England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Clayhanger St Peter

The Parish

The parish of Clayhanger lies in the extreme northeast of Devon forming a stretch of the border with neighbouring Somerset. Clayhanger is located roughly 5 miles east of the small town of Bampton and about 9 miles west of the larger Somerset town of Wellington. Clayhanger sits just over a mile south of the B3227 road which connects Bampton with Wiveliscombe. Clayhanger is a tiny place, little more than a hamlet, whic sitsh within deeply incised rolling countryside just to the south of the high hills of Exmoor. Like many communities in this area Clayhanger would have been a pastoral farming area dominated by the cattle for which its county is renowned. The village name is descriptive, a hanger is an old term for a hillside wood and the soil is certainly rich in clay. A small tributary of the River Batherm drains the parish westwards where the Batherm soon joins the Exe just south of Bampton. The Exe makes its way to the English Channel through the port of Exeter. Clayhanger is sited at around 160 metres above the sea, this is upland with land nearby soon reaching 267 metres on nearby Combe Downs marking the county border. Upland parishes are often quite extensive but Clayhanger was more typically sized for a lowland one, covering just under 2,100 acres it would have supported a population of close to 300 parishioners, many fewer today. In Domesday times Clayhanger was equally rural and small, held by one William de Mohun it could muster just 4 ploughs together with the usual meadows, pastures and woodland.

The Church

St Peter's church sits within the small village centre, tucked away behind fronting properties to the east of Clayhanger's main lane.Pevsner's short description of St Peter indicates a largely 14th century origin but one that has been much modified over the years. The 14th century saw the transferal of styles from Decorated slowly through to Perpendicular and the use of Decorated in, in particular the western tower, places St Peter into the early 14th century. The church has, however, received an extensive restoration of the late 1870s whereby the chancel complete with its arch has been rebuilt in a volcanic stone, more typical restoration work occurred throughout the remainder. The church is reached by a short side lane which has sufficient room for a car to park close to the junction,  the open and uncluttered churchyard has only one demerit in that the western tower sits close to the edge restricting views of that portion.