ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I can claim to be a Devonian not by birth, as my mother was, but by virtue of having lived in the county since I was barely three years old. Some half a century after being brought here, in assembling the present volume I have thoroughly relished the task of trawling through a variety of sources including books, pamphlets, old newspapers and journals, websites, and last but not least my admittedly less than perfect memory.

I would like to acknowledge my debt in particular to Brian Moseley’s Plymouth Data, Derek Tait’s Plymouth Local History, Tim Sandles’s Legendary Dartmoor, and David Cornforth’s Exeter Memories, all online; the vast collection of books I have used in my researches, particularly W.G. Hoskins’ magisterial Devon, a title no county enthusiast should be without; my wife Kim, for her ever-helpful reading of the draft manuscript prior to publication; and to my publishers at The History Press.

In conclusion, this book is dedicated to Kim and to the memory of my parents Kate and Guy.

John Van der Kiste, 2011