Salcombe Parish Church

A Memory of Salcombe.

The church was built on land donated by the 10th Earl of Devon and the foundation stone laid in 1841 The architect was J H Ball who designed several other churches in Devon. The magnificent east window shows scenes from the life of Christ and commemorates benefactors of the church, especially the 11th Earl of Devon who died in 1888. Henry Wilson's Art Nouveau copper-sheathed chancel gates are remarkable for their early date of 1889.

I was christened here in 1942 and later confirmed by the Bishop of Exeter. My first memories of the church are of Sunday School and of Mothering Sunday services when we children were given posies of violets and primroses to take home to our mothers. The vicar in those days was the Reverend Hawkins and his wife Gwen was a teacher at the Infants School, a lovely couple. At Christmas we performed a Nativity Play and this was usually produced by Miss Elizabeth Jennings, a lady of great imagination. Miss Jennings had a marvellous box of materials and props and we loved all the dressing-up which took place in the Vestry. I remember singing 'We 3 Kings of Orient are' in a piping voice at the annual Carol Service. Later, following my confirmation I attended Holy Communion for the first time and I well recall rushing out to be sick outside the porch! Mr.Jack Vivian who was a Churchwarden very kindly looked after me.

I have always held Salcombe Parish Church in great affection and it is a great pity that the interior is now being re-modelled following the sale of the Church Hall, which was previously the Girl's School.  Nothing stays the same forever....