Walk 6. West of the river: Saint Thomas, Exwick, Alphington and Ide.
The walks outside the walled city are not intended to be followed slavishly. The sites are scattered and often not worth the long trek to hunt them out, but may provide points of interest if you are in the area.
West of the Exe.
The administrative boundaries of Exeter did not extend west of the Exe until 1900. St Thomas had become an urban district in 1894 and even obtained its own town hall, which only served its purpose for a few years until it became part of Exeter in 1900, later becoming the headquarters of Devon County Library. During the 20th century the districts of Exwick, Alphington and part of Ide were also integrated into Exeter.
Bridge Books Okehampton Street.
Bridge Books is a Christian bookshop established by John and Margaret Robertson in June 2008. Since March 2012 it has been run by Gary and Mary Lee who had served as missionaries in China for six years.
Bridge Books, Exeter (Google Street View).
Auctioneers. Okehampton Street.
The auctioneers Bearnes Hampton and Littlewood and Whitton and Laing both have premises in Okehampton Street. They both have sales dedicated to antiquarian books.
Bearnes, Hampton and Littlewood, auctioneers, Exeter (Google street view).
St Thomas Library. Church Road, St Thomas.
St Thomas branch library engages with all sections of the community, young and old, with a wide range of activities.
St Thomas Library, Exeter (Libraries Unlimited).
Devon County Library. Cowick Street.
Devon County Library had its headquarters in the old Council Offices at 138 Cowick Street from 1931 to 1939. From 1947 to 1967 it was the premises of the printers Bartlett and Son.
Former headquarters of Devon County Library, St Thomas Town Hall.
Devon Library Services. Barley House, Isleworth Road.
This handsome early 19th century stucco mansion was the headquarters of Devon County Library from 1939 until about 2005 when it moved to Great Moor House.
Barley House, former headquarters of Devon Library Services
Exwick Paper Mill.
Exwick Lower Mill was built as a fulling mill in 1673 and served as a paper mill from 1804 until 1862. In 1893 the building became a steam laundry and it was finally demolished in 1982, houses being built on the site.
The site of Exwick paper mill.
Burlesque election. Ide.
A burlesque election for the innocuous village of Ide was held on the occasion of parliamentary elections in Exeter in the 18th and 19th centuries. It provided the opportunity to print satirical broadsheets about local characters. One of the candidates in 1812 was the itinerant bookseller Tommy Osborne.
The itinerant bookseller Tommy Osborne, who stood as a candidate in the Ide burlesque election in 1812.
(Lithograph in Westcountry Studies Library)
Charles Dickens. Church Road, Alphington.
A plaque is on the front of Mile End Cottage, Church Road, Alphington reads: Here lived the parents of Charles Dickens, 1812 – 1870. The dates are those of Dickens; his parents, John and Elizabeth only lived in the cottage from 1839 to 1842. Due to his total incapacity to deal with his personal finances John spent time in the Marshalsea debtors’ prison. To get his father away from the temptations of the metropolis, Charles Dickens took out the lease in 1839 of Mile End Cottage at £20 a year. However, John pined for the lure of London and moved back there with his wife in 1842, continuing to run up debts. It is said that Dickens wrote the opening chapters of Nicholas Nickleby in Mile End Cottage.
Mile End Cottage. (Derek Parker, Wikimedia Commons)
The walks outside the walled city are not intended to be followed slavishly. The sites are scattered and often not worth the long trek to hunt them out, but may provide points of interest if you are in the area.
West of the Exe.
The administrative boundaries of Exeter did not extend west of the Exe until 1900. St Thomas had become an urban district in 1894 and even obtained its own town hall, which only served its purpose for a few years until it became part of Exeter in 1900, later becoming the headquarters of Devon County Library. During the 20th century the districts of Exwick, Alphington and part of Ide were also integrated into Exeter.
Bridge Books Okehampton Street.
Bridge Books is a Christian bookshop established by John and Margaret Robertson in June 2008. Since March 2012 it has been run by Gary and Mary Lee who had served as missionaries in China for six years.
Bridge Books, Exeter (Google Street View).
Auctioneers. Okehampton Street.
The auctioneers Bearnes Hampton and Littlewood and Whitton and Laing both have premises in Okehampton Street. They both have sales dedicated to antiquarian books.
Bearnes, Hampton and Littlewood, auctioneers, Exeter (Google street view).
St Thomas Library. Church Road, St Thomas.
St Thomas branch library engages with all sections of the community, young and old, with a wide range of activities.
St Thomas Library, Exeter (Libraries Unlimited).
Devon County Library. Cowick Street.
Devon County Library had its headquarters in the old Council Offices at 138 Cowick Street from 1931 to 1939. From 1947 to 1967 it was the premises of the printers Bartlett and Son.
Former headquarters of Devon County Library, St Thomas Town Hall.
Devon Library Services. Barley House, Isleworth Road.
This handsome early 19th century stucco mansion was the headquarters of Devon County Library from 1939 until about 2005 when it moved to Great Moor House.
Barley House, former headquarters of Devon Library Services
Exwick Paper Mill.
Exwick Lower Mill was built as a fulling mill in 1673 and served as a paper mill from 1804 until 1862. In 1893 the building became a steam laundry and it was finally demolished in 1982, houses being built on the site.
The site of Exwick paper mill.
Burlesque election. Ide.
A burlesque election for the innocuous village of Ide was held on the occasion of parliamentary elections in Exeter in the 18th and 19th centuries. It provided the opportunity to print satirical broadsheets about local characters. One of the candidates in 1812 was the itinerant bookseller Tommy Osborne.
The itinerant bookseller Tommy Osborne, who stood as a candidate in the Ide burlesque election in 1812.
(Lithograph in Westcountry Studies Library)
Charles Dickens. Church Road, Alphington.
A plaque is on the front of Mile End Cottage, Church Road, Alphington reads: Here lived the parents of Charles Dickens, 1812 – 1870. The dates are those of Dickens; his parents, John and Elizabeth only lived in the cottage from 1839 to 1842. Due to his total incapacity to deal with his personal finances John spent time in the Marshalsea debtors’ prison. To get his father away from the temptations of the metropolis, Charles Dickens took out the lease in 1839 of Mile End Cottage at £20 a year. However, John pined for the lure of London and moved back there with his wife in 1842, continuing to run up debts. It is said that Dickens wrote the opening chapters of Nicholas Nickleby in Mile End Cottage.
Mile End Cottage. (Derek Parker, Wikimedia Commons)
This page last updated 14 August 2021
