In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Parracombe like this:
PARRACOMBE, a village, a parish, and a sub-district, in Barnstaple district, Devon. The village stands 2¾ miles S W of the boundary with Somerset, 4¼ S W of Lynton, and 12 N E of Barnstaple r. station; was anciently called Percombe, or Pedercombe; and has a post-office under Barnstaple. ...
The parish comprises 4, 338 acres. Real property, £2, 852. Pop., 410. Houses, 82. The property is subdivided. The manor belonged, in the time of the Confessor, to Bristwold; went, at the Norman conquest, to one of the Conqueror's captains; passed afterwards to the Traceys and the Fitz-Martyns; belonged to the St. Albyns from 1310 till 1862; was then sold to the Rev. John Pyke; and belongs now to J. N. Pyke, Esq. Middleton belonged, in the time of Henry III., to Sir H. Bernefield; passed to the Westons, and to the Earls of Devonshire; and belongs now to R. Dovell, Esq. Rowley belonged, for ages, to the Lock family; passed to the Roaches; and belongs now to the Notts. An ancient circular earthwork, called the Castle, is near the village. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Exeter. Value, £240. Patron, J. N. Pyke, Esq. The church is ancient, and has a tower.—The sub-district contains alsoseven other parishes and an uninhabited portion of Exmoor. Acres, 35, 537. Pop., 2, 839. Houses, 584.
Parracombe through time
Parracombe is now part of North Devon district. Click here for graphs and data of how North Devon has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Parracombe itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Parracombe in North Devon | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/1884
Date accessed: 25th April 2024
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