• CONTACT US if you have any problems registering for the forums.

South West Teignmouth

Teignmouth is an attractive holiday settlement at the mouth of the River Teign. A lot of money has been spent revitalising the town centre and sea front. It is now a worthy rival to larger seaside settlements further south along Tor bay.

P1070986.jpg


The town grew up round two tiny settlement, East Teignmouth with St Michael’s church overlooking the beach and West Teignmouth at St James’ Church overlooking the estuary.

The river estuary provided a sheltered harbour and by the early C14th Teignmouth had grown into a significant port, second only to Dartmouth. It had its own market charter.

Teignmouth grew rapidly in the C17th from wealth generated by the very productive Newfoundland cod industry. Wealthy captains houses were built. The men were away for most of the year while the women fished locally and also provided a ferry service across the river.

It began to develop as a seaside resort in the C19th, with visitors being attracted by the long expanse of sandy beach and mild climate. A bridge was built across the river linking Shaldon and Teignmouth. This was originally a wooden toll bridge but was replaced in 1931. Its two churches were rebuilt. The railway arrived in 1846 bringing more visitors. The promenade with its gardens and pier was built.

Small rowing boats are still pulled up on River Beach and there is still some fishing from here. The port also handles timber, grain and clay. The maze of small fishermen’s cottages and boat building yards are long gone.

P5310864.jpg


P5310868.jpg


A small passenger ferry still runs across the river between Teignmouth and Sheldon.

P5310865.jpg


There is a town trail with information boards beginning at the Heritage Centre.

Cont...
 
Teigmouth is an attractive town to walk around with its pedestrianised centre and triangles area.

P5310874.jpg


P5310873.jpg


P5310852 copy.jpg


The town centre has a range of small shops including a traditional hardware shop, which sells everything you could possibly want, and a lot more.

P5310846.jpg


P5310845.jpg


P5310847 copy.jpg


Streets overlooking the sea front are lined with splendid Georgian houses.



P5310853 copy.jpg


P5310858.jpg


Away from the front are attractive terraces of houses.

P5310836.jpg


P5310843 copy.jpg


St Michael’s Church with its tall square tower is Victorian Gothic and can be seen from the promenade.

P5310854.jpg


Just up the road is the United Reform Church of 1883 with the Roman Catholic Church above it.

P5310833.jpg


The Church of St James was rebuilt in the early C19th but still has its original C13th red sandstone tower. This was originally used as a lookout and is the oldest building in Teignmouth.

P5310837.jpg


P5310871.jpg


It has a most unusual squat octagonal tower above the rebuilt nave.

Cont...
 
Teigmouth has a long sandy beach which is popular with families and is protected to the north by Hole Head. If you are expecting ‘golden’ sands you may be disappointed as this is Old Red Sandstone Country and the soils and beach are a deep red brown colour.

P5310855.jpg


The pier was built in 1865 using cast-iron screw piles, which are screwed into the sand with a large hexagon on the pile. It is one of only two piers left on the SW coast.

P5310859.jpg


Initially it was used as a landing stage for pleasure steamers. Refreshments and amusements came later with a Pavillion built in 1890. The pier was badly damaged during storms in 2014 and is still being restored

A small stone lighthouse (which must be one of the shortest in Britain) was built at the entrance to the river in 1845.

P5310861.jpg


There has been a lifeboat station here since 1851 covering an area from Dawlish to Brixham, and up the river as far as Newton Abbot. It has an average of 50 shouts per year with 30 volunteer crew members.

P5310866.jpg


The Atlantic 85 was refurbished a few years ago and is still the fastest boat in the RNLI fleet. 310867

There is a small shop attached and volunteers are delighted to see visitors and talk to them.

Teignmouth is a very attractive sea side resort and a lot less busy than bigger neighbours. It has succeeded in retaining an old fashioned family atmosphere and avoided the arcades and kiss me quick hats. It is a place to sit, relax and enjoy the sunshine while people watching.
 

How to Find Information

Search using the search button in the upper right. Search all forums or current forum by keyword or member. Advanced search gives you more options.

Filter forum threads using the filter pulldown above the threads. Filter by prefix, member, date. Or click on a thread title prefix to see all threads with that prefix.

Sponsors

Booking.com Hotels in Europe
AutoEurope.com Car Rentals

Recommended Guides, Apps and Books

52 Things to See and Do in Basilicata by Valerie Fortney
Italian Food & Life Rules by Ann Reavis
Italian Food Decoder App by Dana Facaros, Michael Pauls
French Food Decoder App by Dana Facaros, Michael Pauls
She Left No Note, Lake Iseo Italy Mystery 1 by J L Crellina

Share this page

Back
Top