Teignmouth
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Teignmouth ( ) is a seaside
town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an o ...
,
fishing port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ha ...
and
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
in the
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...
county of
Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
. It is situated on the north bank of the estuary mouth of the River Teign, about 12 miles south of
Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
. The town had a population of 14,749 at the last census in 2011. From the 1800s onwards, the town rapidly grew in size from a
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from fish stocking, stocked bodies of water such as fish pond, ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. ...
port associated with the Newfoundland cod industry to a fashionable resort of some note in Georgian times, with further expansion after the opening of the South Devon Railway in 1846. Today, its port still operates and the town remains a popular seaside and day trip holiday location.


History


To 1700

The first record of Teignmouth, ''Tengemuða'', meaning ''mouth of the stream'', was in 1044. Nonetheless, settlements very close by are attested earlier, with the banks of the Teign estuary having been in Saxon hands since at least 682, a battle between the Ancient Britons and Saxons being recorded on Haldon in 927, and Danish raids having occurred on the Teign estuary in 1001. There were originally two villages, East and West Teignmouth, separated by a stream called the Tame, which emptied into the Teign through marshland by the current fish quay. Neither village is mentioned in the
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
, but East Teignmouth was granted a market by
charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the re ...
in 1253 and one for West Teignmouth followed a few years later. The Tame now runs under the town in culverts and is only visible higher up the town as Brimley Brook, joined by smaller streams such as the Winterbourne (an intermittent stream, which flows only in winter or after heavy rain). Documents indicate that Teignmouth was a significant port by the early 14th century, second in Devon only to Dartmouth. It was attacked by the French in 1340 and sent seven ships and 120 men to the expedition against Calais in 1347. Its relative importance waned during the 15th century, and it did not figure in an official record of 1577. This may have been due to silting up of the harbour caused by tin mining on Dartmoor. During the 17th century, in common with other Channel ports, Teignmouth ships suffered from raids from
Dunkirkers During the Dutch Revolt (1568–1648), the Dunkirkers or Dunkirk Privateers were commerce raiders in the service of the Spanish monarchy. They were also part of the ''Dunkirk fleet'', which consequently was a part of the Spanish monarchy's ''Fl ...
, who were
privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...
s from Flemish ports. It is possible that
smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are variou ...
was the town's most significant trade at this time, though
cod fishing in Newfoundland Cod fishing in Newfoundland was carried out at a subsistence level for centuries, but large scale fishing began shortly after the European arrival in the North American continent in 1492, with the waters being found to be preternaturally plentiful ...
was also of great importance. In July 1690, after the French Admiral
Anne Hilarion de Tourville Anne-Hilarion de Costentin, Comte de Tourville (24 November 1642, Paris – 23 May 1701) was a French naval commander who served under King Louis XIV. He was made Marshal of France in 1693. Tourville is widely considered as one of the most celeb ...
defeated an Anglo-Dutch fleet at the Battle of Beachy Head, the French fleet was anchored in
Torbay Torbay is a borough and unitary authority in Devon, south west England. It is governed by Torbay Council and consists of of land, including the resort towns of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham, located on east-facing Tor Bay, part of Lyme ...
and some of the galley fleet travelled the short distance up the coast and attacked Teignmouth. A petition to the
Lord Lieutenant A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibilit ...
from the inhabitants described the incident: After examining 'creditable persons' the
Justices of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or '' puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission (letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sam ...
concluded that: As a result,
the Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has differ ...
issued a church brief that authorised the collection of £11,000 for the aid of the town. Churches from as far afield as Yorkshire contributed, and the collections enabled the further development of the port.Trump 1986, pp.5–6 This was the last invasion of England, and French Street with its museum is named in memory of the occasion. In the 1600s and 1700s there are records of a windmill on the Den – an area that was then a large sand dune, and is now a grassy public open space near the seafront. By 1759 this windmill was demolished.


1700 to present

In the late 18th century,
privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...
ing was common in Teignmouth, as it was in other west country ports. In 1779 the French ship ''L'Emulation'' with a cargo of sugar, coffee and cotton was offered for sale at "Rendle's Great Sale Room" in the town. Teignmouth people fitted out two privateers: ''Dragon'' with 16 guns and 70 men; and ''Bellona'', described as carrying "16 guns, 4
cohorn A Coehorn (also spelled ''cohorn'') is a lightweight mortar originally designed by Dutch military engineer Menno van Coehoorn. Concept and design Van Coehoorn came to prominence during the 1688–97 Nine Years War, whose tactics have been su ...
s and 8 swivels". ''Bellona'' set sail on her first voyage in September 1779, and was "oversett in a violent Gust of Wind" off
Dawlish Dawlish is an English seaside resort town and civil parish in Teignbridge on the south coast of Devon, from the county town of Exeter and from the larger resort of Torquay. Its 2011 population of 11,312 was estimated at 13,355 in 2019. It is ...
with the loss of 25 crew members. The Newfoundland fisheries continued to provide the main employment into the early 19th century (e.g. Job Brothers & Co., Limited). With the men in Newfoundland for most of the year, the women did the local fishing and rowed the ferries across the estuary. Early tourists, such as Fanny Burney, referred to the women as the "Amazonians" of Shaldon and Teignmouth, and wrote of their strength, health and tendency to wear trousers or hitch their skirts up to their knees to fish. As the fisheries declined tourism increased. A tea house was built on the Den in 1787 amongst the local fishermen's drying nets. By 1803 Teignmouth was called a "fashionable watering place", and the resort continued to develop during the 19th century. Its two churches were rebuilt soon after 1815 and in the 1820s the first bridge across the estuary to Shaldon was built; George Templer's New Quay opened at the port; and the
esplanade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...
, Den Crescent and the central Assembly Rooms (later the cinema) were laid out. The railway arrived in 1846 and the pier was built 1865–7. A version of the
legend of the Parson and Clerk The legend of the Parson and Clerk is a story from Devon folklore. The tale revolves around a clergyman, his clerk and their encounter with the Devil, with the setting being near a natural arch located in proximity to the towns of Teignmouth and D ...
dating to 1900 tells the tale of the
Bishop of Exeter The Bishop of Exeter is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. Since 30 April 2014 the ordinary has been Robert Atwell.
visiting Teignmouth and whilst being guided by a local priest, the devil turns them both to stone, which is seen in the form of two stacks. The
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
had a disruptive effect on Teignmouth: over 175 men from the town lost their lives and many businesses did not survive. In the 1920s as the economy started to recover, a golf course opened on Little
Haldon The Haldon Hills, usually known simply as Haldon, is a ridge of high ground in Devon, England. It is situated between the River Exe and the River Teign and runs northwards from Teignmouth, on the coast, for about until it dwindles away nort ...
; the Morgan Giles shipbuilding business was established, and
charabanc A charabanc or "char-à-banc" (often pronounced "sharra-bang" in colloquial British English) is a type of horse-drawn vehicle or early motor coach, usually open-topped, common in Britain during the early part of the 20th century. It has "ben ...
s took employees and their families for annual outings to
Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite which forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous P ...
and elsewhere. By the 1930s the town was again thriving, and with the
Haldon Aerodrome Haldon Aerodrome was the first airfield in Devon. Established in the 1920s as a private flying field, it developed into an airport with scheduled airline service, and was used by the Navy during World War II. The airport has also been known as T ...
and School of Flying nearby, Teignmouth was advertised as the only south coast resort offering complete aviation facilities. During the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
Teignmouth suffered badly from "tip and run" air raids. (Text available online at th
Devon Libraries Local Studies Service.
)
It was bombed 21 times between July 1940 and February 1944 and 79 people were killed, 151 wounded, 228 houses were destroyed and over 2,000 damaged in the raids. Teignmouth's hospital was bombed during a raid on 8 May 1941, killing three nurses and seven patients. It was rebuilt and reopened in September 1954, making it the first complete general hospital in the country to be built after the formation of the
National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
. A US Navy plan existed which proposed to dam the harbour and set up a seaplane base, but it was abandoned as the war turned in favour of the allies.


Port

The port of Teignmouth, in existence since the 13th century, remains active, mostly handling clay, timber and grain. The Old Quay was built in the mid-18th century on land leased from Lord Clifford. The opening of the Stover Canal by James Templer in 1792 provided a boost to the port due to the ease with which ball clay could be transported from the mines north of
Newton Abbot Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its 2011 population of 24,029 was estimated to reach 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in the Victorian era as the home of the So ...
. After travelling along the canal the barges continued down the estuary to the port. By 1820 this trade was supplemented by granite from the quarries near Haytor on Dartmoor carried via the unique granite-tracked Haytor Granite Tramway which was linked to the Stover Canal. The granite to build the
new London Bridge Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It r ...
came via this route and was sent from the New Quay, which had been built for this traffic in 1821–25 by George Templer, James's son. The Old Quay was sold to George Hennet in 1850 and became the centre of his trading network. It was connected to the South Devon Railway the previous year. Until 1852 Teignmouth was legally part of the Port of Exeter. In September of that year, after many years of campaigning (latterly under the leadership of George Hennet), the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury agreed that Teignmouth should be independent which was the cause of much celebration. Teignmouth has a tradition of shipbuilding from the 17th century. By the turn of the 19th century there were three shipyards in Teignmouth, and three in Shaldon and Ringmore on the opposite side of the estuary. The industry declined in the early 20th century, but in 1921 Morgan Giles bought the last derelict shipbuilding yard and gave the industry a new stimulus. His shipyard became a major employer, building pleasure craft in peacetime and small craft such as torpedo boats during World War II. The business failed in 1968 not long after
Donald Crowhurst Donald Charles Alfred Crowhurst (1932 – July 1969) was a British businessman and amateur sailor who disappeared while competing in the ''Sunday Times'' Golden Globe Race, a single-handed, round-the-world yacht race. Soon after he started ...
's attempt to sail around the world. The Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners' Royal Benevolent Society sent a lifeboat to Teignmouth in 1851 and kept it in a
boathouse A boathouse (or a boat house) is a building especially designed for the storage of boats, normally smaller craft for sports or leisure use. describing the facilities These are typically located on open water, such as on a river. Often the boats ...
on the beach near the Custom House. In 1854 the society transferred its lifeboats to the
Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...
(RNLI). A new boathouse was provided on The Den with doors facing the harbour which was used until 1940. After a gap of fifty years, on 3 November 1990, the RNLI reopened Teignmouth Lifeboat Station with an inshore lifeboat. Teignmouth's lighthouse was erected in 1845 to guide ships into the harbour.


Shaldon Bridge

The original bridge was owned by the Teignmouth and Shaldon Bridge Company and opened on 8 June 1827. It had 34 wooden arches and was 1,671 feet long, which made it the longest wooden bridge in England when built. It had abutment walls of a considerable length at either end, and a swing bridge at the Teignmouth end to allow sailing ships to pass up the estuary. It cost around £19,000 to build, but the overall expenditure was about £26,000 due to the costs of the necessary Act of Parliament and the purchase of the old ferry-rights. Toll houses were built at each end of the bridge, and the one on the Teignmouth side survives.Griffiths 1989, p.91 After eleven years, on 27 June 1838 the centre arches of the bridge collapsed, the timbers had been eaten through by shipworms. It was rebuilt in wood and reopened in 1840, but it partially collapsed again in 1893. The bridge was completely rebuilt between 1927 and 1931, using steel for the piers and main girders and concrete for most of the deck, except for the opening span which used timber.Hawkins 1988, p.78 On 28 October 1948 Devon County Council bought the bridge from the Shaldon Bridge Company for £92,020 and tolls were abolished. The original paintwork was inadequate to deal with the environment, and repairs were required in 1960 and in 1980. In 1998 it was discovered that the bridge had severe structural defects and work to correct this continued until 2002, the bridge remaining open throughout. After this work was completed, residents nearby noticed that in certain wind conditions the bridge "whistles". the problem had not been solved. In February 2016 Devon County Council announced that the moveable, lifting section of the bridge will be raised later in 2016, for the first time since 2002. This is in order to satisfy a condition in the Act that permitted construction, that the opening section be maintained.


Transport


Railway

Teignmouth railway station Teignmouth railway station is on the Exeter to Plymouth line and serves the town of Teignmouth in Devon, England. It is from via Bristol. It is operated by Great Western Railway and is the second-busiest station on the Riviera Line after . ...
, which opened in 1846, is located close to the town centre. It lies between the stations of
Dawlish Dawlish is an English seaside resort town and civil parish in Teignbridge on the south coast of Devon, from the county town of Exeter and from the larger resort of Torquay. Its 2011 population of 11,312 was estimated at 13,355 in 2019. It is ...
and
Newton Abbot Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its 2011 population of 24,029 was estimated to reach 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in the Victorian era as the home of the So ...
on the
Great Western Main Line The Great Western Main Line (GWML) is a main line railway in England that runs westwards from London Paddington to . It connects to other main lines such as those from Reading to Penzance and Swindon to Swansea. Opened in 1841, it was the o ...
between
London Paddington Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by the Great We ...
and
Penzance Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situ ...
in Cornwall. In 2010–11, it recorded 505,000 passengers, making it the second busiest station on the
Riviera Line The Riviera Line is the railway between the city of Exeter, towns Dawlish and Teignmouth, and the ''English Riviera'' resorts of Torbay in Devon, England. Its tracks are shared with the Exeter to Plymouth Line along the South Devon sea wall. ...
after Newton Abbot. The line built by
Isambard Kingdom Brunel Isambard Kingdom Brunel (; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was a British civil engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history," "one of the 19th-century engineering giants," and "on ...
runs along the South Devon Railway sea wall, which is a stone embankment between the sea and cliffs that runs for several miles between Teignmouth and
Dawlish Warren Dawlish Warren is a seaside resort near the town of Dawlish in Teignbridge on the south coast of Devon in England. Dawlish Warren consists almost entirely of holiday accommodation and facilities for holiday-makers especially caravan sites. Lo ...
. This line was originally both
broad gauge A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways. Broad gauge of , commonly known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union ( C ...
and worked by the atmospheric system, with steam pump houses at regular intervals to create the vacuum. It was not successful for a host of reasons and was converted to normal steam locomotive working. Redundant sections of the atmospheric railway pipes were used as drains all over Teignmouth; one was set in the roadside in Woodway Lane, near
Woodway House Woodway House is in Teignmouth, South Devon, England. It was at one time a farm on lands held by the Bishop of Exeter, Bishops of Exeter. In around 1815 a thatched "cottage" in the "cottage ornée" style of Horace Walpole's (1717–1797) Thames-si ...
. In December 1852, a large landslip from the cliffs east of the town caused the railway to close for four days; and, in 1855 and 1859, the sea broke through the line at Teignmouth. There have been many more closures since, caused both by landslips from the cliffs and breaches by the sea, especially in winter. In 2010, the sea walls and adjoining estuaries were costing
Network Rail Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's len ...
around £500,000 per year to maintain. In 1936, the Great Western Railway surveyed an inland deviation between Exminster and Bishopsteignton and a shorter route starting near Dawlish Warren; however, the advent of World War 2 brought these projects to an end.


Geography

The town is located on the north bank of the mouth of the estuary of the River Teign, at the junction of the
A379 The A379 is a road in the English county of Devon. It links points on the edges of that county's two principal cities, Exeter and Plymouth, by an indirect and largely coastal route. The A38 provides a faster and more direct inland route bet ...
coast road, the
A381 road A381 may refer to: * The A381 road in Devon, England * The Autovía A-381 The Autovía A-381 is a local autovía in Andalusia, Spain. It is 88 km (55 miles) long and runs from the Autopista AP-4 at Jerez de la Frontera to the Autovía A-7 at L ...
to
Newton Abbot Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its 2011 population of 24,029 was estimated to reach 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in the Victorian era as the home of the So ...
, and the B3192 which climbs up to the
A380 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was annou ...
on
Haldon The Haldon Hills, usually known simply as Haldon, is a ridge of high ground in Devon, England. It is situated between the River Exe and the River Teign and runs northwards from Teignmouth, on the coast, for about until it dwindles away nort ...
and hence on to the M5 12 miles away. Teignmouth is linked to
Shaldon Shaldon is a village and civil parish in South Devon, England, on the south bank of the estuary of the River Teign, opposite Teignmouth. The village is a popular bathing place and is characterised by Georgian architecture. At the 2011 Cen ...
, the village on the opposite bank, by a passenger
ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water ta ...
at the river mouth and by a road bridge further upstream. The red sandstone headland on the Shaldon side called "The Ness" is the most recognisable symbol of the town from the seaward side. In the harbour area was the Salty, a small flat island created through dredging operations but levelled, supposedly to improve natural scouring of the main channel for shipping, in recent years to leave a large tidal sand bank frequented by seabirds and cockle-collectors. Salmon nets are still employed by locals, especially near Shaldon Bridge. The estuary seems disproportionately large for the size of the river flowing through it, this being especially apparent at low tide, because it is a drowned valley caused by a relative rise in sea level following the last
Ice Age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...
.


Climate

Teignmouth is situated on the coast of
Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
, a
peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on a ...
of
South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities ...
. It has a mild
maritime climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...
. Prevailing winds across the south-west of England are from the west. Teignmouth lies to the east of
Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite which forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous P ...
, in a
lee Lee may refer to: Name Given name * Lee (given name), a given name in English Surname * Chinese surnames romanized as Li or Lee: ** Li (surname 李) or Lee (Hanzi ), a common Chinese surname ** Li (surname 利) or Lee (Hanzi ), a Chinese ...
/ rainshadow, with mean temperatures 3 °C (5 °F) higher and less than 43% of the rainfall of
Princetown Princetown is a villageDespite its name, Princetown is not classed as a town today – it is not included in the County Council's list of the 29 towns in Devon: located within Dartmoor national park in the English county of Devon. It is the ...
, which is located on Dartmoor. It receives less precipitate per year than nearby
Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to ...
, which is located on the south-west coast of Devon. Owing to its proximity to the sea, Teignmouth has warmer winters with less frost and snow, as well as slightly cooler summers compared with inland areas of southern England. January is usually the coldest month in Britain; however, sea temperatures usually reach their minimum temperature in late February, which affects Teignmouth's climate, making February its coldest month. The first
frost Frost is a thin layer of ice on a solid surface, which forms from water vapor in an above-freezing atmosphere coming in contact with a solid surface whose temperature is below freezing, and resulting in a phase change from water vapor (a g ...
in Teignmouth usually occurs in late November or early December, whereas midland areas of England sometimes have frosts as early as September. Snow is rare during the start of the winter season in December. Late autumn and early winter is the wettest time of the year, because sea temperatures are still relatively high and deep Atlantic depressions bring moist air across the South West. On average, July is the driest month, but summer thunderstorms can occasionally deposit more than the month's mean rainfall in one day. Teignmouth has average daily sunshine totals of over 7 hours in summer and around 2 hours in winter. Sunshine totals reflect the hours of daylight and the fluctuations of the
Azores High The Azores High also known as North Atlantic (Subtropical) High/Anticyclone or the Bermuda-Azores High, is a large subtropical semi-permanent centre of high atmospheric pressure typically found south of the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean, at the H ...
, which is most powerful in summer. The climate patterns also implicate a less pronounced cooler
Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...
(''csa/ csb'') influence which is due to the decrease in
precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...
centred over the summer period and surplus rainfall during the winter. Teignmouth weather station is situated in a part of the town exposed to sea breezes and is therefore subject to lower temperature extremes than more sheltered parts of the town and local area. Temperatures at the station have warmed in every month in between the 1981–2010 and 1991–2020 climate periods, especially in spring and autumn, but also with a small overall increase in rainfall over this period.


Buildings

Den Crescent and its central Assembly Rooms, laid out in 1826 by Andrew Patey of Exeter, still survive relatively unchanged today. The Assembly Rooms were the hub of the town's social life in the 19th century and lavish balls took place in the long ballroom. In 1871, the building was taken over by the East Devon and Teignmouth Club which had an exclusive membership taken from the gentry and professional middle class. Over the years, the building was used as a theatre, a dance hall, a conference centre and a billiards hall. In 1934 it was converted into the Riviera Cinema, in which guise it continued until 2000; part of the building has now been converted into flats. In 2016 the lease for the historic auditorium was taken over by the Mars Hill Church with the intention of restoring it as both a cinema and a music and arts facility. The town's parish church, dedicated to St. James is unusual, being octagonal in shape. A story from
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...
suggests why these churches are rounded, for the villagers of
Veryan Veryan ( Cornish: ''Elerghi'') is a coastal civil parish and village on the Roseland Peninsula in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village has been described as one of Cornwall's loveliest inland villages and as ′a mild tropic garden ...
built several circular houses so that the Devil had no corners in which to lie in wait for unsuspecting occupants and these buildings were therefore 'Devil-proof.' The church of St Michael the Archangel is in the east of the town. St. Scholastica's Abbey (now converted to flats), on the road to Dawlish, built in 1864 by Henry Woodyer is a notable
Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
building, and the Roman Catholic Church, on the same road, is a late work by
Joseph Hansom Joseph Aloysius Hansom (26 October 1803 – 29 June 1882) was a British architect working principally in the Gothic Revival style. He invented the Hansom cab and founded the eminent architectural journal, '' The Builder'', in 1843. Career ...
, the inventor of the
hansom cab The hansom cab is a kind of horse-drawn carriage designed and patented in 1834 by Joseph Hansom, an architect from York. The vehicle was developed and tested by Hansom in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England. Originally called the Hansom safety ca ...
. In 1894, there were 26 public houses in Teignmouth. Pubs today include the Blue Anchor Inn on Teign Street and the Devon Arms on Northumberland Place. The River Beach is home to a varied selection of seasonal and permanent beach huts, one of which (now removed to the town's museum) was a Georgian bathing machine, minus wheels. These huts have enjoyed the boom in popularity of such properties in recent years and now change hands for figures approaching £100,000. Teignmouth and Shaldon museum was completed in 2011. It comprises an architecturally iconic extension of the existing 18th century museum building, with new roof terrace looking over the town, glass tower and community facility. Some of the exhibits include a restored bathing machine; artefacts from the Church Rock wreck, such as cannons; exhibits from the nearby Haldon aerodrome, plus film footage including the Beatles' visit to the town and the 2009 homecoming concerts by Muse. The new build cost almost £1.1m and was enabled by a major community fund-raising effort, in combination with Lottery and UK government funding and other sources such as local grant funders and Devon County Council. The Church Rock wreck was found when a Zuanne Alberghetti cannon was located on the site of a 16th-century wreck, followed by further discoveries. The town's newest public building is the Pavilions Teignmouth, a community arts and enterprise centre on the Den, opened in April 2016.


21st century

On 27 July 2005, Teignmouth received status as Devon's first Fairtrade Town. Also in 2005, the volunteer Teignmouth Regeneration Project in association with the town, district and county councils published a strategic plan that identified issues to be dealt with by 2015. Among the issues listed are to develop quality tourism, alleviate the danger of flooding to the town and provide affordable housing. In May 2010, Teignbridge District Council put forward for consultation ''A Vision for Teignmouth''. This was a plan consisting of 21 regeneration projects for the town. A skatepark was opened on the seafront in July 2010 and flood defences at the Fish Quay were completed in October 2012. Two films, ''The Mercy'' starring Colin Firth with Rachel Weisz and ''Press for Time'' starring Norman Wisdom, have extensive sequences shot in Teignmouth.


Tourism

Although reduced from its heyday, Teignmouth still receives considerable numbers of holiday makers, in particular day-trippers. It is twinned with the French town
Perros-Guirec Perros-Guirec (; br, Perroz-Gireg) is a commune in the department of Côtes-d'Armor in Brittany. It has been a seaside resort since the end of the 19th century. Geography Climate Perros-Guirec has a oceanic climate ( Köppen climate classificat ...
. Apart from its sea beach and Teignmouth Pier with
amusement arcade An amusement arcade (often referred to as a video arcade, amusements or simply arcade) is a venue where people play arcade games, including arcade video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers (such as ...
and rides, the beach wraps around the spit at the head of the river Teign providing a river beach, commonly known as the Back Beach (dogs are allowed all year on this part of the beach), on the estuary side which overlooks the harbour with its moorings for many pleasure craft, and has views up the estuary to
Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite which forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous P ...
. An long waymarked route known as the Templer Way has been created between Haytor on Dartmoor and Shaldon. It closely follows the route of George Templer's granite tramway, his father James's Stover Canal and finally the estuary to Teignmouth. Teignmouth Carnival is held during the last week of July with the procession on the last Thursday, and since 1999 the town has hosted a summer folk festival. In 2005 Fergus O'Byrne and Jim Payne from
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
were the 'headline' artists at that year's festival which celebrated the town's links with that region. In 2014, Teignmouth and Dawlish Community Interest Group commissioned a website to promote the town to tourists visiting. Since 2018 Teignmouth has hosted the annual Teign Shanty Festival, a folk music festival with a focus on
sea shanties A sea shanty, chantey, or chanty () is a genre of traditional folk song that was once commonly sung as a work song to accompany rhythmical labor aboard large merchant sailing vessels. The term ''shanty'' most accurately refers to a specific ...
, with over 40 groups performing in 2021.


Schools

Teignmouth Community School (formerly Teignmouth High School, then Teignmouth Community College), a local secondary school including a sixth form, was formed as a merger in 1979 of Teignmouth Grammar School and Teignmouth Secondary Modern School. More recently this has merged further with Inverteign Community Nursery and Primary School to create Teignmouth Community School (TCS). Other secondary schools include Trinity School (independent, with a preparatory department and boarding facilities), formerly known as The Convent of Notre dame. Primary schools include Hazeldown which is non-denominational, and the Catholic school of Our Lady and St Patrick.


Sport

The town is the home of Teignmouth A.F.C., whose first team currently play in the South West Peninsula League and reserves play in the South Devon League division two. The town is also the home of
Teignmouth R.F.C. Teignmouth Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Teignmouth, Devon, England. The club runs two senior men's sides, a women's senior team, a colts team and a junior section for both girls and boys. The men's 1st XV currently play in ...
with the 1st XV playing in the South West 1 league. The Den Bowling Club situated on the sea front is the home of the Teignmouth Open Bowls Tournament. Teignmouth Shotokan Karate Club was established in 1984 and trains twice weekly at the Teign Heritage Centre and Pavilions Teignmouth. The seafront benefits from Teignmouth Lido, a public open-air heated swimming pool. This is one of four outdoor pools operated by Teignbridge District Council. The others are at Buckfastleigh, Ashburton and Buckland. Teignmouth is home to the River Teign Rowing club, the largest rowing club in the UK with almost 400 members, the club competes internationally in Cornish Pilot Gig rowing, Locally racing Seine boats and Nationally in Sea Skiffs and Sculls. Members have competed recently as far afield as Russia. Teign Corinthian Yacht Club was founded in 1886, and organises racing and training for sailing dinghies, yachts and powerboats. It has two centres: a clubhouse on Teignmouth seafront built in 1995 and a dinghy park on the River Teign estuary at Coombe Cellars, with a new clubhouse being built there in 2020.


Notable people

Fanny Burney, the diarist and novelist, visited Teignmouth several times in the late 18th century. She took her first dip in the sea here in 1773, as she recorded in her journal.
Elias Parish Alvars Elias Parish Alvars (surname sometimes given as Parish-Alvars), (28 February 1808 – 25 January 1849) was an English harpist and composer. He was born as Eli Parish in Teignmouth, Devon; his father was a local organist. His baptismal record at ...
, the harpist, was born in East Teignmouth in 1808, and three years later Thomas Abel Brimage Spratt, vice-admiral, hydrographer and geologist, was born at
Woodway House Woodway House is in Teignmouth, South Devon, England. It was at one time a farm on lands held by the Bishop of Exeter, Bishops of Exeter. In around 1815 a thatched "cottage" in the "cottage ornée" style of Horace Walpole's (1717–1797) Thames-si ...
. In spring 1818 the poet
John Keats John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet of the second generation of Romantic poets, with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His poems had been in publication for less than four years when he died of tuberculos ...
spent several weeks in Teignmouth and completed his epic poem ''Endymion'' here. His arrival coincided with a period of wet weather and he wrote to a friend of "the abominable Devonshire Weather ... the truth is, it is a splashy, rainy, misty, snowy, foggy, haily, floody, muddy, slipshod county." George O. May (born 1875), who made significant contributions to the field of accounting, and rose to senior partner of Price Waterhouse's American firm in the early 20th century, was born and raised in Teignmouth. From 1812 until his death in 1833,
Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth Admiral Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, GCB (19 April 1757 – 23 January 1833) was a British naval officer. He fought during the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars, and the Napoleonic Wars. His younger brother I ...
had his home at Bitton House, which was then called West Cliff House. Meanwhile,
Thomas Luny Thomas Luny (1759–1837), born in Cornwall, probably at St Ewe, was an English artist and painter, mostly of seascapes and other marine-based works. At the age of eleven, Luny left Cornwall to live in London. There he became the apprentice of ...
, the painter of seascapes, lived in the town for thirty years until his death in 1837 and executed over 2,200 paintings while living here. Shortly afterwards George Hennet, the railway engineer and contractor who was closely involved with Brunel's railway, moved to the town and took a close interest in local affairs. He died here in 1857.
Charles Babbage Charles Babbage (; 26 December 1791 – 18 October 1871) was an English polymath. A mathematician, philosopher, inventor and mechanical engineer, Babbage originated the concept of a digital programmable computer. Babbage is considered ...
(1791–1871), the mathematician, philosopher, inventor and mechanical engineer, who originated the idea of a programmable computer, also lived here for some years and was married in St Michael's church in the town. Sir John Smyth, (1893–1983) was a recipient of the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...
and was made 1st Baronet of Teignmouth in 1956. The
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...
footballer Charles Vanden Wouwer was born in Teignmouth in 1916, while his parents were staying there as
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
refugees. The Canadian Second World War pilot
Roy Sydney Baker-Falkner Roy Sydney Baker-Falkner (3 June 1916 – 18 July 1944) was a Canadian Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm naval aviator and wing leader during the Second World War, who attained the rank of Lieutenant commander. He was a veteran of the evacuation of Dunk ...
settled in the Teignmouth area in 1930, his brother and sister studying in Teignmough whilst he was a cadet at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth. He went on to be one of the few naval pilots of the
Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...
, was a test pilot and given the freedom of Teignmouth and Exeter after leading the audacious attack on the German battleship Tirpitz. He was lost in July 1944 and remembered on the Shaldon War Memorial and at the Teign Heritage - Teignmouth & Shaldon Museum. The businessman and musician
Danny Thompson Daniel Henry Edward Thompson (born 4 April 1939) is an English multi-instrumentalist best known as a double bassist. He has had a long musical career playing with a large variety of other musicians, particularly Richard Thompson and John Mart ...
was born in the town in 1939, and the writer and environmentalist John Bainbridge (born 1953) spent his teens and early adulthood here and was educated at West Lawn School. The
Norman Wisdom Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom, (4 February 1915 – 4 October 2010) was an English actor, comedian, musician and singer best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring a hapless onscreen character often called Norman ...
film, '' Press for Time'', in which Norman becomes a reporter at the seaside town of "Tinmouth", was shot largely on location in Teignmouth in 1966. A bus and bicycle chase shows many scenes of the town centre and sea front as it was at the time. The next year, on 31 October 1968,
Donald Crowhurst Donald Charles Alfred Crowhurst (1932 – July 1969) was a British businessman and amateur sailor who disappeared while competing in the ''Sunday Times'' Golden Globe Race, a single-handed, round-the-world yacht race. Soon after he started ...
, competing in the
Sunday Times Golden Globe Race The ''Sunday Times'' Golden Globe Race was a non-stop, single-handed, round-the-world yacht race, held in 1968–1969, and was the first round-the-world yacht race. The race was controversial due to the failure of most competitors to finish ...
, started his ill-fated attempt to sail round the world single-handed from the town. His boat was a trimaran named the ''
Teignmouth Electron The ''Teignmouth Electron'' was a 41-foot trimaran sailing vessel designed explicitly for Donald Crowhurst’s ill-fated attempt to sail around the world in the Golden Globe Race of 1968. She became a ghost ship after Crowhurst reported false pos ...
'' after the town and his electronics company. The town featured in the film of this tragic event '' The Mercy'' released in 2018, starring
Colin Firth Colin Andrew Firth (born 10 September 1960) is an English actor and producer. He was identified in the mid-1980s with the " Brit Pack" of rising young British actors, undertaking a challenging series of roles, including leading roles in '' A M ...
and
Rachel Weisz Rachel Hannah Weisz (; born 7 March 1970 ) is an English actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, and a BAFTA Award. Weisz began acting in British stage and television in the ...
. The three members of rock band
Muse In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in ...
(
Matt Bellamy Matthew James Bellamy (born 9 June 1978) is an English singer, musician, producer, and songwriter. He is primarily known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, pianist, and primary songwriter for English rock band Muse. He is recognised for his eccen ...
,
Chris Wolstenholme Christopher Tony Wolstenholme (born 2 December 1978) is an English musician. He is the bassist and backing vocalist for the rock band Muse. Early life Chris Wolstenholme grew up in the English town of Rotherham before moving to Teignmouth, D ...
and Dominic Howard) attended Teignmouth Community College in the early 1990s. They started the band in the town and based their song "Falling Down" on their teenage years living there. The band performed two homecoming concerts entitled
A Seaside Rendezvous A Seaside Rendezvous was a 2009 pair of concerts by English alternative rock band Muse. Held at The Den in Teignmouth, Devon, the town in which the band's members spent their childhoods and began their musical careers, the homecoming concerts w ...
there in September 2009. Singer-songwriter Patrick Wolf wrote a song called "Teignmouth" for his 2005 album Wind in the Wires, which focuses primarily on the view of the town and the River Teign when taking a train along the coastline. England
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
and
Exeter Chiefs Exeter Chiefs (officially Exeter Rugby Club) is an English professional rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1871 and since 2006 has played its home m ...
player Sam Simmonds lives in Teignmouth, as does his brother and fellow Exeter Chiefs first team player Joe Simmonds. Sam helped the Chiefs win the
Aviva Premiership Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is th ...
in 2017. He has currently scored two tries for England and has one Man of the Match award. The
triple jump The triple jump, sometimes referred to as the hop, step and jump or the hop, skip and jump, is a track and field event, similar to the long jump. As a group, the two events are referred to as the "horizontal jumps". The competitor runs down th ...
world record holder Jonathan Edwards lived in Teignmouth in his early years. He went to school at the Inverteign Juniors site (now Mill Lane). His world record has stood since 1995.


In Art and Literature

Letitia Elizabeth Landon Letitia Elizabeth Landon (14 August 1802 – 15 October 1838) was an English poet and novelist, better known by her initials L.E.L. The writings of Landon are transitional between Romanticism and the Victorian Age. Her first major breakthrough ...
's poetical illustration ''A Legend of Teignmouth'', in Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1834, accompanies an engraving of a view of Teignmouth from the Ness by Thomas Allom.


Notes


References


Sources

* * * * * *


Further reading

*Adshead, S. D. (1945) ''Report to the Urban District Council on Improvement and Development after the War''. Teignmouth Urban District Council. *Andrews, G. J. & Kearns, R. A. (2005) "Everyday Health Histories and the Making of Place: the case of an English coastal town". ''Social Science and Medicine''; 60, pp. 2697–2713 *Andrews G. J., Kearns, R. A., Kontos, P., Wilson, V. (2006) "'Their finest hour': older people, oral histories and the historical geography of social life". ''Social and Cultural Geography''; 7, 2, pp. 153–177 *Andrews, G. J. (2017). "The relational making of people and place: the case of the Teignmouth World War II homefront". ''Ageing & Society''; 37(4), pp. 725–752. *Andrews, G. J. & Wilson, V (2019) "Sensing health and wellbeing through oral histories: the 'tip and run' air attacks on a British coastal town 1939-44". In: Atkinson, Sarah & Hunt, Rachel, eds. ''Geohumanities and Health''. Cham: Springer * Spratt, Thomas (1856). ''An Investigation of the Movements of Teignmouth Bar''. London: John Weal
online copy by Hathi Trust
*''Through the Window. Number 1 – Paddington to Penzance'' (1924). London: Great Western Railway. Paddington station. Price 1s. *Wilson, V (2000) ''Teignmouth at War: 1939–1945'', Teignmouth: Wilson. *Wilson, V (2002) ''Teignmouth: Frith's photographic town memories''. Teffont: Frith Book Company.


External links

* Teignmouth Town Council * * {{authority control Ports and harbours of the English Channel Ports and harbours of Devon Seaside resorts in England Towns in Devon Beaches of Devon Invasions of England