Otterton, Devon

Description
Otterton, a village and a parish in Devonshire. Tha village stands on the descent of a fine elevation, adjacent to the river Otter, 2 miles N of the river's mouth, and 3 from Sidmonth station on the L. & S.W.R. It has a post office under Budleigh Salterton; money order and telegraph office, East Budleigh. It is a place of great antiquity; consists chiefly of one long street of thatched houses. The parish contains also Northmost Town, Passaford, Pinn, and Pitson, and extends to the sea. Acreage, 3454; population, 725. The manor and most of the land belong to the Rolle family. The manor of Otterton was given by William I. to the Benedictine abbey of Mont St Michel in Normandy. A priory for four monks was known to exist at Otterton in the time of King John, but was probably of earlier date. It passed, at the suppression of alien monasteries in 1414, to Sion Abbey. The land comprises a grand sweep of swells and valley, and terminates at the coast in lofty cliffs. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Exeter; net value, £240 with residence. The church was rebuilt, except the tower, in 1871 by Lady Rolle; consists of nave, N and S aisles, chancel, with fine embattled tower, and stands on a rising ground at the SW end of the village, commanding extensive and beautiful views.