In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Beer like this:
BEER, a village and a tything in Seaton parish, Devon. The village stands on the coast, in a romantic cove, 1½ mile SW of Axmouth; has a post office under Axminster; carries on fishing and lace-making; and was noted, in former days, for smuggling. It was the birthplace of the notorious Jack Rattenbury, sometimes called the Rob Roy of England; and it produced the weddingdress of Queen Victoria in 1839. ...
The cove around it is a fine subject for the pencil. Beer Head, projecting on the west, is crowned by two natural towers; and Beer quarry, about a mile inland, is a labyrinth of excavations, about ¼ of a mile long, and about 300 feet below the surface of the ground. The tything includes the village, and forms a curacy with the vicarage of Seaton in the diocese of Exeter. Pop., 1,157. Houses, 260. The church consists of nave, chancel, and aisles. There are an Independent chapel, and charities £210.
Beer through time
Beer is now part of East Devon district. Click here for graphs and data of how East Devon has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Beer itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Beer in East Devon | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/2680
Date accessed: 24th 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 "Beer".