Walkhampton is a village 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

on the western side of

Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, South West England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite that forms the uplands dates from the Carb ...

in the county of

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, England. The village lies on the Black Brook, a tributary of the

River Walkham River Walkham is a river whose source is on Dartmoor, Devon, England. It rises in the wide gap between Roos Tor and Great Mis Tor and flows almost due south for approximately leaving the tors and thus National Park behind then south-west for ...

, about south-east of

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy, from which its name derives. At the 2011 census, the three electoral wards (N ...

, near the villages of

Horrabridge Horrabridge is a village and civil parish in the West Devon district, in Devon, England with a population of 2,115 people in 2006, down from 2,204 in 1991. It is located approximately north of the city of Plymouth and south of Tavistock and i ...

, Yelverton and Dousland.

Burrator Reservoir Burrator Reservoir is a reservoir situated on the southern side of Dartmoor in Devon, England. It is part of a number of reservoirs and dams that were built over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries in the area now covered by Dartmoor Natio ...

, constructed in 1898, is to the south-east. In 2001 the population of the parish was 863. For administrative purposes the parish is grouped with the parishes of

Meavy Meavy is a small village, civil parish and former manor in the English county of Devon. Meavy forms part of the district of West Devon. It lies a mile or so east of Yelverton. The River Meavy runs near the village. For administrative purposes ...

and

Sheepstor Sheepstor is a village, civil parish and former manor on the western side of Dartmoor in the county of Devon, England. In 2001, its population was 53, down from 95 in 1901. For administrative purposes the parish is grouped with the parishes of ...

to form Burrator Parish Council, and for electoral purposes it is grouped with the same two parishes to form Burrator

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

. The village has a

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

, the Walkhampton Inn, dating from the 17th century, and a

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

named Lady Modiford's School which was founded in 1719, though the present building with its distinctive bell and clock tower dates from the second half of the 19th century. In 2004 the school had 119 pupils in four classes. Walkhampton church, which is

Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

, is on an ancient elevated site about half a mile north-west of the village. Unlike most churches which face east, it faces north-east, the direction of the rising sun on the longest day. The present building, which is built of granite and has a tower with four prominent pinnacles, dates from the 15th century, with much later alteration, including restoration in 1860–61. For 400 years until 1985 the church had no dedication and was known simply as "Walkhampton Church", but in that year it was dedicated to St Mary the Virgin. Research has indicated that it may have been originally dedicated to St Dionisius of Walkynton. Church House, bearing the date 1698, but substantially 16th century in construction, is near the church. It was once an

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway. Before the advent of motorized transportation, they also provided accomm ...

. Also nearby is an ancient stone cross which was reconstructed from parts found in a hedge. The base and shaft were re-erected in 1984 by relatives of the Lieutenant Goldsmith who in 1903 had discovered a cross on the moor; a head was added in 1991. On the moorland above the village is Walkhampton Common which contains many important archaeological sites including at least eight

stone row A stone row or stone alignment is a linear arrangement of megalithic standing stones set at intervals along a common axis or series of axes, usually dating from the later Neolithic or Bronze Age.Power (1997), p.23 Rows may be individual or groupe ...

s, many

cairn A cairn is a human-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the (plural ). Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehistory, t ...

cist In archeology, a cist (; also kist ; ultimately from ; cognate to ) or cist grave is a small stone-built coffin-like box or ossuary used to hold the bodies of the dead. In some ways, it is similar to the deeper shaft tomb. Examples occur ac ...

hut circle In archaeology, a hut circle is a circular or oval depression in the ground which may or may not have a low stone wall around it that used to be the foundation of a round house. The superstructure of such a house would have been made of timber an ...

s and

reave A reave is a long and generally straight boundary wall made of stone that was built during the Bronze Age. Reaves were identified as prehistoric features on Dartmoor in Devon, England in 1972, and although they had been described by antiquarian ...

s dating to the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

. There is also much evidence of

tin mining Tin mining began early in the Bronze Age, as bronze is a copper-tin alloy. Tin is a relatively rare element in the Earth's crust, with approximately 2 ppm (parts per million), compared to iron with 50,000 ppm. History Tin extraction and use ca ...

from medieval times and later.

References

External links

* {{authority control Villages in Devon Dartmoor