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England
& Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index |
The ParishThe parish of Martinhoe lies in the extreme north of Devon forming a stretch of the county's coastline with the Outer Bristol Channel. Martinhoe is located roughly 14 miles northeast of the port and market town of Barnstaple and sits just over 3 miles north of the A39 road linking Barnstaple through Lynton and onward to Minehead. Martinhoe is a tiny place sitting clustered around its church on a hilltop high above the picturesque Woody Bay with superb views across the Bristol Channel to the Gower coastline of Wales. This is rough upland countryside with steep slopes and open to wind and salt from the nearby sea, early gazetteers estimated at almost 50% of the parish acreage was set to "waste", a term used to describe unimproved upland grazing for largely sheep, better ground served for cattle. To the west lies the deep gash formed by the fast-flowing River Heddon where its confluence with the Bristol Channel once held a small port for both trade and fishing. Today it is tourism which drives the local economy, the scenic delights of this stretch of the Devon coastline being exploited both at Woody Bay and also by a lengthy stretch of challenging hiking trail from the South West Coastal Trail. Martinhoe is drained by both the Heddon and other similar fast-flowing becks into the nearby Bristol Channel. Martinhoe is sited at around 250 metres at its church that height being acquired in little more than a half mile of distance from sea level at Woody Bay, Martinhoe Common to the south rises to 309 metres as the highest ground for some distance. Martinhoe parish needed to be extensive to support the population, it covered a little over 2,400 acres ans supported around 250 parishioners. Domesday Martinhoe, held by Bishop Geoffrey of Coutances, was equally small with just 4 ploughs, a league of pasture and a small wood as assets. |
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Register No | Covering Dates | Deposited With | Register Style | Quality Standard | Comments |
1 |
15th April 1754 - 10th October 1812 |
North Devon Record Office - Reference - 1023A/PR/1/4 |
Standard preprinted and self-numbered Marriage register with 3 entries per page | Grade 1 Register - Few issues noted and a low likelihood
of misreads |
None |
2 | 12th February 1814 - 8th May 1837 | North Devon Record Office - Reference - 1023A/PR/1/5 | Standard Rose style preprinted and prenumbered Marriage register | Grade 2 Register - not a perfect read but with a low likelihood of misreads | None |
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Trentishoe
St Peter
Parracombe St Petrock |
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Parracombe
St Petrock
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Parracombe
St Petrock
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Parracombe
St Petrock
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1760 1770 1780 1790 1800 1810 1820 1830
Corrections to Tinstaafl Transcripts