Devonshire's East Devon magazine September October 2018

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Glimpses of Ashburton
by Nigel Jones
1. The river Ashburn, flowing through the town,
is joined by another stream on the west before
entering the town, a vital source once for the
town's fulling mills.
2. Ashburton's Town Hall was commissioned by
Lord Clinton in 1850. The bell tower proudly sits
on the corner standing watch over the town.
3. Those long field strips running from the ridge,
down towards the town are Saxon in origin,
showing how the land was divided up.
4. Jack's waiting for some titbits from lunch, here
it the garden at Brick House.
5. Ashburton still maintains its Office of Portreeve,
a Saxon office dating back to 820AD. Here
is a photo showing the 1,192nd Portreeve of
Ashburton together with his Bailiff. (Peter Brewer
and Linda Germon).
6. The variety of English architectural eras is neatly
reflected in the buildings facing the main streets.
7. St Lawrence Chapel tower. Being a Chantry
Chapel, the children of the town sang the office
of Mass in return for an education from the
resident priest. Bishop Stapledon gave the
Chapel to the town in 1314 when he was Bishop
of Exeter and Lord of the Manor of Ashburton. It
was one of England's first grammar schools run
by the church to educate local boys. It closed
in 1938. The building was extensively restored
by the Dartmoor National Park Authority and
English Heritage.
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