England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Coryton St Andrew

The Parish

The parish of Coryton lies in the west of Devon not too far from its border with neighbouring Cornwall. Coryton is located roughly 6 miles northwest of the market town of Tavistock and stands within a remote area of the county far from any significant numbered roads, the closest such road is the A386 (Tavistock to Okehampton) road which lies almost 4 miles to its east. Coryton is little more than hamlet, a gathering of properties around a T-junction northwest of the parish church being the only concentration, most of the parish holds scattered farmsteads and cottages. The settlement sits upon a tongue of higher ground lying between the valleys of the Rivers Lew & Lyd, their confluence creates an extent of meadow which was used for pastoral farming whilst subsistence farming of sheep and crops for the home dominated the remainder. Modern developments have come and gone from the parish, a branch railway line linking the Okehampton to Tavistock line with Lifton once passed through but has closed and left only bridges and cuttings. The combined Lew & Lyd drain the parish westwards soon joined by the Thresher and Wolf before joining the Tamar at the Cornish border. The Tamar heads southwards to reach the English Channel through the western edges of Plymouth. Coryton is sited on rising ground from 95 metres at the Lyd's bridge to 135 metres at the T-junction in strongly undulating terrain, eastern views are dominated by the vast mound of Dartmoor rising to 353 metres on Gibbot Hill and over 500 metres on the higher tors. Covering a little over 1,300 acres Coryton parish was smaller than many in this area, it would have held a population distributed across that acreage of close to 350 parishioners. In Domesday times Coryton was also a small rural farming community held by Bishop Geoffrey of Coutances offering just 2 ploughs backed by meadows, pastures & woodland.

The Church

St Andrew's church sits between the T-junction and the Lyd bridge behind the village's school house. At its core St Andrew is a medieval church but it has been modified so extensively in Victorian times as to be almost a modern church. Discernible between that work is a 13th century Early English Gothic chancel, it retains the lancet windows characteristic of that era, a 15th century Perpendicular nave, rebuilt from an earlier version and a 16th century western tower also Perpendicular in style. All changed, however, in 1885 when the church was virtually rebuilt including adding today's northern aisle after first demolishing the medieval northern transept. Church & school have a substantial car park allowing a relaxed visit, the churchyard is uphill with a flight of a dozen steps to reach it from the car park, sadly for the photographer the shady trees through which you climb run right to the southern face of the church so there are no views whatsoever from the favoured angles, most other views are, however, clear.