Clist (St. Lawrence)

CLIST (St. Lawrence), a parish, in the union of St. Thomas, hundred of Cliston, Woodbury and S. divisions of Devon, 5½ miles (S. by E.) from Cullompton; containing 168 inhabitants. This parish, which is situated on the river Clist, and in the fertile vale of that name, comprises 968 acres, of which 65 are common or waste; the soil is luxuriantly rich, consisting chiefly of a strong deep loam, producing the heaviest crops of corn and the finest cider in this portion of the county. Veins of iron-ore are discernible in some parts. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £9. 4. 4½.; net income, £244; patrons, the Trustees of St. John's Hospital, Exeter. The glebe comprises about 46 acres; the glebe-house, originally a portion of some religious establishment, has been partly rebuilt. The church is a handsome structure in the later English style, with a lofty embattled tower, and contains a richly-carved oak screen; in a niche in the north-east wall is a Madonna, and in the churchyard are the remains of a fine cross. The tower was struck by lightning in three places, in March, 1846. The whole of the manorial rights and the lands were bequeathed by Eliza Hele, lady of the manor, for charitable purposes. There is a strong mineral spring at the base of a hill in the western part of the parish, said to be efficacious in diseases of the eye.