Sheepstor is a village, civil parish and former manor on the western side of Dartmoor in the county of Devon, England. In 2001, its population was 53, down from 95 in 1901.[1] For administrative purposes the parish is grouped with the parishes of Meavy and Walkhampton to form Burrator Parish Council,[2] and for electoral purposes it is grouped with the same two parishes to form Burrator Ward.[3]Burrator Reservoir, constructed in 1898, is to the north of the village and forms part of the northern boundary of the parish.[1]
The name Sheepstor has evolved considerably since the first reference to a settlement here which was recorded in a pipe roll of 1168 as Sitelestorra. In a document of 1262, it was Skytelestor, Shittestorre in 1474, Shistor in 1547 and in c. 1620 Tristram Risdon called it Shetelstor now Shepstor.[4] The name probably derives from the Old Englishscyttel(s) meaning a bar or bolt, reflecting the shape of the nearby Sheeps Tor.[4]
Manor
Arms of Elford of Sheepstor: Per pale argent and azure, a lion rampant gules[5]
There are currently six bells in the church tower, five of which were cast in 1769, with a sixth hung in 1904; one of the older bells has inscribed on it the words 'I call the quick to church and the dead to grave'.[8] A local legend tells that the bell ropes of the church were once tied together and lowered into Crazywell Pool, 3.6 km to the north east of Sheepstor, in order to determine the depth. According to the legend the ropes descended as much as 90 fathoms without reaching the bottom,[10] causing people to believe the pool is bottomless.
The church has been renovated several times, the most thorough of which was in 1861 at a cost of £590.[8]
Sheeps Tor
Sheeps Tor, from which the village is named, is a prominent outcrop about half a mile north east of the village. The summit is 369m above sea level and it is one of the area's most prominent tors.
Sheepstor in popular culture
In 2010 Sheepstor was one of the filming locations for the Steven Spielberg film War Horse, and the village with its prominent church tower features in an aerial shot in the trailer for the film which was released on 29 June 2011.[11][12]
^ abGover, J.E.B., Mawer, A. & Stenton, F.M (1931). "The Place-Names of Devon". English Place-Name Society. Vol Viii. Part I. Cambridge University Press: 238–239.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)