In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Clovelly like this:
CLOVELLY, a village and a parish in Bideford district, Devon. The village nestles in a woody nook of a picturesque sea-cliff, about 500 feet high, 11 miles W by S of Bideford r. station; is one of the most extraordinary and romantic seats of population in the kingdom; has a post office‡ under Bideford, a small harbour, and an inn; and carries on a fishery in prime herrings and many other kinds of fish. ...
The parish comprises 3, 502 acres. Real property, £2, 188. Pop., 825. Houses, 193. The manor belonged once to the Giffords; passed, in the time of Richard II., to Sir John Cary; and belongs now to Sir J. H. Williams, Bart. The cliffs on the coast and many parts inland both exhibit splendid scenery, and command magnificent views. Buckish-mill-glen makes a fine break in the cliffs; and the freshwater rivulet forms a pretty cascade over them to the shore. Clovelly Court, the seat of Sir J. H. Williams, is a handsome edifice of 1780, on the site of a previous mansion destroyed by fire; and stands amid grounds surpassingly picturesque, with woods, crags, water-falls, and other features of distinctive interest. Clovelly Dykes, situated on very high ground, is an ancient British camp, 360 feet long and 300 broad, with three trenches or dykes. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Exeter. Value, £244. Patron, Col. Fane. The church is an ancient structure, with a low tower; was made collegiate, in 1387, by Sir William Cary; and contains a brass and monuments of the Carys. There are chapels for. Wesleyans and Bible Christians.
Clovelly through time
Clovelly is now part of Torridge district. Click here for graphs and data of how Torridge has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Clovelly itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Clovelly, in Torridge and Devon | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/1773
Date accessed: 19th April 2024
Not where you were looking for?
Click here for more detailed advice on finding places within A Vision of Britain through Time, and maybe some references to other places called "Clovelly".
