There is some doubt about the origins of the name Harpford or Herpeford. The Old English 'herepaeo' could refer to the old road itself, which crosses the Otter at a ford just north of the Exeter-Lyme Regis road.  The crossing is still fordable in summer, and this is where the Anglo-Saxon armies used to cross the river. 'Harp' is also the Anglo-Saxon word for army and could be an alternative source of the name.

The two small parishes of Venn Ottery and Harpford were one benefice for at least seven centuries until their separation in 1933, when Harpford was united with the rather modern parish of Newton Poppleford and Venn Ottery with Tipton St. John.

Patronage of Harpford and Venn Ottery was with the Priors of Otterton until the wars with France caused a transference to Edward III and then Richard II in the 14th century. On the suppression of alien priories by Henry V the benefice was transferred to William Konolmersh. It subsequently belonged to the Duke family of Otterton 1539-1785, passed to the Rolle family and thence to Lord Clinton in 1907.

In 1205 Henry Marshall, Bishop of Exeter granted the churches of Harpford and Venn Ottery to the Abbey of Mont St. Michel.  The great tithes paid to Normandy helped defray reception expenses for pilgrims and guests at the Abbey.  Three or four years later Gilbert de Edewreth was instituted to the parish by the Archdeacon of Exeter, Henry de Molesiis.  Like Venn Ottery, Harpford Church is dedicated to St. Gregory, but confusion with Harford in the Archdeaconry of Totnes has led to its being referred to as St. Nicholas. Some of the church plate given at its restoration was mistakenly inscribed thus.

The list of vicars in the Church reflects the changes of religious opinion prior to completion of the Reformation settlement. George Arthurs (1551-83) had a very chequered history, being instituted under Edward VI, deprived under Queen Mary and restored by Elizabeth I.
Thomas Chanon was 'minister' during the Commonwealth when prayer book services were forbidden, but in 1662 he conformed and was ordained both deacon and priest on the same day by Bishop Seth Ward. He kept church records in Latin and celebrated 236 weddings, mostly of people from other parishes. This represents an average of about 10 weddings a year, compared with the usual two to three for Harpford. How he was able to do this we cannot ascertain; was Harpford perhaps a local Gretna Green?

The burial registers contain a list of 'Burials in Sheeps Wool'. The Act of Parliament ordering this was passed in 1678 and the first entry in the register appears in 1683. The record continues until 1691, reappearing 1700-27. The intermittent entries to 1731 were possibly incomplete due to the ill health of Rev. Joseph Gilling. He was incumbent for 37 years and his tombstone close to the belfry door records that half his time in Harpford was spent in pain and misery. His wife, Hannah, 11 years his senior, died four months before him in April 1733. His signature in the churchwardens' accounts for 1731 is clear and legible and an improvement on earlier examples, but other handwritings from records of 1732-3 imply that the poor man was quite disabled.

The churchwardens' accounts for 1746 signed by Rev. Matthew Mundy and the churchwardens, Thomas Hare and William Podbury include these items:

The 5th of November and Coronation day  0 6  0
pd ye parh for two books for ye thanksgiving and feast 0 2  0

The battle of Culloden was fought in 1746. Were thanksgiving services held in Harpford to celebrate the Hanovers’  final victory over the Stuarts?

Augustus Toplady was incumbent in 1706 and the churchyard cross was restored in his memory with an inscription and quotation from his hymn 'Rock of Ages'.  During negotiations for his resignation, the Vicarage burnt down and amid pious references in his diary, Toplady expressed relief that the costs incurred would be borne by his successor.

During the next century, the unemployed labourers who threw themselves on the parish for help were proving quite a problem, and in January 1831 the parishioners decided on a plan to reduce the 'poor burden'.  For each 10 acres held, a landowner must provide one day's labour at a rate of 1/- and three pints of liquor or 16d. without liquor. In return the labourer had to engage himself for one month. Absenteeism without permission meant exclusion from parish assistance for one month or as long as the vestry determined.

In 1849 an assistance overseer of the Poor was appointed at a salary of £5 p.a. to whom landowners and labourers were answerable. In 1863 it was resolved that the house "known as the Higher Poor House adjoining the churchyard be converted into or for the purpose of a school house and vestry." Also it was decided that the 'Lower Poor House' or 'Spears Cottage' and the plot adjoining the lower road to Newton Poppleford should be sold and the proceeds used for provision of the school and vestry, subject to consent from the Poor Law Commissioners.  Harpford Church, well restored in 1884 during the incumbency of Rev. C.E. Littledale, is Early English and consists of nave, chancel and aisle with a very fine battlemented tower. There are 129 sittings. The bells were rehung in a steel frame in 1936. On the belfry floor is the tombstone of the Puritan Thomas Chanon. He died in February 1683 and his wife and little daughter lie beside him. The glass in the chancel contains memorials of the families Marwood Tucker and J. Gattey, vicars between 1811 and 1878.

A Lectern Bible was bequeathed to the Church by Miss Ash who died in 1951 after 91 years in a cottage in the village. The present Bible was presented by Robert Norris in 1970.

The Church is proud possessor of an Elizabethan chalice, designed by W. Eydes about 1580 but the rest of the plate is modern.

The Parish Registers run from 1640 to 1810 and record that there were about five to eight births a year in 1640-1810. Thereafter there was a big rise in 1800-09 to an average of about 21 during the Napoleonic wars.  Deaths during the same period ran at about three to four a year with exceptionally high rates between 1730 and 1739. There were epidemics with high mortality in 1658, 1698 and 1796. Census figures reveal a growth in the size of the village with 40 dwellings in 1801 and 80 in 1931. The population remained above 200 between 1801 and 1911, reaching 305 in 1841 and has since risen again.

Author: Amanda Prowse. Extracted from Sketches on local History – The Lower Otter Valley © 1984 Otter Valley Association. See publications page of web site for full list of publications available for purchase.

References

Census (1801) to (1931) England and Wales: Devon (H.M.S.O.)
Lancefield, Rev. A.P. Churches of Harpford and Fen Ottery.
Prowse, Amanda J. (1976) Venn Ottery - A Brief Historical Survey.
Sellman, R.R. (1967) Devon Village Schools in the 19th Century. (David & Charles)
Somerville, C. (1982) Walking West Country Railways. (David & Charles)
Towers & Belfries Committee Report (1977) (Central Council of Church Bell Ringers)

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