Venn Ottery, mentioned in the Domesday Survey, comes from 'fen' meaning a 'marsh' near Ottery or near the Otter. Various spellings have been recorded, from Fenotri (1158) to Fenoteri (1212) Fennoteri juxta Harpeford (1346) showing the connection with Harpford and later Venautrie (1606).

At the time of the Domesday Survey, the manor was held from the Crown, on a free farm rent of £4.4s.8d. by the family of Furneaux.  In 1259, in the reign of Edward III, John de Furneaux granted to the Abbey of Mont St. Michel in Normandy a ferling of land in Fenotri for the maintenance of a chaplain.

In the same year occurred the admission of a vicar of Harpford, with the chapel of Fenotri.  On July 1st 1410, owing to difficulties regarding burials and other parochial privileges, the parishioners of Fenotri appealed to Bishop Stafford to change their day of dedication from the Feast of St. Gregory the Pope to December 10th. This he did, giving the necessary licence and instructions to John Audrey, vicar of Harpford and Fenotri.

During the 17th century, several writers commented on the area.

Tristram Risdon, in his survey of Devon (1605-30) wrote that "Fen Ottery is another (place) of the rivers begotten, having happily that adjunct of its low dirty site".

Thomas Westcote, in his View of Devonshire (1630) says: "Venn Ottery, alias Fen-Ottery, a dirty place perchance, for fen and dirt is all one".

These contemptuous remarks are fortunately no longer applicable.

By 1822 Venn Ottery was a Vicarage and had been consolidated with Harpford. The censuses of 1801-1931 record the population as 127 in 1801. It remained fairly constant, reaching a peak of 134 in 1841. There then follows a steady decline until the last figure of 66 in 1931. Thereafter the figures were included with those of Newton Poppleford and Harpford. The parish acreage is recorded as 913-918 acres from 1851 and the number of dwellings varied from 18 in 1891 to 28 in 1831. It sank to 15 in 1921 and 17 in 1931 and then the entry ceased.

The oldest surviving building in Venn Ottery is the Church of St. Gregory.  The Saxon tower dates back to about 1095 and is the only part of the Church to have survived the fire which destroyed much of the village in the 18th century. The roof of the nave was then thatched and did nothing to halt the conflagration. Above the round-arched Saxon doorway a window has been set, probably in 1882, when the nave was rebuilt.

W.G. Hoskins, in his book 'Devon' complains that "Venn Ottery has nothing of interest except a few carved bench-ends". These bench-ends may have come from an old rood screen. The present reredos was erected and dedicated in December, 1905.  The east window of 1913 depicts figures from Venn Ottery's past, including Rev. Augustus Montague Toplady, Vicar of Harpford and Venn Otter), and author of 'Rock of Ages'.

The inventory of Church Goods of 1553 lists:

"Fenotry, iii belles yr the towre their"

so it would appear the present ring of three is descended from a mediaeval ring. Of this ring two have been recast, one in 1657 and the other in 1844. The Treble was recast in 1844 by the Whitechapel Foundry in London. It bears the inscription:

C & G MEARS FOUNDERS LONDON 1844

Also incised in the waist of the bell are the words:

THOS YELVERTON, JOHN PILE – CHURCHWARDENS

The bell is 21½ ins. in diameter and weighs about 2½ cwt. The second was recast in 1657 by John Pennington of Exeter and reads:

EDWARD ROWE WARDEN I P 1657

This bell is 22¾ ins. across, its weight 2½-3 cwt and its note F. The tenor is sole survivor of the mediaeval ring and was cast in Exeter c. 1440-60. The inscription reads:

EST VIRGO SANCTA MARIA
(It is the Holy Virgin Mary)

So the bell was perhaps to be given that name. Its diameter is 26¼, weight about 4 cwt and the note slight flat of E. When H.T. Ellacombe surveyed the county for his 'Church Bells of Devon' in 1864, these bells were still hung with half-wheels. In 1900 they were rehung in an oak frame.

The largest surviving building in the village is Venn Ottery Barton. 'Barton' is of Anglo-Saxon origin and means 'corn farm' or 'manor farm'. The house was built about 1530 during the reign of Henry VIII, probably by a yeoman farmer. That he was relatively well-to-do is evidenced by two huge fireplaces of dressed Beer stone. The larger still has its stone lintel weighing some three tons: the lintel of the other was later replaced with a thick beam, possibly of chestnut. According to tradition, this beam came from a vessel of the Spanish Armada wrecked below Peak Hill, but this is unlikely. The original farmhouse probably consisted of two rooms, each with fireplace; one for sleeping accommodation and one which combined kitchen facilities and general living quarters. These were the standard 16' deep, (beams were then seldom more than 18' long) and 16' from flagstone floor to roof peak, there being no first floor. The entrance was through a side door from the 'shippen', the typical thatch-covered barn with cobbled floor which was attached to the side of the farmhouse. The old cob walls have endured subsequent alterations.

Cob consists of a base of red marl clay with an admixture of straw, stones, a little lime and various farm rubbish.  This dried out to become very strong and weatherproof, provided it had a "good hat and a good pair of shoes".  The 'hat' was always thatch and the 'pair of shoes' at Venn Ottery Barton is a wall base of flint and huge boulders embedded in an earth and lime cement. Cob walls were coated with several layers of lime-wash mixed with a small amount of liquid farm manure to make a whiter, more durable finish. The walls are thicker at the base because the wet mixture bulged as it settled. In the absence of a plumb line a workman would spit from the top of the partly-dried wall to ascertain how much the wall should be trimmed to make a fairly vertical line before limewashing began.

At first, Venn Ottery Barton must have looked very much like Hayes Barton, birthplace of Sir Walter Raleigh, before that house was rebuilt and extended. Then about 1580 when Elizabethan farmers became prosperous following years of good harvests and a stable currency, Venn Ottery Barton's owner installed a first floor, supported on a set of very fine crossed and moulded oak beams of massive dimensions. A semi-circular cob stair turret was built behind the kitchen to give access to the new first floor. First floor windows were cut into the thatch, although the new bed-rooms must still have been dark and cold.

During the second half of the 17th century there was increased prosperity among local farmers caused by the big market for British wool in Holland, and a larger home population which meant a need for more meat and hides. This led to major alterations in 1670. The entire roof was raised some 4' by the storey-post method in order to accommodate ceiling joists, bedroom ceilings being the new fashion. The ceiling laths here are in fact swamp reeds nailed to the joists and lime-plastered. They show no signs of cracking and apparently gain strength as the plaster dries.
In about 1780 the village suffered a calamitous fire which spread rapidly across the thatched roofs. The church (except for the tower) was destroyed. The smithy and inn with many cottages clustered round the triangular common were also razed to the ground. The west (shippen) end of Venn Ottery Barton was apparently badly burned.

One cob wall probably washed away, unprotected against rain. It was rebuilt in timber, with a huge brick fireplace, transforming the ship-pen into a farmworker's cottage.

During the latter half of George III's reign, in about 1810, a new kitchen wing was added at the rear with master bedroom and a bathroom (without plumbing). The cob stair turret was partly demolished and the rotted staircase rebuilt turning the other way. A newly-partitioned front hall and brand-new front door with Georgian lead-covered porch formed the entrance, and the small cottage windows were enlarged to take large Georgian frames for more light. The stone fireplaces were bricked up and concealed with Adam-style surrounds and piaster. The 1530 fireplaces were discovered only in 1971, whereupon they were revealed and restored.

Until recently Venn Ottery Barton encompassed a smallholding which was expanded during its history from 80 to 150 acres. The last family to farm it were the Fowlers who raised quality beef and bred prize bulls.
Since 1967 the house has been run as an hotel and has since been extended.

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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