Spreyton

For Spreyton in Australia, see Spreyton, Tasmania.

Spreyton
Spreyton is located in Devon
Spreyton
Spreyton
Location within Devon
Population380 (2011 Census)
OS grid referenceSX6996
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townCrediton
Postcode districtEX17
Dialling code01647
PoliceDevon and Cornwall
FireDevon and Somerset
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Devon
50°45′19″N 3°50′35″W / 50.75537°N 3.84312°W / 50.75537; -3.84312

Spreyton is a small rural village just north of Dartmoor in Devon, England. Spreyton is famous for its connection to the tale of “Old Uncle Tom Cobley and all” who came from, and is thought to be buried in Spreyton. Some[who?] believe that if Uncle Tom Cobley did exist and did travel to Widecombe fair, he would have travelled from Spreyton.

Spreyton was mentioned in the Domesday Book (1086) as ""Spreitone" in the ancient hundred of Wonford [1] and in 1236 as "Sprotton". The first element of the name is the Anglo-Saxon word from which "spray" is derived, "spray" meaning "twig" or "brushwood".[2]

There is a small primary school, Spreyton County Primary School, serving the village and the surrounding area. The Tom Cobley Tavern is the village pub, placed on the main street in the village. There is also a parish church, which holds the grave of 'Tom Cobley' within its churchyard.

The parish church of St Michael is built of granite ashlar and stands on a hill. The wagon roofs of the nave, aisle and chancel are medieval; the roof of the chancel has an inscription dated 1451. The Norman font is octagonal.[3] The church is notable for its medieval ceiling boss depicting three hares with shared ears.[4][5]

  1. ^ Open Domesday Online: Spreyton, accessed March 2019.
  2. ^ Ekwall, Eilert (1940) The Concise Dictionary of English Place-names; 2nd ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press; p. 414
  3. ^ Pevsner, N. (1952) South Devon. Harmondsworth: Penguin; p. 269
  4. ^ Ellis, Monica (24 September 2014). "On the trail of ancient symbols". BBC. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  5. ^ "Natural Histories - Hare". BBC Sounds. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 7 June 2020.