North Devon in 100 Objects 17

17. The Huxtable Plough This clever invention was developed here in North Devon. John Huxtable was a blacksmith’s son from Brayford, who was fascinated with all things mechanical from childhood. He used to watch the farmers at work in the fields near his home.  The mouldboards of standard ploughs always turned the soil to the …

North Devon in 100 Objects 22

22. The Elliott Ralli Car This little cart is a Ralli Car, made by Elliotts of Bideford around the turn of the 20th century.  Carts like this would once have been common in North Devon, used as a general run-around for families. It has back-to-back seating and space under the seats for luggage or shopping …

North Devon in 100 Objects 27

27. The Barnstaple Steam Fire Pump The splendid piece of engineering that is the Barnstaple Steam Fire Pump was a product of the 19th century London engineering company Shand Mason who specialised in the building of superior fire appliances. This example was purchased by the Borough of Barnstaple in 1914 for £320. It was a …

North Devon in 100 Objects 38

38. Matron's Autograph Book This autograph book belonged to Jane Appleton, the fourth and final matron of the Barnstaple Red Cross Hospital in the First World War. The hospital was set up at The Miller Institute on Derby Road, now Yeo Valley Primary School.  It was one of around 3,000 temporary Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) …

North Devon in 100 Objects 43

43. Bertie Burrington's Archive These documents record the life of an ordinary, but remarkable North Devon man, who overcame a difficult start to create a happy family life in Barnstaple. Bertie Burrington (1894-1982) was born in Braunton, where his father was a level crossing keeper.  By the time he was six his father had died …

North Devon in 100 Objects 48

48. Rev Squire's Christmas Decorations In 1918 the country celebrated its first peacetime Christmas in four years.  For many families Christmases during the war had been times of sorrow and anxiety.  With sons and husbands away at the front it didn’t seem right to celebrate.  Those who could sent their loved ones festive gifts of …

North Devon in 100 Objects 52

52. The Cloam Oven Most old farmhouses in North Devon would once have been equipped with cloam ovens like this one.  Made of local clay, they were still being manufactured in various standard sizes as late as the 1930s.  The word cloam just means clay.  William Fishley Holland describes how they were made at the …

North Devon in 100 Objects 53

53. Herbert Algar's Diary These First World War dairies were found in an attic in Plymouth.  They were written by Herbert Cecil Algar, a Trooper in the Royal First Devon Yeomanry. Herbert Algar was a farm labourer from Cornwall.  His diary begins as he joins 6,000 other troops bound for the Mediterranean in September 1915.  …

North Devon in 100 Objects 58

58. A Barnstaple Cookery Book Recipe books are so intimate: what other books fall open at the pages most used, with stains and marks where food has splattered, collecting reader corrections and additions in the margins? For several years the ladies of Barnstaple published a recipe book – in 1909 it was The Barnstaple Book …

North Devon in 100 Objects 63

63. The Bromley's Sign Bromley’s, the name of the museum tea room, pays homage to a long-standing, successful and popular business which was at the heart of Barnstaple’s social life for 60 years and was known to Barumites and visitors alike.  When the restaurant closed in 1984, the sign which for years was to be …