It’s our volunteers that make the Devon Rural Archive so special. As a volunteer you get frequent access to a wealth of fascinating historical material and to the expertise of our knowledgeable curator. You get to be part of a lovely team of people, with lively...
Earlier this month the Directors of Sawdye and Harris, Chartered Surveyors, Auctioneers, and Estate Agents, contacted the Archive about taking on their historical records. This long-established business had, over the years, amalgamated a large collection of material...
Saturday 10th September marks the start of Devon Open Studios where artists from all over the county will open their studios to the public. This annual event inspired us to delve into the archive in search of material on Devon artists and we came across this wonderful...
In the last blog post in our Stories from the Archive series we looked at the origins of the children’s nursery rhyme ‘Old Mother Hubbard’ which was written in Yealmpton by Sarah Catherine Martin in 1805. Sarah Catherine Martin was the sister of Mrs Pollexfen Bastard...
In a recent episode of ‘Sketches: A story of Art and People’ on Radio 4 (July 18th – On Dartmoor – available on BBC Sounds), the presenter Anna Freeman took a walk on the edges of Dartmoor with writer Tom Cox. During their discussion about the influence of Dartmoor on...
Sandwell Manor, Harberton – Revisited. In February 2021 our blog reflected on the research of our Curator, Abigail Gray, into the history of Sandwell Manor in Harberton which she had surveyed as part of Project Donn. This Grade II listed country house is of late...
