Mary Tavy
Mary Tavy is located within West Devon local authority area. Historically it formed part of Lifton Hundred. It falls within Tavistock Deanery for ecclesiastical purposes. The Deaneries are used to arrange the typescript Church Notes of B.F.Cresswell which are held in the Westcountry Studies Library. The population was 376 in 1801 717 in 1901 . Figures for other years are available on the local studies website. In 1641/2 89 adult males signed the Protestation returns.
A parish history file is held in Tavistock Library. You can look for other material on the community by using the place search on the main local studies database. Further historical information is also available on the Genuki website.
Maps: The image below is of the Mary Tavy area on Donn's one inch to the mile survey of 1765.
On the County Series Ordnance Survey mapping the area is to be found on 1:2,500 sheet 98/9 Six inch (1:10560) sheet 98SW
The National Grid reference for the centre of the area is SX503795. On the post 1945 National Grid Ordnance Survey mapping the sheets are: 1:10,000 (six inch to a mile: sheet SX57NW, 1:25,000 mapping: sheet Explorer 112, Landranger (1:50,000) mapping: sheet 191. Geological sheet 338 also covers the area.
Illustrations: The image below is of Mary Tavy as included in the Library's illustrations collection. Other images can be searched for on the local studies catalogue.
Extract from Devon by W.G.Hoskins (1954), included by kind permission of the copyright holder:
MARYTAVY has an interesting mining history; many abandoned tin and copper mines will be found, especially the Devon Friendship Mine, just N. of the village, and Wheal Betsy below Kingsett Down. An old mine leat is now used to supply a large hydro-electric plant in the parish with motive power. Besides Marytavy itself, Wringworthy, North and South Warne, and Burntown were all Domesday manors. North Warne and Wringworthy are good examples of freeholders' "mansions." Marytavy church (St. Mary) is mostly a 15th to early 16th century granite structure, drastically restored in 1878- 9, but nevertheless pleasant in feeling.
