscotts of Tetcott) in Devon, England. The parish lies about five miles south of the town of Holsworthy and is bordered on the north by the parish of Clawton, on the east by a small part of Ashwater, and on the south by Luffincott. It forms part of the local government district of Torridge, and its western boundary is the River Tamar which forms the Cornish border.

Luffincott

Luffincott is a civil parish in the far west of Devon, England. It forms part of the local government district of Torridge and lies about six miles south of the town of Holsworthy. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Tetcott, Ashwater, St Giles on the Heath and Northcott. Its western border follows the River Tamar which forms the county boundary with Cornwall.

Virginstowe

Virginstow is a village and civil parish in the Torridge district of Devon in England, about 7 miles north of Launceston in Cornwall

 

Broadwoodwidger

A large rural Parish in the beautiful rolling countryside of West Devon, with glorious views of Dartmoor and nearby Cornwall. Distinctive for its many hidden hamlets and farms that nestle tucked away throughout the parish. Alongside its many rivers, hills and valleys, one of which the River Wolf meanders gently, having been dammed in recent times to provide 750 acres of water stored for the large conurbations of Devon. Many outdoor activities surround the reservoir including wind surfing, boating and fishing whilst providing peaceful rural walks for the whole family to enjoy.

Exbourne with Jacobstowe

Exbourne is a village and civil parish in the English county of Devon. It lies in West Devon, about 5 miles north of Okehampton. It lies in a primarily agricultural location and the local parish council represents both Exbounre and nearby Jacobstowe. There is a Church of England Primary School which has three classes with about sixty children on the roll. There is a public house called the Red Lion and it has an eco-friendly underground shop and post office.

Beaworthy

BEAWORTHY has a small 14th century church, practically rebuilt in 1871.  The S. doorway has small traces of Norman work. The church is the only one in Devon dedicated to St. Alban, the 4th century protomartyr of Britain.

 

 

Inwardleigh

INWARDLEIGH takes its name from Inwar, its Domesday owner. Other Domesday manors in this large parish were Curworthy, Oak, and Widefield.

 

Monkeokehampton

Monkeokehampton is located within West Devon local authority area. Historically it formed part of Black Torrington Hundred. It falls within Okehampton Deanery for ecclesiastical purposes.

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Ruby Country Partnership is pleased to be supporting these businesses and would like to support more. If you are interested in working with Ruby Country Partnership to develop and promote your business please contact us at Holsworthy Information Centre on 01409 254185 or email us at info@visitdevonsrubycountry.co.uk

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