The Ivybridge Heritage & Archives Group aims to celebrate the rich history of Ivybridge and is dedicated to promoting a lively interest in the Town’s background and development by researching, collecting and preserving archives and photographic records of this unique Mill Town.
A new inn and post house called the Rogers’ Arms was erected in the early nineteenth century and served as the primary coaching inn along the main London-Exeter-Plymouth route. Four coaches called daily. The Royal Mail coach arrived in the early morning followed by coach called the ‘Pilot’ during the day, the coach ‘Subscription’ early afternoon and the coach ‘Defiance’ early evening.
The success of the Rogers’ Arms however, was short lived. With the introduction of the railway in 1848 and the opening of Ivybridge Railway Station on 15 June of that year, the hotel witnessed a sharp decline in stagecoach travel. This, coupled with the now deteriorating condition of the property, resulted in the closure of the hotel during the 1850s. All surviving stagecoach business was left to the other three inns, the London Inn, opposite the ivy bridge, the Grocer’s Arms (later The Sportsman’s Arms) on what would become Exeter Road, and the King’s Arms (The Exchange today) in Fore Street.
Western Road is an important part of the heritage of Ivybridge containing notable historic buildings, some of which are grade II listed, and some discretely hidden from view by dense foliage!
A new fire station was established on Western Road by the Urban District Council around 1904 by converting an old store. The old fire station which had operated since 1847 had been deemed too small for the needs of the district by this time.
By the early 1970s, the volume of traffic passing through the heart of Ivybridge was becoming too much for the village to cope with. It was estimated that 25,000 vehicles passed through Ivybridge each day during the busy summer months. The almost constant stream of cars and lorries made life unbearable for the inhabitants.
Following the opening of the Ivybridge bypass, part of the A38 Devon Expressway, completed in 1974, Western Road suddenly became less busy and Fore Street was pedestrianised. The road transitioned from a heavy transit route to a local shopping and community hub. Today with traffic calming measures, Fore Street is a one-way street with relatively low volumes of traffic.
Alright me ‘andsome
Those born and bred in Devon, or perhaps those who have lived here for a long while, are probably familiar with this dialect.
If you are not in the know, then this phrase just means ‘how are you’, similar to the variant, ‘alright me luvver’ also used in these parts.
There are of course plenty more words and phrases that you might hear. Let’s consider a few:
Dreckly – this means soon, as used in the phrase ‘see you dreckly’. It could equally refer to an unspecified time in the future
Geddon – simply an exclamation of agreement or approval
Where’s it to? – a local way of asking where an object or location can be found. Similarly, ‘wur be to?’ means ‘where are you?’
Yer tiz – perhaps the answer to the above question, as it means “here it is“
Helluva – means a lot of, or very, such as ‘there is helluva lot of people here’
Maid – used as a term of endearment for a female, including young girls
Bey – means a boy but ‘beys’ can be of any age!
Proper Job – often used to describe a task well done
Nothin tearin – This means not great, nothing of any significance
Snishums – an old-fashioned term for a sneeze
Smeech – an offensive smell from burning something
Within the rural community there are several words associated with farming, many of which would be probably meaningless outside of the county (and maybe even outside agricultural circles) – so let’s have a go at these:
Broil – hedge parings (trimmings, clippings, and briars), often taken from traditional Devon banks and hedgerows.
Eavel – generally a three-pronged or four-pronged long-handled fork used to pitch hay and clear out hedge parings.
Moot – a tree stump – ‘scatting abroad a moot’ means to chop up the root of a tree to get rid of it given that the term
‘take it abroad’ – means to take something apart.
Lew – sheltered area out of the wind. Cattle and sheep are able to take refuge in the ‘lew’ of a hedge which offers a break from the wind and rain.
Prang/Prong – two-pronged long handled fork
Brimbles – brambles
Vuz-bush – gorse bush. It is also known as Whin, Fuzz or Furze
According to the Legendary Dartmoor website it was always regarded to be extremely unlucky to bring furze into the house during the month of May because it would end up with a death in the household. However, other websites refer to alternative customs which are the opposite. Bringing furze into or around the home in May would welcome summer, though the traditional custom usually kept it at the threshold or outside. In Ireland, furze and ferns were put around the outside of the home in the belief that it offered luck to the house and protection from mystical forces.
Furze-pig – hedgehog. In Devon, the hedgehog is often referred to as the ‘Hedgy Boar‘ and on Dartmoor as the ‘Fuzzy Pig‘ or Furze Pig. This porcine name refers to the way it uses its snout to root around in the undergrowth of hedges in a pig-like manner. The ‘Fuzzy/Furze’ refers to its spines which are deemed to be similar to a ‘furze bush ’ (gorse bush) with prickles pointing in all directions.
Hag-thorn – hawthorn, with its dark red berries known locally as aggles. An older dialect term coming from the Old English haga-thorn, meaning hedge-thorn. May-bush is a common rural name reflecting when hawthorn blooms.
Bringing hawthorn blossom inside your home during May is traditionally considered very unlucky and believed to invite illness or death.
Dashel – thistle
Stingers – stinging nettles.
We all know that they inflict a temporary sting when touched resulting in itchy skin or even a rash. This irritation is caused by three chemicals which are released by the plant; a histamine which irritates the skin, acetylcholine which causes the burning sensation and serotonin which acts as a catalyst for the other two chemicals. Probably the most universal cure for a nettle sting is to rub a dock leaf over the affected area of skin. Good old Mother Nature has ensured that a clump of docks can generally be found close to nettles as they favour the same habitats.
Whether they do in fact cure the sting is debatable. Certainly, the cooling sensation of the sap from a fleshy dock leaf can relieve some of the stinging sensation but it could be merely a placebo effect given the widespread belief.
AUTUMN LEAVES
As the temperature cools during autumn, leaves receive less sunlight which triggers chlorophyll to break down and create the customary array of autumnal hues of red, orange, yellow and brown. The leaves eventually die and are shed as the trees are unable to get energy from them during the winter.
Fallen leaves, through decomposition contribute to the local ecosystem. Insects and fungi breakdown the leaves which then provide a source of fibre which aids the soil both in moisture retention and drainage improvement.
Autumn is also a time for birds and mammals to feast on the fruit and nuts on offer in the woodlands and hedgerows. Nuts from hazel, acorns from oak trees, sloes from the blackthorn, berries from the hawthorn and holly bushes and of course blackberries from the sprawling brambles.
A wide range of birds enjoy these autumnal treats all of which become an important food source when the ground becomes too hard to hunt for worms or snails, whilst insects are less abundant.
We now have a selection of booklets on various themes. These are available for purchase at The Watermark in Ivybridge. Each booklet is priced at £3.
Ivybridge Explored – this 28 page booklet provides an historical review of the churches, public houses and infrastructure of Ivybridge including the Ivy Bridge from whence the town derived its name.
Ivybridge Researched – this 28 page booklet provides a review of some of the notable events, people and businesses which have shaped the history of this town.
Stowford Paper Mill 1869 – this 20 page booklet is composed of a series of three newspaper articles published in 1869 which provide an insight into the workings of the paper mill at this time, describing the equipment and the methods used in manufacturing paper.
Stowford Paper Mill Ivybridge 1787-2013 – this 28 page booklet provides a chronological history of paper making at this historic site in Ivybridge from the once privately owned mill to the later one which was part of a multi-national company.
Ivybridge and the American during World War II – this 28 page booklet provides a wealth of interesting facts regarding the American servicemen who were billeted in Ivybridge from 1943 in the build up to D-Day.
The River Erme and its Industries – this 22 page booklet describes the path of the river through the South Hams to the sea together with lots of interesting facts regarding the area along the way.
The History of Ivybridge
The remains of stone-age hut circles can be found on Harford Moor, above Ivybridge, but the ivy-covered bridge, after which the town was later named, was first recorded in 1250; it is possible that it existed as a river crossing prior to the Domesday Book of 1086. An early ‘King’s Highway’ from Exeter to Trematon Castle near Saltash, the 12th Century crossing may have been constructed by the monks of Plympton Priory (founded in 1121) to give them access to their lands at Wrangaton, Dean Prior and Buckfastleigh.
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HERITAGE DONOR CARD
To help preserve historical documents, objects and photographs, we have created a Heritage Donor Card for individuals to make donations of such items to Ivybridge Heritage & Archives Group. Please go to our ‘Links’ page for further information.
COPYRIGHT
All rights, including copyright, in the content of these pages are owned or controlled for these purposes by Ivybridge Heritage & Archives Group.
HERITAGE DONOR CARD
To help preserve historical documents, objects and photographs, we have created a Heritage Donor Card for individuals to make donations of such items to Ivybridge Heritage & Archives Group. Please go to our ‘Links’ page for further information.
COPYRIGHT
All rights, including copyright, in the content of these pages are owned or controlled for these purposes by Ivybridge Heritage & Archives Group.