Our annual summer holiday sees us heading to the southern most point of Britain, a journey of some 330 miles, which means a stop somewhere along the way. Usually that stop is somewhere beyond Exeter, and previous stops have included Tavistock, Launceston, Tintagel and Boscastle. This year, the journey was so arduous, with lots of accidents, many, many roadworks, and hence, long delays, we broke with tradition and decided to stop off at Tiverton. I'm glad we did!
Already having made an association with staff from the museum, I knew there were a lot of connections and similarities between our two towns, and I was keen to explore these. Hmmm, it does, however, mean that I may have to split this blogpost into two as there is so much to cover!
So, we headed off to the town museum and were pleased to be so pleasantly greeted and welcomed when we got there. What I hadn't quite realised was that we'd arrived a couple of days before a big Heathcoat 200 exhibition launch, but luckily it was all there and ready to be viewed. As well as this temporary exhibition, there is also a permanent Heathcoat Gallery. Just a quick note here to say how disconcerting it was to hear the name Heathcoat as I would pronounce it, pronounced as Hethcutt!
Anyway, the museum was also choc-full of lots of other Tiverton history, and it was great to see all the things that Loughborough and Tiverton had in common. I suppose when one is looking at the local history of one's own town, it's sometimes too easy to forget the national context, so Tiverton's museum collections reminded me of many things. Let's see, where shall I start?
The populations of the two towns at 2011 are quite different: Loughborough's population was around 59,000 while Tiverton's only 19,500, so Tiverton is about the size of Shepshed and Barrow-upon -Soar combined, and about 6,000 more than Ashby-de-la-Zouch, but 6,000 less than that of Melton Mowbray.
Both Tiverton and Loughborough are market towns, and their original market / fair charters were granted in the 1200s, during the reign of Henry III. Loughborough's was first being granted around 1221, extended to three days to include the Feast of St Peter (29 June) in 1228, and then shortly after it was extended to include the November fair, to be held around the Feast of All Souls (2 November). The Tiverton charter was first granted in 1257 for a three-day market around the Feast of St James (5 July), starting on a Monday. This was later modified by Oliver Cromwell, changing the first day to Tuesday to avoid market traders working (i.e. preparing their goods) on Sundays.
This year, the charter market was held on July 16, just a few days after my visit. A copy of the later amendment is available in the museum.
 |
| The Cromwell market charter |
 |
| Sheep and wool production |
 |
| The woollen trade |
 |
| All about wool merchants |
 |
| The tools of the trade |
In Loughborough there have been small finds of Roman origin, like pottery, some of which was possibly found in Church Gate. At Bolham on the outskirts of Tiverton (coincidentally very close to Knightshayes Court which is the home of the current Heathcoat family) there was a Roman marching camp, a model of which has been constructed, and sits in the museum.
 |
| Model of the Roman marching camp |
 |
| The Civil War in Tiverton |
Both towns were affected by the Civil War of 1642-1651. Royalist Tiverton Castle was under siege from Parliamentarians in 1645, and in December of that year Oliver Cromwell paid it a brief visit. On 17 March 1644 there was a minor battle at Cotes Bridge, just outside Loughborough, when Parliamentarians occupied the bridge.
Bequests to fund schools are also common to both towns. In 1601 Peter Blundell, a man who had gained considerable wealth during his life as a clothier, bequeathed a sizeable sum of money for the creation of the Peter Blundell School, which is still in use as a school, although I believe the original building was replaced in about 1883. Thomas Burton was an English wool merchant who died around 1495, and bequeathed sums of money to a variety of Loughborough causes. One of his trustees, Ralph Lemyngton, decided that some of the money should be used to create a school, and to this day Loughborough Endowed Schools is still active in the town.
In common with many other towns and cities water was made safer to drink in Tiverton and Loughborough by being brewed into beer. I believe there was a brewery at the end of Market Street, and that it wasn't called Malt Mill Lane for nothing! In Tiverton Museum, there was a fine display of brewery paraphernalia and old bottles, as well as a malt shovel, and an apple press.
 |
| The cabinet of paraphernalia |
 |
| The malt shovel |
 |
| The apple press |
 |
| Tools of the trade |
 |
| Olivers, who had a warehouse in Leicester |
Oh my goodness, time is running away with me, and I haven't even mentioned all the Heathcoat connections, the iron works, the water supply and drinking fountains, the GWR, the cinemas, the Temperance Society and the United Order of Druids, the brick-makers, the police station, the milestones, the canal, the band, the pubs ...
Better save those for next time!
Acknowledgements: I'd like to thank the staff at Tiverton Museum of Mid-Devon Life, for allowing me to take photographs to use in this blogpost .
You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:
