Portreeve
ANOTHER important part of Ashburton’s history is the office of portreeve, not least because this ancient Saxon office is still kept alive. The name is derived from the Saxon words for market town ‘port’ and ‘gerefa’ meaning official. Dating back to 820 AD, the office is the only one now held by Act of Parliament although the role exists in eight other towns across England. The chief duty of a Saxon portreeve was to represent the King in legal transactions and he was often the only person who could read and write, particularly when all the documents were in Latin. The Court Leet is composed of freeholders of
the town and is appointed each year at St Lawrence Chapel on the fourth Tuesday in November. The portreeve is elected together with the bailiff, ale tasters and bread weighers. The Court Baron, made up of tenants of the
town, elects the viewers of the market, viewers of water courses, tree inspector, searcher and sealer of leather, scavengers and pig drovers. Today the portreeve’s position is mainly as a
social head for the town, attending the many charitable fundraising events and, in conjunction with the mayor, leading and representing the town.
Town Hall
BUILT in 1850 by Lord Clinton this Italianate building replaced the old wooden market hall which existed in the middle of North Street until being demolished in 1848. Originally the ground floor was open and arcaded to house fish and butter markets, with a pannier market to the rear. The southern end, together with the pannier market, was removed to widen King’s Bridge in the 1970s. The ground floor now houses the town council office. The Arms of Lord Clinton are carved above the
North Street entrance which is fronted by impressive granite paving. The tourist information centre is at the rear.
The 1,197th portreeve Cllr Jenny Giles with Master Bailiff Valerie Smale.
St Lawrence Chapel
The Chapel of St Lawrence is one of Ashburton's oldest and most interesting buildings. It was originally a private chapel for the Bishop of Exeter. Ashburton was held by Bishop Stapledon who
was Lord of the Manor and stayed in his palace in the town. In 1314 he gave the building to the town to be
administered by the original Guild of St Lawrence, led by the portreeve of the day, on the stipulation that a Chantry School was maintained there. This evolved into a grammar school which celebrated 600 years of history in 1914. The school closed in 1938 due to a fall in numbers but the building continued in use as an annexe to the county and primary schools until 1994. The building also housed the town's library for
more than 40 years and the town's museum. At present the local community, through a reformed Guild of St Lawrence in partnership with Dartmoor National Park Authority, is ensuring this unique building's continued use as a heritage centre throughout the summer season.
Tapestry produced by various ladies of the Courts in the 1980s.
11
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40
