RADDINGTON
The ancient parish of Raddington lies on the
southern edge of the Brendons 6 km. WSW. of
Wiveliscombe, its southern boundary forming part
of Somerset's boundary with Devon. (fn. 1) Roughly
triangular in shape, the parish stretches north for
3 km. from the boundary ridge known as Shute Hill
(c. 280 m.) to a point above Potter's Cross on Heydon
Hill above 320 m. The western boundary with
Bampton (Devon) is the river Batherm, flowing in a
steep-sided valley, and the north-western follows a
stream which rises on Heydon Hill and flows down
a combe to join the Batherm at Blackwell. The
eastern boundary, with Chipstable, is largely the
course of a wide hollow way, known in the 19th century as Old Way, which runs from Old Bank (fn. 2) above
Potter's Cross and continues southwards to an eastwest route through Raddington village, and then as
a bridle way passing the medieval settlement of
Batscombe (recorded in 1408), (fn. 3) to the late 19th-century settlement of Higher Batscombe. (fn. 4) The
whole parish measured 1,519 a. in 1901. (fn. 5)
Raddington lies in Devonian sandstone country,
divided between the largely slate Pilton Beds in the
south and the predominantly sandstone Pickwell
Down Beds. (fn. 6) There were small quarries and gravel
pits by the late 19th century, (fn. 7) and a quarry had been
opened at Batscombe by 1583. (fn. 8) Chubworthy,
Little Wilscombe, Notwell, and Kingston Farms
lie in dry combes which lead into a central watered
valley and thence into Raddington Bottom, where
the stream flows west into the river Batherm. The
parish church stands isolated on a spur on the
north side of Raddington Bottom, and the former
rectory and manor houses and the mill stand
on the edge of the meadows and one of the mill
leats. (fn. 9) The meadows contrasted in the 15th and
early 17th centuries with the bare or furze-covered
surrounding hills, the whole parish before 1840
being almost entirely under grass. (fn. 10) There is no
evidence of open arable cultivation; two 'great
fields' of glebe known as Sanctuary, (fn. 11) and smaller
closes (fn. 12) were established by the 16th century.
There was extensive common on Heydon Hill,
where closes were reported as open in 1602. (fn. 13)
Some land was still common in 1719, (fn. 14) but the whole
had been inclosed by 1795. (fn. 15) The farm attached to
the capital messuage in 1652 included land called
New Park and Coneygore. (fn. 16) The former survived
until 1795. (fn. 17) By 1840 there were also traces of a park
on the Blackwell estate. (fn. 18) Raddington wood was
recorded in 1480. (fn. 19) Oak, ash, and blackthorn were
growing at Batscombe by 1583. (fn. 20)
There was probably no nucleated village in the
parish. Chubworthy, recorded in the mid 11th century, (fn. 21) Upcott (1198), (fn. 22) Batscombe (1408), and
Nutwell (1409) (fn. 23) indicate scattered medieval settlement, and by the 1630s all the farmsteads surviving
in the 1980s had been established. (fn. 24) In the 19th
century some expansion of population led to the
building of cottages in Raddington Bottom and the
creation of Higher and Lower Batscombe. (fn. 25) By the
mid 20th century the medieval site of Batscombe
had been abandoned. (fn. 26)
The scattered settlement pattern was dictated by
the terrain and the consequent difficulty of communication between the deep valleys. An axial road
known as Hill Lane, serving some of the farmsteads,
runs south from Heydon Hill to a point north of the
church, parallel with the eastern hollow way. Roads
from Wiveliscombe crossed the parish from east to
west, towards Dulverton along Heydon Hill, and
towards Bampton through Raddington Bottom
passing Chubworthy, the former manor house, and
the mill. The second route was turnpiked by the
Wiveliscombe trust in 1786, though the line was
abandoned for a more southerly route, that now
followed by the main road, in 1825. (fn. 27) North of the
church Pitcombe Lane, linking Blackwell with Hill
Lane, was abandoned in the 19th century. (fn. 28)
There were 92 payers of a subsidy in the parish in
1667. (fn. 29) The population was 105 in 1801, and it
remained constant for three decades. By 1841 it had
risen to 126, but thereafter it fell, reaching 86 in
1891 and 65 in 1921. (fn. 30)
MANORS.
In 891 King Alfred gave to his companion Berthulph land in Raddington, free of the
common dues, (fn. 31) in exchange for other property.
Two thegns held an estate called Raddington
T.R.E.; by 1086 it was occupied by Robert, who
held the land of Roger Arundel. (fn. 32) The overlordship
descended with the barony of Poorstock (Dors.) like
that of Huish Champflower, passing from the
Arundels to the Newburghs. (fn. 33) Henry de Newburgh
in 1276 sold some of his property to Queen Eleanor, (fn. 34)
but he was still lord of Raddington in 1284–5. (fn. 35)
John de Newburgh, Henry's son, brought an unsuccessful action against the queen c. 1305 for an
estate including 2 fees in Raddington and Upcott, (fn. 36)
but his son Robert (d. 1338) recovered the fees soon
after 1327. (fn. 37) In 1434 the manor of RADDINGTON
was said to be held in socage as of Lodhuish manor
in Nettlecombe, (fn. 38) and in 1529 the manor was said to
have been so held in former times. (fn. 39)
Between 1196 and 1198 there were disputes over
fees in Raddington involving William of Upcott and
his wife Scolace, Isabel de Gatemore, and William
de la Fenne and his wife Emme. (fn. 40) Thereafter no
occupier is known until Robert of Raddington in
1284–5, (fn. 41) though Walter de la Fenne and Emme his
wife conveyed the advowson to Alice de Luceles in
1262. (fn. 42) John of Raddington seems to have held the
manor in the late 13th century (fn. 43) and had been followed by Robert of Raddington by 1332, (fn. 44) and by
John of Raddington by 1361. (fn. 45) In 1369 the manor
was settled on John and his wife Margaret. (fn. 46) John
was dead by 1408, but his widow survived until after
1420; (fn. 47) Walter Hill had acquired the reversion in
1408 and had succeeded by 1423. (fn. 48)
The manor passed from Walter to John Hill (d.
1434), who held it in right of his wife Cecily, later
wife of Sir Thomas Keriell. (fn. 49) It remained in her
possession until her death in 1472, (fn. 50) and then
descended to Genevieve, wife of William Say,
Cecily's granddaughter. (fn. 51) Genevieve died in 1480
but her husband continued to occupy her property,
not without challenge, until his death in 1529. (fn. 52)
Genevieve's estates were then divided between the
grandchildren of her aunt Elizabeth Hill, namely
John Waldegrave, heir of a half share through his
mother Mabel, Elizabeth Hill's elder daughter, and
the three children of Joan, her younger daughter:
Ellen Babington, William Clopton the younger, and
Thomas Hussey. John Waldegrave (d. 1543) acquired Ellen Babington's share, (fn. 53) but not certainly
the other interests in Raddington, though later
Waldegraves held the advowson undivided and
called their estate the manor of Raddington. John
Waldegrave was succeeded by his son Sir Edward
(d. 1561) (fn. 54) and Edward by his son Sir Charles (d.
1632) of Cossey (Norf.). (fn. 55) In 1599 Sir Charles settled
the manor on his heir Edward (kt. by 1607, Bt. 1643,
d.1647). (fn. 56) Sir Henry Waldegrave (d. 1658), son of
the last, was followed successively by his son Sir
Charles (d. 1684), Charles's son Sir Henry (cr.
Baron Waldegrave 1686, d. 1689), and Henry's
son James (cr. Earl Waldegrave 1729). James sold
the manor to Thomas Davys or Davis the younger
of Milverton in 1718. (fn. 57)
Thomas Davys the younger in 1719 settled the
manor on Thomas Davys the elder, (fn. 58) and a Thomas
Davys of Milverton was patron in 1746 and 1749. (fn. 59)
Another Thomas Davys, rector 1749–84, was probably both lord of the manor and patron, and was
evidently succeeded in 1784 by his brothers
Benjamin, of Raddington, James of Milverton, and
George, also of Raddington. Both manor and advowson were conveyed to Simon Richards, clerk, in
1784. (fn. 60) No reference to the manor has been found
after that date, though the Davys family were in
occupation of a small property in the parish in
1980. (fn. 61)
The hall was recorded in 1086. (fn. 62) The capital
messuage was known by the 17th century as Moorhouse, and in the 19th century by that name or as
Washer's, the name of a 17th-century tenant family. (fn. 63)
Washer's Farm, which bears traces of 17th-century
origin, was largely reconstructed after a fire in the
late 19th century. (fn. 64) There was a dovecot at the farm
in 1443. (fn. 65)
In 1086 Meinfrid and Robert held of William de
Mohun an estate called Chubworthy (Cibewrde) in
succession to two thegns, Seric and Uthret. (fn. 66) The
property continued to be held of Dunster until 1777. (fn. 67)
In the 1270s Robert of Chubworthy, son and heir
of Walter of Chubworthy, did homage for his holding, shortly afterwards reckoned as ½ fee. (fn. 68) A Robert of
Chubworthy died in 1333 leaving Philip as his heir. (fn. 69)
The succession is not clear thereafter. John Chubworthy occurs between 1378 and 1402, followed by
Richard between 1403 and 1408, and then by John
Chubworthy, possibly his brother, until c. 1420.
William Chubworthy, who succeeded in 1420 and
had died by 1421, left a son Geoffrey, a minor, who
survived until 1446 or later. Geoffrey's heirs were
two coheirs, one his sister Agnes, and by 1499 the
property was divided between John Southey and
John Sydenham. (fn. 70)
John Southey died in 1532, leaving a son Nicholas
to succeed to an estate described as half the manor of
CHUBWORTHY. (fn. 71) By 1563 John Southey had inherited half the barton place and lands of the manor
and half an estate in Raddington called Rowlands. (fn. 72)
By 1580 the estate had been sold to the Sydenhams,
who already owned the other half through the marriage of John Sydenham of Bathealton to Agnes
Chubworthy. (fn. 73) John Sydenham, perhaps their son,
died in 1504, and was followed by his son Edward
(d. 1543) and Edward by his son John (d. 1558). (fn. 74)
John Sydenham was followed by his son and namesake, who died in 1580, and then by his grandson
Humphrey Sydenham (d. 1625) of Dulverton. (fn. 75)
Humphrey inherited the whole estate. (fn. 76)
In 1609 Humphrey Sydenham settled Chubworthy
and half Rowlands as a marriage portion for his sister
Susan, then betrothed to Martin Sanford. (fn. 77) On his
death by 1647 Martin left the estate, perhaps to
ensure him a share in the whole family inheritance, to
his son William for 80 years. (fn. 78) William was still alive
in 1663, (fn. 79) but early in the following year he had been
succeeded by his nephew John Sanford (d. 1711). (fn. 80)
John's son William (d. 1718) was succeeded in turn
by William's son, also William (d. 1770), and then by
the younger William's son John (d. 1779) and John's
son William Ayshford (d. 1833). (fn. 81) Edward Ayshford
Sanford, M.P. (1794–1871), son of the last, was followed by his son William Ayshford Sanford (1818–
1902). The family continued to hold the estate until
the early 20th century, when it was sold to a farmer. (fn. 82)
Chubworthy Farm, known as the Manor House in
the early 20th century, (fn. 83) is a large 19th-century
structure, with slightly earlier farm buildings.
ECONOMIC HISTORY.
The two Domesday
estates of Raddington and Chubworthy together
amounted to 3 hides of arable, less than a quarter of
the later parish, and there were 7 a. of meadow, 11 a.
of wood, and 50 a. of pasture at Chubworthy and
4 furlongs by 3 furlongs of pasture at Raddington.
Chubworthy was solely a demesne farm; Raddington's demesne was 1½ hide and ½ virgate. Together
the demesnes were stocked with 128 sheep and 37
she-goats. (fn. 84)
Chubworthy continued as a separate estate,
though parts were let by customary tenure and such
holdings survived into the 1560s. (fn. 85) Batscombe
emerged from it as a separate holding with land in
adjoining Clayhanger (Devon) by 1467 and probably much earlier. (fn. 86) The division of Raddington into
separate units is less clear. A virgate held by
Reynamus of Raddington was mentioned in 1235. (fn. 87)
By the 1440s the demesne was let and accounted for
nearly two thirds of the rent income. (fn. 88) By 1480 the
demesne had been reduced in size as tenancies of
parts became permanent, while rent in lieu of
customary services still survived. (fn. 89) The appearance
of holdings at Upcott by 1198, (fn. 90) Nettlewell by
1327, (fn. 91) and Nutwell by 1408 (fn. 92) suggests the establishment of separate farms, the first as its name shows
a subsidiary settlement founded to exploit the higher
and more marginal ground.
Grazing of cattle and sheep seems to have been an
important part of the parish economy. Tithes of
wool and lambs in 1535 amounted to only 40s., but
a single copyhold tenement in 1537 supported at
least 7 bullocks and about 140 sheep. (fn. 93) At least three
generations of the Shereman family lived in the
parish up to the same period. (fn. 94) Under a lease of
Batscombe in 1583 the lord was obliged to provide
timber for a barn with linhays at its ends to house
cattle. (fn. 95) In the later 17th century clothiers from
Bampton (Devon) and Stogumber leased grazing in
the parish, (fn. 96) and inventories suggest continued stock
raising. James Wipple (d. 1683), of Chubworthy, left
sheep worth £42 and cattle worth £24; Susan Ballett
(d. 1691), widow of John Ballett, rector 1669–85, had
33 sheep; and Richard Yeandle (d. 1732), probably
of Upcott, had 160 sheep, and his dairy cows were
the source for his 57 cheeses. (fn. 97)
Identification of isolated farmsteads is clearer from
the 17th century. Chubworthy, reflecting its ownership, was divided into two separate farms in the 16th
century, and one half was let with half a farm called
Rowlands. (fn. 98) Rowlands, later known as Rowland
farm, became a separate holding in 1689 and continued in being until the end of the 18th century,
though in 1802 the house was found to be down,
leaving only a barn and yards, the site surrounded by
beech trees and called Sanden Barnstables. (fn. 99)
The Waldegrave estate (fn. 100) was by the mid 17th century divided between three farms and three areas of
hill pasture. (fn. 101) The capital messuage, then known as
Moorhouse, and the land attached to it measured
c. 90 a., and comprised 18 small and three large
closes let to Walter Simes of Romsey (Hants). (fn. 102) The
other two farms were known as Skinners tenement,
by the early 18th century Kingston farm, (fn. 103) and
Waterhouses. The three other holdings, known as
overlands or roofless tenements since they were
pasture lands without dwellings, were known as
Potter's Down (24 a.), East North Down (50 a.), and
Court Down (70 a.). (fn. 104) The remaining farms in the
parish which had been part of Raddington manor
were known in the 17th century as Blackwell Cleeve
and Upcott, and were owned by the Wood family
and let to the Miltons and later to the Yeandles. (fn. 105)
Wheat, oats, barley, dredge, and peas were recorded in 17th- and 18th-century inventories, (fn. 106) and
husbandry clauses in a 14-year lease of Chubworthy
in 1698 required heavy dressings of dung and lime
after a crop of peas and three crops of corn. By 1815
when Chubworthy and Batscombe were farmed together with land in Clayhanger on a 7-year lease, a
planting covenant required a succession of wheat or
oats, followed by a dressing of lime, and turnips or
a 'white' crop of wheat, barley, or oats with clover
or rye, so as not to have two 'white' crops together.
Clover and evergrass were to be sown with the last
crop of the tenancy. (fn. 107)
At the end of the 18th century there were nineteen
separate holdings in the parish, largely in the hands
of the families of Davys, Yeandle, Bruer, and Were. (fn. 108)
By 1841 the Sanford farms of Chubworthy and
Batscombe amounted to 317 a., followed in size by
the 281 a. of John Yeandle's Upcott and Blackwell,
and the 272 a. of the elder Thomas Davys at
Washers, Waterhouse, Heydon, and elsewhere.
Kingston farm and adjoining high pastures measured
211 a., and Notwell farm 157 a. Little Wilscombe
farm measured just over 141 a. (fn. 109) By 1851 Chubworthy and Upcott were centres of farms of 400 a., (fn. 110)
Kingston farm remained constant in size, but Littel
Wilscombe had grown to 214 a. All the large, isolated farms had many living-in servants. (fn. 111)
Pasture ground, some of it described as furzy,
accounted for more than half the parish in the early
1840s, and for nearly two-thirds in 1905. (fn. 112) By 1980
the land was almost entirely under grass for cattle
and sheep.
The landowning pattern of the 19th century continued into the 20th. The Davie family, later
Ferguson-Davie, of Bittescombe, (fn. 113) the Sanfords of
Chipley Park, Langford Budville, and the Capels of
Bulland Lodge, Chipstable, were still owners of
much of the land until shortly after the First World
War. (fn. 114)
There was a mill at Raddington in 1086 working
exclusively for the manor house. (fn. 115) The mill, recorded in 1481 and 1616, (fn. 116) was known by 1662 as
Brewer's mill. (fn. 117) By 1687 it was held with the adjoining tenement called Waterhouses. (fn. 118) Known in 1851
as Lower Mill, in distinction from Bittescombe mill
to the north, in Upton parish, it was then occupied
by a labourer. (fn. 119) Two millers were working in Raddington in 1906 and 1910, but milling had apparently
been abandoned by 1914. (fn. 120)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
Raddington formed a
separate tithing in the 13th century, (fn. 121) but by the
1560s was linked with Chipstable. (fn. 122) Courts for
Raddington manor were held once a year by the
later 15th century. (fn. 123) There are court rolls for the
years 1592, 1594, and 1600–4. (fn. 124) A manor court was
held at Chubworthy in the late 15th century, (fn. 125) and
suit of court by the owners of Batscombe was still
demanded in 1609. (fn. 126)
No parish records have been found. A building in
the churchyard was probably used as a poorhouse. (fn. 127)
The parish became part of the Wellington poor-law
union in 1836 and the Wellington rural district in
1894. It was absorbed into Chipstable civil parish in
1933. Chipstable civil parish became part of Taunton
Deane district in 1974. (fn. 128)
CHURCH.
There was a church at Raddington by
1262. (fn. 129) The living was a rectory, from 1929 united
with Chipstable. In 1971 the parish was united with
Chipstable and became a chapelry. (fn. 130)
Walter de la Fenne and his wife Emme conveyed
the advowson to Alice de Luceles in 1262; (fn. 131) from
1336 the lords of Raddington were patrons until the
end of the 15th century. (fn. 132) In 1494 James, Lord
Audley, presented by grant of Sir William Say. (fn. 133)
The Crown presented in 1570, (fn. 134) but thereafter for
more than a century the Waldegraves, disbarred as
Roman Catholics from exercising the patronage,
appointed local people in their place for each turn.
William Lypescomb, perhaps the retiring rector, was
patron in 1587; in 1639 Priscilla Ballet, widow of the
late rector, presented in right of her late husband,
who was executor of Richard Hill, the Waldegrave
grantee. (fn. 135) In 1662 John Baker of Withypool and
Jane Ballet, the wife of the then rector, were given
the next turn. (fn. 136) In 1670 Edward Milton and Andrew
Bowden, both of Bampton (Devon), were granted
the next presentation, which was exercised by Milton
alone in 1685. (fn. 137) In the same year John and Francis
Bluet of Holcombe Rogus (Devon) acquired the
next presentation in trust for the widow of the last
rector, John Ballet. (fn. 138) John Southey and Samuel
Taylor, clerk, presented in 1709, (fn. 139) but in 1718 the
advowson passed with the manor from the Waldegraves to the Davys family. (fn. 140)
Thomas Davys, rector 1749–84, was succeeded as
patron by his brothers Benjamin, George, and
James. (fn. 141) They conveyed both manor and advowson
to Simon Richards, clerk. (fn. 142) By 1791 the advowson
was held by Richard Darch of Huish Champflower,
who presented his son William in 1807. (fn. 143) William
succeeded his father as patron. (fn. 144) Walter Calverley
Trevelyan of Wallington (Northumb.) presented in
1833, and in 1841 Edward Otto Trevelyan (d. 1880)
of Stogumber, clerk, presented his brother John (d.
1844). (fn. 145) John Hayne of Fordington (Dors.) was
patron by 1861, (fn. 146) and was succeeded by his son
John, rector of Raddington 1845–79, and then by
John's son Edward, rector 1879–92. (fn. 147) Edward Hayne
was succeeded as patron in 1929 (fn. 148) by the Revd.
H. S. Briggs who, after the creation of the united
benefice of Chipstable with Raddington in 1929 had
one turn in three. (fn. 149) Briggs's share of the patronage
was transferred to the bishop in 1962. (fn. 150)
The living was valued at £8 7s. 7d. net in 1535, (fn. 151)
and £50 c. 1668, (fn. 152) at £91 net in 1831, (fn. 153) and at £200
in 1851. (fn. 154) Tithes were assessed at £7 14s. 3d. in
1535, (fn. 155) and personal offerings and compositions by
1634 included 2d. each year from every communicant, 4d. for churchings, 6d. for weddings, and payments for milk, young stock, goslings, and 'gardens
of pot herbs'. (fn. 156) In 1841 the rector was awarded a
tithe rent charge of £143, and a further £10 when
the glebe was let. (fn. 157)
The glebe, worth 20s. in 1535, (fn. 158) was reckoned to
be c. 63 a. in 1634 and 1841. (fn. 159) The rectory house in
1634 had four rooms including buttery and kitchen,
with five chambers over them, and a first-floor study
over a detached fuel house apparently near the farm
buildings. (fn. 160) The house was usually let with the glebe
from the 18th century, and was sold in the 1930s. (fn. 161)
The rectors in the 19th century had the right to use a
room as a vestry, a right still retained in 1980. (fn. 162) The
house, standing in Raddington Bottom and linked
to the church by a steep footpath, was rebuilt in the
19th century.
In 1532 the parish was served by a resident rector
and a stipendiary priest, (fn. 163) and there was a parochial
guild of St. Catherine in 1534. (fn. 164) Rectors normally
resided, including three successive generations of
the Ballet family between 1594 and 1685 and
Benjamin Hammett, rector 1709–46, whose first wife
was a daughter of the last Ballet. (fn. 165) Rectors were nonresident by the late 18th century, John Cope
Westcote (1784–91) also holding Hatch Beauchamp,
Edward Webber (1791–1807) Bathealton, and
William Darch (1807–33) Milverton and later Huish
Champflower. (fn. 166) By 1815 there were prayers and a
sermon each Sunday, and the parish was served by
a curate who lived in Wellington and also served
Chipstable and kept a grammar school. He was succeeded as curate by the rector's son. (fn. 167) By 1843 communion was celebrated seven or eight times a year. (fn. 168)
At the afternoon service on Census Sunday 1851
there were 102 people including 21 Sunday-school
children. The average congregation was said to be
slightly higher for afternoon services, but was
usually only 59 in the mornings. (fn. 169)
John Hayne, appointed rector in 1845, was already
resident rector of Stawley. He was followed at
Raddington by his son Edward, rector 1879–92, and
then by another son, John Popham Hayne, who had
already succeeded his father at Stawley in 1879.
John held Raddington until 1929, but from 1908 he
lived in Minehead, and Raddington was in the care
of curates-in-charge, usually the rectors of Kittisford or Chipstable. (fn. 170)
The church of ST. MICHAEL, so dedicated by
1510, (fn. 171) occupies a remote site, approachable only on
foot. It comprises a chancel, nave with south porch,
and western tower. The whole building dates from
the 14th century at the latest, its door including ironwork of the second half of the century, (fn. 172) and two of
the four bells there until c. 1971 dated from the
1370s. One was then transferred to Odcombe. (fn. 173) The
chancel screen below a plastered tympanum, retaining medieval paintwork under later colouring, is also
thought to date from before 1400. Until the late 19th
century the rood beam was in its original position
west of the screen. (fn. 174) The font is of a 13th-century
Purbeck type, and there are late medieval tiles on the
floor. Carved bosses in the roof include a green man.
The tower was evidently repaired or even rebuilt in
1675, (fn. 175) the reading desk bears the date 1713, and the
royal arms were painted in 1852.
The plate includes a cup and cover of 1574 and a
flagon of 1719. (fn. 176) The registers date from 1814,
earlier ones from 1583 having been destroyed after
1914. There are transcripts from 1603. (fn. 177)
NONCONFORMITY.
A woman, first reported in
1630, was described in 1636 as an 'absolute' popish
recusant. (fn. 178) The Waldegraves, lords and patrons of
the rectory, were disbarred as papists from exercising their patronage from Elizabeth I's reign. (fn. 179)
EDUCATION.
A school was established apparently
in the early 1840s, but in 1846 the 'most pleasing
little school' was burnt down. (fn. 180) In 1847 the school
had 7 boys and 14 girls attending on weekdays and
Sundays and was supported by subscriptions and
school pence. (fn. 181) A room adjoining the rectory house
was used for a Sunday school by 1861, and by 1875 a
National school was also held there. (fn. 182) By 1883 the
children were taught at Chipstable or Skilgate. (fn. 183)
The schoolroom was demolished during the First
World War. (fn. 184)
CHARITIES FOR THE POOR.
The capital of two
charities, one of unknown origin, the other founded
by John Kemp at an uncertain date, totalled £3 1s.
and was distributed by the overseers yearly at Easter.
By will dated 1754 William Yeandle of Upton added a
further £1 and in 1786 George Davys of Raddington
left £4 for four labouring men every Easter. By 1826
the whole produced 8s. a year, and was given 'to such
as appear to want it most'. (fn. 185) In 1840 the stock was
said to have been divided among the poor 'many
years ago', (fn. 186) but later in the century it was thought
it had been spent to help pay the debt on the union
workhouse. (fn. 187)