Bellever is a hamlet in

Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite which forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

, England. It is located on the river

East Dart The East Dart River is one of the two main tributaries of the River Dart in Devon, England. Its source is to the west of Whitehorse Hill and slightly south of Cranmere Pool on Dartmoor. It flows south and then south-west for around 9 km to ...

about south of

Postbridge Postbridge is a hamlet in the heart of Dartmoor in the English county of Devon. It lies on the B3212, roughly midway between Princetown and Moretonhampstead. Postbridge is next to the East Dart river, one of two main tributaries of the River ...

. The first mention of a settlement at this location is in a Duchy of Cornwall record from 1355 which gives the name of a farm here as Welford, a contraction of ''wielle'' (spring) and ''ford''. However, in his ''High Dartmoor'' (1983), Eric Hemery proposed that the name comes from ''bal'' (mine) and ''ford'', meaning ''the mine by the ford''. RiverEastDart

Until the period after World War II the hamlet consisted of Bellever Farm (owned by the Duchy of Cornwall) and its outbuildings, with a small number of cottages for the farm workers. The farm gained a reputation for the introduction of

Galloway Galloway ( ; sco, Gallowa; la, Gallovidia) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway. A native or i ...

and

Aberdeen Angus The Aberdeen Angus, sometimes simply Angus, is a Scottish breed of small beef cattle. It derives from cattle native to the counties of Aberdeen, Banff, Kincardine and Angus in north-eastern Scotland. In 2018 the breed accounted for over ...

cattle onto Dartmoor. However, in 1931 the

Forestry Commission The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. The Forestry Commission was previously also respon ...

, now Forestry England bought the farm and began a large planting scheme here; several houses were built in the 1950s to house the forestry workers. The coniferous plantation known as Bellever Forest surrounds the hamlet on its north, west and south sides. In 1934 some of the barns of Bellever Farm were let to

Youth Hostels Association (England & Wales) The Youth Hostels Association (England & Wales) is a charitable organisation, registered with the Charity Commission, providing youth hostel accommodation in England and Wales. It is a member of the Hostelling International federation. Hist ...

and now form the oldest, still functioning

youth hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared ...

in Devon. As of 2019 the hamlet is served by a daily bus service that runs between Yelverton,

Princetown Princetown is a villageDespite its name, Princetown is not classed as a town today – it is not included in the County Council's list of the 29 towns in Devon: located within Dartmoor national park in the English county of Devon. It is the ...

and

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13,028 ...

. During the summer Forestry England run a small visitor centre by the East Dart river.

Bellever Tor Bellever Tor is a granite tor in the centre of Dartmoor, England. It provides panoramic 360 degree views and is located near Bellever Forest and the popular village of Bellever Bellever is a hamlet in Dartmoor, Devon, England. It is located ...

lies to the southwest.

References

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{{authority control Villages in Devon Dartmoor