Lapford is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

in Mid Devon in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county of

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. Devo ...

. It had a population of 993 in 2001, reducing to 867 at the 2011 census. Lapford is part of Taw Valley ward whose population at the above census was 1,629.

Churches

There are three churches in the village. St Thomas of Canterbury C of E church, Lapford Community Church and Lapford Congregational church. Originally a Norman chapel, the church of St Thomas of Canterbury is listed Grade I and partly dates back to shortly after the murder of

Thomas Becket Thomas Becket (), also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket (21 December 1119 or 1120 – 29 December 1170), was an English nobleman who served as Lord Chancellor from 1155 to 1162, and then ...

(1170), having been almost completely rebuilt, extended and then re-dedicated on the orders of King Henry II by William de Tracey, one of the assassins. De Tracey was lord of the manor of

Bradninch Bradninch is a small town and former manor in Devon, England, lying about south of Cullompton. Much of the surrounding farmland belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall. There is an electoral ward with the same name. At the 2011 Census the ward pop ...

, which then included most of what is now Lapford. It was further rebuilt and extended in the 15th & 16th centuries. The wall paintings and plasterwork were lost at the time of the Reformation and the original 12th-century chancel was rebuilt in the late 19th century. Of special interest is a very fine late 15th-century carved screen, uniquely carved on both sides, and still almost complete. Like many Devon churches, St Thomas' has a fascinating series of intricate carved

pew A pew () is a long bench seat or enclosed box, used for seating members of a congregation or choir in a church, synagogue or sometimes a courtroom. Overview The first backless stone benches began to appear in English churches in the thirt ...

ends, variously dating from the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries.

The village

The nearby Bury Barton is the site of a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

fort, thought to be a large pre-Flavian fort that was succeeded by a smaller one that in turn was abandoned early in the Flavian period. In the early part of the 20th century the milk processing company Ambrosia had a large creamery and processing facility at Lapford. There is one pub in the village. "The Old Malt Scoop Inn", located in the village centre, is an old coaching inn dating back to the 16th century. Lapford playing field features two play areas, a large area of grass including a football pitch and also a fenced playground with various play equipment such as swings, slides and roundabouts. Lapford railway station is a request stop station.

Local legends

The village is said to be haunted by the spirit of the former Vicar of Lapford's church, the St Thomas of Canterbury Church, John Radford. He murdered his curate, in the 1860s, but was spared from the gallows by a jury consisting of many of his village parishioners and returned to his parish duties. His dying wish was to be buried in the church chancel, he made the ominous threat to haunt the village if his wishes were not carried out. The church authorities would not allow this, instead he was buried outside the vestry door where his grave can still be seen today. His spirit is said to still wander around the village. Lapford is also said to be haunted by the spirit of the former Archbishop of Canterbury,

. On the anniversary of his murder he is said to gallop through the village on horseback on his way to confront Sir William de Tracey, of nearby Nymet Tracy, for his part in the brutal murder.

References

External links

Lapford website
includes a more detailed history.
Tourist Information for the Lapford areaLapford Congregational church's website

* ttps://www.bbc.co.uk/history/domesday/search?q=Lapford&type=Content Lapford in 1986BBC Domesday project {{authority control Villages in Devon Roman fortifications in Devon