South Brent, Devon

Historical Description

Brent, South, a village and a parish in Devonshire. The village stands on the river Avon, 7 miles W of Totnes, and has a station of the name of Brent on the G.W.R., 225 miles from London. It has a post, money order, and telegraph office under Ivybridge. It was formerly a market-town, and it still has large fairs on the last Tuesday of April and September, and cattle markets on the last Tuesday of February, August, and November. The parish comprises 9422 acres; population, 1580. The manor once belonged to the Abbot of Buckfastleigh, but has been dismembered. The surface is diversified, and includes the striking eminence of South Brent-Tor. Micaceous iron-ore, used for the sanding of manuscript, is found. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Exeter; tithe commuted at £965 with residence. The church is old and large, consists of nave, chancel, and aisles, and has a Norman tower. It was restored in 1871. There are Congregational and Baptist chapels, parish lands yielding £152 a year, and other charities, and a literary institute.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Church Records

Findmypast, in association with the South West Heritage Trust, Parochial Church Council, and Devon Family History Society have the Baptisms, Banns, Marriages, and Burials online for South Brent

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for South Brent from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Brent, South (St. Patrick))

Maps

Online maps of South Brent are available from a number of sites:

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following newspapers covering Devon online:

• Western Times
• Exeter and Plymouth Gazette
• Western Morning News
• North Devon Journal
• Exeter Flying Post

Villages, Hamlets, &c

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitation of the County of Devon in the year 1564, with additions from the earlier visitation of 1531, is online.

The Visitations of the County of Devon, comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564, & 1620, with additions by Lieutant-Colonel J.L. Vivian, published for the author by Henry S. Eland, Exeter 1895 is online.