Witheridge is a village and civil parish in the

North Devon North Devon is a local government district in Devon, England. North Devon Council is based in Barnstaple. Other towns and villages in the North Devon District include Braunton, Fremington, Ilfracombe, Instow, South Molton, Lynton and Lynmouth ...

district of Devon, England. In 2001 the population of the parish was 1162, reducing slightly to 1,158 at the 2011 Census. An electoral ward with the same name exists. The population at the above census was 2,313. Its name may be derived from the Old English for "Weather Ridge", which would fit with the village's somewhat exposed situation. Situated almost equidistant from Dartmoor and Exmoor, the village has earned the nickname ''the Gateway to the Two Moors Way''. Butcher FJP Maunder established his business in the village in 1879, which taken over by his son became local butchers chain

Lloyd Maunder Lloyd Maunder are an Exeter, Devon based group of West Country retail butchers, a major producer of locally reared beef, pork and chicken products. History FJP Maunder established a meat processing facility at Witheridge, Devon in 1879. He ope ...

. The village is home to two shops, a pub, restaurant and a cafe. There is also the home to Mid Devon Medical Practice. It is also home to a Gothic-style church, built circa 1500, and restored in 1841 and 1884. The stone pulpit located in the church is one of just 70 medieval stone pulpits in England. The village is twinned with

Cambremer Cambremer () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France.France, and the two villages have annual exchange trips (although not solely for students).

Sport and leisure

Witheridge has a

Non-League football Non-League football describes football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is specifically used to de ...

club

Witheridge F.C. Witheridge Football Club is a football club based in the Devon village of Witheridge. They are currently members of the and play at Edge Down Park. History Witheridge have come a long way since the days of the Married team and Singles team. ...

who play in the South West Peninsula League which is at step 6 of the

National League System The National League System comprises the six levels of the English football league system immediately below the level of the English Football League. It comes under the jurisdiction of The Football Association. The National League System has a h ...

as well as a Reserve side who play in Division 1 of the Devon and Exeter Football League. Both sides play their home games at Edge Down Park. The St John's Fair takes place annually and shows the wonderful community spirit in this English village. Witheridge also has a well established Taekwondo club.

Notable residents

Witheridge is the birthplace of Mary Baker (née Willcocks), a noted impostor who went by the name "Princess Caraboo" from a fictional far off island kingdom.John Wells, 'Baker , Mary rincess Caraboo(bap. 1791, d. 1864)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Sept 201
accessed 5 June 2013
/ref> Frank and Mary Housam have represented Witheridge in town crier competitions all over the world, winning trophies in Canada, Australia and the US, and represented Witheridge at the World Town Crier Championships in Maryborough City, Australia.

References

External links

{{authority control Villages in Devon