Combe Martin to Trentishoe - the trail moves

My father, Clayton Windsor Richards, celebrated his 70th birthday on 3 January 2014. As a treat, the family organised a get together in Combe Martin for a few days and we had a very enjoyable stay at the Sandy Cove Hotel (link).

Dad and grandchildren at the Sandy Cove Hotel, Jan 2014

Dad knew that his family originated from the Combe Martin area but knew little more than that. In fact, he had never visited the village before. Beforehand, I had managed to contact some knowledgable local experts via Facebook (link) who managed to clarify the Richards story somewhat. Trevor Dunkerley who lives in the village, and a deft hand at the ancestry.com website, had informed me that the family had actually lived in Trentishoe, a hamlet and parish a few miles outside Combe Martin towards Lynton. An interesting twist in the story is that my great great great grandfather John Richards (1815 - 1897) ran the Hunters Inn in the Heddon Valley, close to Trentishoe. Today, the inn remains very popular with locals and tourists (link) and we met the current owner who himself is looking into the history of the inn. It was John's son, Richard (1851-1912), who appears to be the one who left the Devon nest and ventured over to Wales and started the Richards line over there.

Before leaving for home, we visited St Peter's Trentishoe and paid respect to the graves of John Richards and his wife Mary Ann (3rd pic below with John's name right at the bottom of the gravestone) and his father Richard Richards (1790/2-1875). The line beyond there needs further work. The initial research kindly undertaken by Trevor suggests that the line moved to Trentishoe from Lynton, a nearby small town. The line - for the moment at least - ends tantalisingly with the name Baronet Sir John Richards, born in Toulouse (France) about 1640 and christened in Lynton. Further validation work, yes, but surely exciting!

Richard Richards 1790-1875

John Richards (1815-1897), his wife Mary-Anne Richards and daughter Eliza Richards (not captured in picture)