1.   No Email Facilities here 9.   Missing Cat
2.   Discoveries at The Old Vicarage 10.   Yarcombe's Old Railway Carriage Restored
3.   VE Day Celebrations 2020 11.   Yarcombe's Defibrillator
4.   Dog Fouling 12.   Message From Overseas
5.   The John Salter Award 13.   Yarcombe Skittles
6.   Yarcombe Wassail 2020 14.   Your Wheelie Bin
7.   Metal Detecting in Yarcombe 15.   Oil Syndicate
8.   Frank's Hobby 16.   A Light-hearted View on American Politics

 

 

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DISCOVERIES AT THE OLD VICARAGE

 

Thanks to Gary Clarkson and Craig Brown for this report.   Gary is a keen historian and detector and has 12 years experience (as of May 2022) in looking for such finds.   He is keen to look elsewhere if anyone would like his services, especially if there are excavations going on for works etc.

Dog Head Spigot
Would have been used in a barrel. Examples of this style have been seen as early as 1250 but have also been been as late as 1800. This is likely around 18th century. Has a makers mark of a small bird, perched on a branch. Made of brass. The handle would have been in the shape of a cockrel but it's missing his head.

Trade Token
A brass halfpenny token from 1797 which was issued by Sparkes & Gidley of Crewkerne who were producers of linen products. Pictured on the token is a person sat at a loom.

 

Charles I trade weight
A tea weight from the reign of Charles 1st 1625 -1649. Possibly used to weigh tea. There are mint marks visible: A small crown with the letter 'C' underneath, to designate the reign. A dagger which signifies the city of London authority and a ewer mark is the founders company which authorised brass trade weights produced by private makers.

 


VE DAY CELEBRATIONS 8th MAY 2020

Click to enlarge in a separate window

The Munts' Strawberry Union Jack Cake

Fire Street Party and Flags

 

     

  

The Holness family at Shorthayne and VE Day picnic

Flag by the Lychgate

 

     

  

Decorated pebble by Angela

Flag at Springfield Cottage

 

Bunting at Shorthayne Farm

 

     

  

Socially-distanced revelry in Drakes Meadow

 


DOG FOULING

 

A message from the Parish Council to Parish dog owners:

Regrettably the Parish Council has been made aware of several incidents of dog fouling around the village.  These have been reported behind the Village Hall and tennis court area and the latest, on the grass next to the lay-by.  The grass here was recently cut by the Council and the cuttings collect by Phil, our Parish Handyman who had to deal with whichever dog and owner left it. 

This is totally unacceptable as it can be double bagged and placed in your refuse bin. 

These notices (left) will now be placed in the village when they arrive.

 

 


 THE JOHN SALTER AWARD 2020

 

On 18th August, Saffron Doble (left) was presented with the John Salter award shield for 2020, which has been suitably engraved.   She donated the money to the Yarcombe and Marsh Children’s Fund - a worthy cause and a very appropriate recipient as the winner this year was from the youth of the parish!   It would have been good to make the presentation at a public meeting, but this was not really appropriate in current circumstances.

We have been advised by the Devon Association of Local Councils (DALC) that Parish Council meetings are currently authorised to be held remotely until May 2021 and by then we will hopefully be announcing the 2021 winner of the award!

Clive Stone, Parish Council Chairman

     

 

THE JOHN SALTER AWARD 2019

 

Above:   John Carter accepts the 2019 John Salter Award for his outstanding contribution to the village.

 

 


YARCOMBE WASSAIL 2020

                                         

A very sincere THANK YOU to everyone who supported the 2020 Wassail at Moorhayne. Considering the recent weather, we were very fortunate that the event was held in dry though windy conditions. The local apple crop was very good last year and hopefully with another blessing it will be good again this season.

This year, Tony Wiggins, our Master of Ceremonies, was joined by fifteen of his fellow Taunton Deane Morris Men and after the assembled gathering were treated to an account of wassailing through the ages, the colourful procession, suitably attired in traditional tattered jackets and feathered headgear, proceeded to the apple trees of Higher Moorhayne. Here, Wassail songs were sung, one tree was blessed, had cider poured around its roots and cider-soaked toast placed in the branches as an offering. The bad spirits were warded off with much clattering and banging, as well as a shotgun volley. The Morris Men then danced, before leading the ensemble to Middle Moorhayne to repeat the ceremony, where all the trees had all been given their annual Wassail prune that very day.

After the traditional Wassailing of the trees we moved back into the stable and on to the other part of Wassailing, the Was Hal, the refreshments, where we toasted each other’s good health for the coming season. A splendid array of soups and buffet food, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian, were enjoyed, together with many varieties of cakes and other delights, all washed down with very local organic, nil-food-miles cider, hot cider punches and soft drinks. During the previous week Vicky and Paula had been preparing and cooking a selection of foods, restocking as the numbers were confirmed.

Here I would really like to say a huge THANKYOU to all those who offered to cook and\or provided food to be brought along on the evening. Thank you also to Complete Meats who supplied much of the meat. This all resulted in a mouth-watering feast which helped make this a special occasion.

Following on from previous Wassailing, all the apple trees at Moorhayne produced a good crop which was then converted to apple juice and subsequently to cider and cider vinegar. Enthusiastic sampling was also part of the enjoyment of the evening, whether as one of the natural or blended ciders or one of Vicky’s very popular fortified hot mulled ciders. We had many compliments about the food and drink and try though people did, we ran out of neither.

Our thanks go to the Morris Men for their colourful appearance, their dancing talents, and for providing a near continuous musical atmosphere with their playing and singing, both during the feast and afterwards throughout the evening.

Our thanks also go to Steve Johns and Mark Stokes who temporarily extended the stable to provide more covered room for everyone’s comfort and to Derek and Iris Dyer who kindly provided the additional car parking, in an adjacent field, which had conveniently just recently been vacated by the Derryman’s sheep.

Keeping alive an age-old rural tradition, meeting up with friends, making new friends, enjoying good food and drink and raising money for local organisations are all part of the Moorhayne Wassail. There were fewer people this year enjoying the event and we hope that all those unable to join us due to winter illness are now fully recovered.

We are particularly grateful to those of you who were only with us in spirit, but sent generous donations and those who hired the Apple Day equipment, all of which greatly swelled the funds that we raised this year. Three deserving local organnisations: Voices, Yarcombe & Marsh Children’s Fund and the Yarcombe Flower Show have each received £70 to help them with their much-appreciated community work.

We have one roasting tin which we would be happy to return to its owner!

Having run this event for several years, and before going ahead with preparations for next year’s Wassail, the Wassail Team would like to have your feedback on any part of the festivities. In particular we would welcome comments, or any suggestions for a future Wassail, and whether you would support the continuation of this tradition in Yarcombe. Would the possibility of starting earlier at, say, dusk be welcome?


Clive Stone and the Wassail team

   

METAL DETECTING IN YARCOMBE

In December 2018 our small Metal detecting club were detecting in Yarcombe and myself and a friend spoke to a lady from Yarcombe who was interested in our finds.   Apologies for not getting a name.   We chatted about a deserted village up from the church and also an old monastery that there was no longer any sign, these are two areas our club would love to go to and detect if agreeable with the landowners. 

Please see the images below of the finds we had.   (Click to enlarge)

Here we have a range of coins from Edward 2nd right through to George 6th, the first picture is a Queen Victoria Jubilee sixpence, we have a Queen Elizabeth 1st sixpence, Queen Elizabeth 1st 2 pence, Edward 2nd penny and a Queen Victoria sixpence (seen better days) and a George 3rd shilling.

Several sixpences and the odd shilling were also found dating from George V - George VI. 

We hope you like these photos and look forward to hearing from you regarding the opportunity to explore other areas within Yarcombe. 

Thank you.

Graham Staddon (on behalf of the Mid Devon Searchers)

Miranda Gudenian writes:   These two gentlemen were in the village one afternoon a few weeks ago and I had a fascinating conversation with them.   I suggested that they please keep in touch via the website to log their finds from this Parish.  The metal detectorists gave me their finds so far that day: a selection of coins, very worn George II coins, two George V half pennies, a Victorian penny, and a minuscule pair of pliers, rather like a blacksmith's tool but obviously made for a child to play with. 

I spoke to them about Michael Hall, and how Ruth Everitt spent hours trying to uncover its whereabouts.   They had heard about the Medieval Village, supposedly destroyed by fire in a French incursion during Napoleon's time.   Ruth, whose metal detector was of course no match for the power of modern machines, did find a fragment of a French coin of the period at nearby Williambeer Farm. 

Carolyn Bacon some weeks ago wrote a fascinating piece about metal detecting for the February 2019 'In the Country' article in Yarcombe Voices.

Steve Horner adds:   Herewith a link to A Pro-forma Search Agreement between any landowner and the Detectorist, which may be of use to local landowners who are approached.

National Council for Metal Detecting website

Federation of Independent Detectorists website


FRANK'S HOBBY

 

Yarcombe wartime evacuee Frank Weeks, a welcome contributor to this site, has made the headlines in New Zealand.

It seems Frank is one of those individuals who are skillful enough to defy logic by putting large objects into bottles!


MISSING CAT

 

Until recently I lived at Lees Cottage in Yarcombe.   My cats went into emergency placement with Stanley in West Hill but sadly one of them escaped a week ago, and I’m thinking that she may eventually turn up in Yarcombe...

Bronwen is a neutered three year old tortoiseshell and white long haired cat, medium sized and quite shy but does come to Puss puss puss!!   She is micro chipped thankfully.

Would it be possible for you to spread the word through the Yarcombe Voices and the Yarcombe website?   I’m happy to make a financial contribution if required.

My contact number is 07584-666684

Many thanks,

Suyen
 


YARCOMBE'S OLD RAILWAY CARRIAGES RESTORED

Back in October 2005 two railway carriage bodies arrived at the Bluebell Railway in Sussex, from a property in Yarcombe, where they had formed part of a bungalow named "The Coaches", since about 1935. The carriages were built for the London & South Western Railway (Saloon No.25) and the London, Chatham & Dover Railway (later South Eastern & Chatham Railway No.3188).

Click to enlarge photographs in a new window

The first of these carriage bodies is still stored, awaiting a start on its restoration (details here), but No.3188 is now in public service on the Bluebell Railway after complete restoration and fitting the body to a modified Southern Railway Parcels van underframe.   Over the last 5 years a team of about 20 volunteers in the Bluebell Railway's Carriage & Wagon department have worked each weekend to restore No.3188, which was built in 1897, to the condition it would have been in the early years of the 20th century.   The carriages are now owned by The Bluebell Railway Trust who provided funding for the materials used in the restoration.

On Saturday 18 June 2016 the volunteers who had undertaken the restoration celebrated the completion of the project with a special train,
formed of three carriages hauled by SE&CR locomotive No.592.   All four vehicles were built at Longhedge Works, Battersea.

Dave Clarke's album covers the 5-year restoration of No.3188 in detail, and Alex Morley's album shows more of the special train run on 18 June 2016 to celebrate he completion of No.3188, as also seen in the above photos.

Carriage No.3188 was built by the LCDR as a 6-wheeled 5-compartment third in 1897, had been converted by the SECR into a 3-compartment brake vehicle around 1911, and ran until 1935.   It was sold, along with LSWR Saloon No.25, and "The Coaches" in Yarcombe was constructed around them, and from where they were both recovered to the Bluebell Railway in 2005, when the property was redeveloped.

Between 1950 and 1978 the carriages were occupied by Nelson (who died in 1966) and Gladys Long, and the Bluebell Railway were pleased to have two of their nieces, Jenny and Mary, and Jenny's husband Diego, with them for the relaunch.   The sisters were able to share their memories of visiting their Aunt and Uncle, and hence these two carriages, in the 1950s.   Jenny Dal Bello is seen in the third photo above presenting Tony Clements and Dave Clarke with photos, provided by one of their cousins, showing the carriages at Yarcombe in 1977.

The first photo was part of the planning application made in 2005, showing the bungalow prior to demolition.

The second photo, taken by Richard Salmon, shows the carriage in the condition it was in when it arrived at the Bluebell Railway in 2005.


YARCOMBE'S DEFIBRILLATOR

The defibrillator is now 'up and running' at the Jubilee Hall, in a cabinet on the front wall to the right hand side of the main door.  Should you need to use it just go to the hall and collect it from the cabinet.  For more information about its use see the August 2016 issue of Yarcombe Voices.
 


MESSAGE FROM OVERSEAS

We are a couple of seniors from Canada, who visited the Yarcombe Inn quite by chance in August 2013 and did not at that time have the knowledge of the historical significance of the Inn.   We just learned of the closure of the Inn and we are absolutely devastated by it.   We found the Inn and the surrounding area incredibly beautiful.   Closing it is such a waste.

Alicia Dulce Santos

 


YARCOMBE SKITTLES LEAGUE

 

Skittles is currently suspended until further notice  :-(

 


 

YOUR WHEELIE BIN

Since introducing the new waste and recycling scheme East Devon District Council have advised us that they have had occurrences of side waste (waste not contained in the wheeled bin/gull sack) being put out and causing littering and some disquiet amongst residents who are working within the criteria set.

In order to address this they have started to place stickers on the wheeled bins/gull sacks. Unfortunately this will be placed on all bins which means even those who have been doing things correctly will have stickers on their bins. When this occurs on this first occasion all side waste will be removed so that householders have a clear base to start from on the next collection.

On the following collections side waste will be left and stickered. This will escalate with letters being sent, visits by waste officers and the possibility of fixed penalty notices being issued further down the line.

Householders have made fantastic effort in increasing East Devon’s recycling which in the 1st quarter of this financial year was over 50% and also the amount of waste going to landfill has decreased by over 30% since the scheme was introduced.

Yarcombe Parish Council on behalf of East Devon District Council

 


OIL SYNDICATE

The Oil Syndicate is run by Colin Stewart who can be contacted by telephone on 01297-792538 or by email.

Orders can be placed by the 25th of each month with a view of arranging delivery at the beginning of the following month.   Please specify the quantity required in litres, whether or not a "top up" is requested, so that the oil supplier will have an indication as to the size of our order to obtain the most competitive quote.

During the summer months an order will be tendered once a month and demand will be guaged.   During the winter months it is intended to tender orders every three weeks or as demand dictates, therefore in addition to the deadline of the 25th there will probably be a further order deadline date possibly two weeks later.

Crude oil prices are continuing their very gradual upward trend and the price in May 2015 is just over $60 a barrel, corresponding to a domestic oil price of around 38p per litre.   It follows that the price we finally pay is determined by the size of our order.

 

A LIGHT-HEARTED VIEW ON AMERICAN POLITICS

 

A British writer penned the best description of Donald Trump I’ve ever read:


“Why do some British people not like Donald Trump?”


A few things spring to mind. Trump lacks certain qualities which the British traditionally esteem. For instance, he has no class, no charm, no coolness, no credibility, no compassion, no wit, no warmth, no wisdom, no subtlety, no sensitivity, no self-awareness, no humility, no honour and no grace – all qualities, funnily enough, with which his predecessor Mr. Obama was generously blessed. So for us, the stark contrast does rather throw Trump’s limitations into embarrassingly sharp relief.

Plus, we like a laugh. And while Trump may be laughable, he has never once said anything wry, witty or even faintly amusing – not once, ever. I don’t say that rhetorically, I mean it quite literally: not once, not ever. And that fact is particularly disturbing to the British sensibility – for us, to lack humour is almost inhuman. But with Trump, it’s a fact. He doesn’t even seem to understand what a joke is – his idea of a joke is a crass comment, an illiterate insult, a casual act of cruelty.

Trump is a troll. And like all trolls, he is never funny and he never laughs; he only crows or jeers. And scarily, he doesn’t just talk in crude, witless insults – he actually thinks in them. His mind is a simple bot-like algorithm of petty prejudices and knee-jerk nastiness.

There is never any under-layer of irony, complexity, nuance or depth. It’s all surface. Some Americans might see this as refreshingly upfront. Well, we don’t. We see it as having no inner world, no soul. And in Britain we traditionally side with David, not Goliath. All our heroes are plucky underdogs: Robin Hood, Dick Whittington, Oliver Twist. Trump is neither plucky, nor an underdog. He is the exact opposite of that. He’s not even a spoiled rich-boy, or a greedy fat-cat. He’s more a fat white slug. A Jabba the Hutt of privilege.

And worse, he is that most unforgivable of all things to the British: a bully. That is, except when he is among bullies; then he suddenly transforms into a snivelling sidekick instead. There are unspoken rules to this stuff – the Queensberry rules of basic decency – and he breaks them all. He punches downwards – which a gentleman should, would, could never do – and every blow he aims is below the belt. He particularly likes to kick the vulnerable or voiceless – and he kicks them when they are down.

So the fact that a significant minority – perhaps a third – of Americans look at what he does, listen to what he says, and then think ‘Yeah, he seems like my kind of guy’ is a matter of some confusion and no little distress to British people, given that:

• Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.

• You don’t need a particularly keen eye for detail to spot a few flaws in the man.

This last point is what especially confuses and dismays British people, and many other people too; his faults seem pretty bloody hard to miss. After all, it’s impossible to read a single tweet, or hear him speak a sentence or two, without staring deep into the abyss. He turns being artless into an art form; he is a Picasso of pettiness; a Shakespeare of shit. His faults are fractal: even his flaws have flaws, and so on ad infinitum. God knows there have always been stupid people in the world, and plenty of nasty people too. But rarely has stupidity been so nasty, or nastiness so stupid. He makes Nixon look trustworthy and George W look smart. In fact, if Frankenstein decided to make a monster assembled entirely from human flaws – he would make a Trump.

And a remorseful Doctor Frankenstein would clutch out big clumpfuls of hair and scream in anguish: ‘My God… what… have… I… created?' If being a twat was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set.”

Nate White
 

 



 

 

 

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