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Musbury is located within East Devon local authority area. Historically it formed part of Axminster Hundred. It falls within Honiton Vol 1 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 280 in 1801 422 in 1901 . Figures for other years are available on the local studies website. The lay subsidy of 1524 valued the community at £21/12/04.

A parish history file is held in Axminster 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 Musbury 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 71/16,72/13 Six inch (1:10560) sheet 71SE,72SW
The National Grid reference for the centre of the area is SY274946. On the post 1945 National Grid Ordnance Survey mapping the sheets are: 1:10,000 (six inch to a mile: sheet SY29SE, 1:25,000 mapping: sheet Explorer 029, Landranger (1:50,000) mapping: sheet 193. Geological sheet 326 also covers the area.

Illustrations: The image below is of Musbury as included in the Library's Etched on Devon's memory website. 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:

MUSBURY In delightful country on the margin of the Axe valley, takes its name from the iron age hill-fort which crowns the hill above the village. The church (St. Michael) is a 15th century structure, devastingly restored by Hayward of Exeter, and much rebuilt. The chancel was rebuilt in 1865, the N. aisle in 1875. There is much other poor Victorian work. The only notable feature of the church is the Drake monument erected in 1611 and extended by a bay c. 1646.

Ashe, about 1 m. N., came about 1415 to John Drake of Exmouth, whose descendants held it until 1793. The present Ashe house is that rebuilt by Sir John Drake, 2nd bart., c. 1670-80, though there are slight traces of its 15th century predecessor. The detached chapel, on the site of one licensed in 1387, was also rebuilt in the 17th century. It is most likely that John Churchill, afterwards Duke of Malborough, was born here, as is so often said, as the house was burnt and uninhabitable from 1644. It is almost certain that he was born at great Trill, not far away, in the parish of Axminster.