Ermington
Ermington is a small village upon a ‘bold eminence’ on the west side of the river Erme, encompassed by high hills, 10 miles East of Plymouth and 2 miles Northwest of Modbury.
Population of Ermington
In 1850 its parish contained 1607 residents and 4952 acres of land. Today the population is nearer 850 having peaked at 2034 in the 1901 census.
Interesting Ermington
The village is of course in the South Hams district and is twinned with the commune of Clécy, in Normandy, France. It is known well for its crooked church spire, which leans considerably to one side. A pub in the village has been named after it.
It is a quiet place, you have to go back a long way to find anything particularly newsworthy, but we have discovered, for those who are interested in this sort of thing, that in 1623, a meteoric stone, weighing 23lbs fell with a bang, at Strachleigh near Ermington, and buried itself a yard deep in the ground. Exciting at the time, no doubt, but not strictly speaking an Ermington event.
In the beginning...
Ermington was probably founded soon after 700 at which point the Saxons were in control. It appeared in the Domesday Book as a royal manor. Near the boundary of the parish there is a place, called Penquit, which has probably been continuously inhabited since the Celtic times of Dumnonia. (Dumnonia is the Latinised name for a Brythonic kingdom, or group of sub-kingdoms, in sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries, located in the farther parts of the south-west peninsula of Great Britain. It included the area later known as Devon, and originally also parts of Somerset and possibly Dorset, its eastern boundary changing over time).
Penquit, near Ermington, was recorded in 1238 and is Celtic for "end of the wood". From the early 13th century a mansion at nearby Strashleigh was the seat of the Strashleigh family, until the family died out in 1583.
Nearby Strode was inhabited by the Strode family from 1238 and probably earlier. Although, since the 15th century, their principal residence has been in Plympton.
A market is recorded from the 14th century. Also in the 14th century, Ermington's church, named after Saint Peter, was constructed and was later enlarged in the 15th century.
Education
Ermington's only school is Ermington Community Primary School. It is a state-funded primary school (ages 5–11) following the National Curriculum. The school was first opened in 1879 and has been extended in 1997 and a double classroom was also extended in 1999. The school uniform colours are navy and grey, it has about 150 students, who are transferred to Ivybridge Community College, located about 2 miles to the north, for secondary education at the end of year 6. At the time of writing, Ermington Primary School is one of only four primary schools in the county of Devon to achieve 100% pass rates (level four and above according to the National Curriculum) in English, Maths and Science at the end of year 6 National Curriculum assessment "SATs".
The village also has a small pre-school located within the primary school's grounds.
Famous Sons of Ermington
Ermington was home to Edmund Lockyer, who went to Australia in the 19th century and through him another town of Ermington, in New South Wales has come into existence.
Edmund Lockyer, (21 January 1784) – 10 June 1860) was a British soldier and explorer of Australia. Born in Plymouth, Devon, Lockyer was son of Thomas Lockyer, a sailmaker, and his wife Ann, née Grose. Lockyer began his army career as an ensign in the 19th Regiment in June 1803, was promoted lieutenant in early 1805 and made captain in August 1805. Lockyer was promoted to major in August 1819 and in August 1824 transferred to the 57th Regiment. Lockyer arrived at Sydney capital of the British Colony of New South Wales aboard the Royal Charlotte in April 1825 with men from the 57th; also with him was his wife and ten children.
In August 1825, Lockyer was asked to lead an expedition to explore the upper reaches of the Brisbane River, which had only recently been settled by Europeans. On 2 September, Lockyer sailed from Sydney in the cutter Mermaid, arriving at the settlement of Brisbane on 7 September. Leaving the Mermaid at Brisbane, he travelled in a small boat up the river. Lockyer saw coal in deposits on the banks, becoming the first person to identify coal in Queensland. Lockyer arrived back in Sydney on 16 October 1825, and made a report to Governor Sir Thomas Brisbane.
In late 1826, Lockyer led an expedition to claim Western Australia for Britain. He sailed on the brig Amity, arriving at King George Sound on the 25th of December, with twenty troops and twenty three convicts. This was the beginning of the first European settlement in Western Australia. The military base established by Lockyer was named Frederick's Town, later renamed Albany, and would become an important deep water port. His interview with two sealers, arrested for crimes against local people, revealed intelligence of Dumont D'Urville's survey of King George Sound. Lockyer had planned an overland journey to the Swan River region in February, but learned that James Stirling had already examined the area. Lockyer was to remain in the settlement until command could be given to Captain Wakefield. Lockyer returned to Sydney on April 3, 1827, sold his army commission and settled in Sydney.
The Sydney suburb of Ermington is named after Lockyer's residence, "Ermington House". A suburb of Albany, Western Australia, commemorate the city's founder, as well as Lockyer Creek and Lockyer Valley in Queensland were named after Major Lockyer.
Lockyer established Australia's first smelter. In 1856 he became the first Usher of the Black Rod in the Parliament of New South Wales.
Edmund Lockyer died in 1860 and was buried in Camperdown Cemetery, Sydney.