England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Shillingford St George

The Parish

The parish of Shillingford St George lies in southern Devon roughly 3 miles south of the city of Exeter. Shillingford St George is located just over 1 mile west of the busy A38 road which links Exeter with Plymouth. At the time of this transcript Shillingford St George was little more than a hamlet of fewer than 100 souls, today modern developments have swollen the settlement into a small and compact village built around 3 bifurcating lanes that form southwestward facing trident on the southern face of a ridge of land between two small streams. The parishes tiny acreage would have farmed 2:1 in favour of arable methods with a few patches of woodland and orchards to vary the mix. Modern developments have widened the A38 to a fast dual-carriageway highway but Shillingford St George remains distinctly rural and hidden from the speeding traffic. Shillingford St George is drained by its pair of streams which merge east of the village and eventually reach the Exe at Countess Wear before flowing southeast into the latter's estuary and the English Channel. Shillingford St George is sited at between 40 and 80 metres above the sea sloping from higher ground to the northwest down to the stream, land rises westwards in a deeply incised landscape with Parson's Plot Brake to the west reaching 217 metres. Shillingford St George was one of Devon's smallest parishes covering a mere 397 acres and supporting little more than 70 parishioners. In Domesday times Shillingford St George had 31 households making it larger than its Victorian counterpart, held and shared between a bowman, Fulcher, and the amusingly named William the Goat its assets of 10 ploughs backed by meadows and woodland reflect a middling sized rural manor.

The Church

St George's church sits within the fork of the two southernmost lanes forming the triangular split, it is tucked away behind fronting properties and reached only by footpath. Whilst the church has medieval origins in the Perpendicular period of the 15th century most of the fabric dating from that period was reused in the major rebuild of 1856, early church analysts believe there was an earlier church prior to the 15th century and today's version is actually the 3rd iteration. Of the medieval remaining it is represented by the fine plank and stud door and scattered Perpendicular styled windows. The rebuild of 1856 was rather thorough rebuilding nave, transepts and southern porch whilst re-cutting the stonework of the remainder. The main body in a brecchia sandstone from Heavitree contrasts with the ashlar masonry of the western tower complete with stair turret. To reach the church it is advised to seek on-street parking on St George's Terrace from where a footpath sign indicates a tarred path leading to the churchyard, the church is rather hemmed in by trees to the north and with a prominent southeastern tree the favoured aspect is removed, all other angles are available for the photographer.