Trusham is a small village in the

Teign Teigne (also : Teign, Tègne, Teeñ, Tin or Tañ in Wolof language) was the title of the monarch of the pre-colonial Kingdom of Baol, now part of present-day Senegal. In Wolof, "Teigne" means the support that is placed on the head to carry som ...

Valley, between

Newton Abbot Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the River Teign in the Teignbridge District of Devon, England. Its 2011 population of 24,029 was estimated to reach 26,655 in 2019. It grew rapidly in the Victorian era as the home of the Sou ...

and

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

, in

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. The name originates from the Celtic ''Trisma'', meaning "brushwood" or "fallen leaves". It became ''Trisme'' for about 400 years, and then in the 16th century ''Tryssame'' or ''Trysham''. A

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

, the Cridford Inn, was opened in 1985 by converting part of an old farmhouse and adjoining barn. The Church of St Michael is an ancient stone building in the early English and Perpendicular styles with traces of Norman work. The church was thoroughly restored in 1865, when the stained east window and a smaller one were inserted as memorials to the Rev. William Edward Brendon, who died in 1864. There is also a memorial to John Stooke which mentions a charity he set up for the church and the poor of nearby

Bovey Tracey Bovey Tracey () is a small town and civil parish in Devon, England, on the edge of Dartmoor, its proximity to which gives rise to the "slogan" used on the town's boundary signs, "The Gateway to the Moor". It is often known locally as "Bovey". It ...

. Trusham was the ancestral home of the Causley family, whose descendants include the poet

Charles Causley Charles Stanley Causley CBE FRSL (24 August 1917 – 4 November 2003) was a British poet, school teacher and writer. His work is often noted for its simplicity and directness as well as its associations with folklore, legends and magic, especi ...

and the folk singer

Jim Causley Jim Causley is an English Folk music, folk singer, songwriter, and musician from Devon who specializes in the Folk Music of England, traditional songs and music of the West Country. Journalist Colin Irwin (journalist), Colin Irwin has called him ...

. Causley's poem "Trusham" is an account of a return he made to the village in his later years; a reflection on one's family roots, what it is to be distant from those, and the legacies we leave behind us. Jim Causley's setting of this poem—amongst a number of other poems by his distant relation—is a modern song-setting, and is available on the album ''Cyprus Well''. A later poem, "The Prodigal Son", recounts a further visit by Causley to his ancestral village, linking once again the local geography, history and landscape with the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and his own family memories. In 2007, Trusham held the first Charles Causley Festival in conjunction with the Charles Causley Society of Launceston. There is a plaque in the village to celebrate Causley's life and the Charles Causley Society hold regular events in Trusham such as Causley readings and poems set to music, hog roasts and barn dancing. The now disused and privately-owned

Trusham railway station Trusham Railway Station was a railway station in the parish of Chudleigh, serving the villages of Trusham and Hennock in Devon, England, on the Teign Valley line between Newton Abbot Newton Abbot is a market town and civil parish on the ...

was part of the Teign Valley Line. Although the school closed in November 1948, its Victorian building is now the Village Hall. The Doomsday survey of 1086 recorded a settlement of 23 households (four of villagers, nine of smallholders, ten of slaves). Eight hundred years later, the 1881 Census recorded a very small growth, with 41 households and a population of 177; however, in Kelly’s 1901 Directory of Devonshire, the population had fallen to 165. By 2001, whilst the number of households had increased to 60, the population had fallen further to 144. Trusham is on the western side of the high Haldon Hills, roughly above the river Teign, which forms the Dartmoor National Park boundary and is just over away. The village is accessed via minor roads which are predominantly single track with passing places. The A38 passes within at

Chudleigh Chudleigh () is an ancient wool town located within the Teignbridge District Council area of Devon, England between Newton Abbot and Exeter. The electoral ward with the same name had a population of 6,125 at the 2011 census. Geography Chudl ...

. The centre of the village has the O S grid reference SX 854 821 and for sat nav users the postcode is TQ13 0NW.

Notes

References

{{authority control Villages in Devon