DHRG Books
Since the Group was founded thirty years ago, we have published 40 books and booklets on the area’s history by a variety of local authors, covering a wide range of topics such as famous and less famous people associated with the area, particular buildings and places, aspects of industry and commerce, and wartime experiences. This page shows all our titles. Those in print are available for purchase and those out of print can be viewed or downloaded free from this page. Our books and booklets are sold at prices sufficient to cover costs.
Books can be bought locally in Dartmouth, from Dartmouth Museum, the Community Bookshop, and the Tourist Information Centre. Reference copies are also available in Dartmouth Library.
Books may also be bought directly from us through this website. Please contact us by email and we will send the books you have ordered with an invoice for the amount due, including postage and packaging. Payments can be made by bank transfer (preferred) or by cheque.
Click here to view only the books which are available to buy in hardcopy, and click here to view only the books which are out of print.
Thomas Newcomen of Dartmouth
By Eric Preston
This concise book tells the story of the quiet ironmonger from Dartmouth who changed the world by inventing the Newcomen engine, paving the way for James Watt, and for Richard Trevithick, the fiery Cornishman who built the first steam locomotive.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £4.95
St John the Baptist Church: Catholics in Dartmouth, 1782-2012
By Marguerita Brunt Seymour
This booklet explains the history of the Catholic mission in Dartmouth from 1782, when Catholic priests returned to the town for the first time since the Reformation, to the time of writing.
Available from Catholic Church.
The Wadstrays
By Irene O’Shea
This booklet traces the history of the Wadstray farms. There have been land transactions, intermarriage, social interaction and legal disputes. They would have played a part in the village life of Blackawton and the town of Dartmouth and some had connections with other nearby towns and villages. The book provides insights into the lives of the people, their homes and workplaces.
Available to view or download free.
John Davis – Master Navigator, 1543-1605
By Ray Freeman & Eric Preston
Davis, along with Sir Humphrey Gilbert, was one of the foremost navigators and explorers of his time, who knew Dartmouth as his home port. This is a more detailed account of John Davis’ life and work, based on research by Ray Freeman.
Available to view or download free.
Blackpool Sands
By David Stranack
Blackpool Sands, two miles to the south west of Dartmouth, is steeped in history. The remains of a prehistoric forest lie beneath the beach, and in 1404 it was the site of a memorable battle between English yeomen and yeowomen and an invading force of Bretons and Frenchmen. The English won!
Available to buy in hardcopy. £4.00
The Torbay Paint Company
By Bridget Howard
This book plots the origins and development of the Torbay Paint Company until it was taken over and closed down in 1961. It will be of interest to anyone who wishes to understand more about the industrial and commercial development of Dartmouth and Torbay.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £2.50
William Veale, Master Mariner, 1791-1867
By Linda King
Written by William Veale’s great, great, great granddaughter, Linda King, the book provides a fascinating insight into the extraordinary career of William Veale and more generally life at sea during the 19th century.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £1.00
The History of the Castle Hotel, Dartmouth
By Ray Freeman
Ray Freeman’s history of the Castle Hotel, Dartmouth spans humble beginnings as two private houses in 1639, and several rounds of expansion and refurbishment. Its many famous visitors include King Edward VII when he was still the Price of Wales.
Out of print; not yet downloadable.
Hawley’s Fortalice, Dartmouth’s First Castle
By Terry Edwards
In the late 14th Century John Hawley, then Mayor of Dartmouth, began to build the town’s first castle, or “fortalice”, at the mouth of the river. Terry Edwards’ work with English Heritage led him into researching this ancient fortress, and he pieced together an impressive picture of how the structure would have looked some 600 years ago.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £2.50
The Secret War from the River Dart
By Lloyd Bott
During the Second World War small boats of the Royal Navy carried out clandestine missions on the German occupied coast of France. This is the story of the 15th MGB (Motor Gun Boat) Flotilla which carried out such missions between 1941 and 1944, operating out of Dartmouth. The author, Lloyd Bott CBE DSC, was an officer with the Royal Australian Naval Volunteer Reserve and was First Lieutenant in MGB 502, one of five boats in the Flotilla.
Available to view or download free.
A Dittisham Boy’s Story
By Ewart Hutchings
Ewart Hutchings was born in Dittisham in 1894. His book provides a vivid first-hand account of a Devon way of life that has now disappeared, as seen through the eyes of a young boy. Ewart soon found himself fighting the German army in France, which he describes graphically. Later in life he returned to Devon and wrote this book for his grandchildren.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £2.50
Wadstray House: A History
By Irene O'Shea
Wadstray House is about three miles from Dartmouth, in the parish of Blackawton. Using diaries, photographs and personal reminiscences, Irene O’Shea tells the story of a modest, elegant home with a varied history from 1788 onwards.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £3.00
Operation “Fahrenheit”
By Michel Guillou
This book tells the tale of a group of patriotic Frenchmen who fled to England in a small boat to join the Free French forces, enabling a daring raid on a German signal station at Pointe de Plouezec in Brittany in November 1942. The raiding party, in their high-speed Motor Torpedo Boat, departed from and returned to Dartmouth. The original book was written in French by Michel Guillou, an amateur historian, and has been translated into English for DHRG.
Available to view or download free.
Sir Thomas Wilton JP, CA, 1861-1929
By Dr T.N.P.N. Wilton
Thomas Wilton moved to Dartmouth in 1884 as manager for the Cwmaman Coal Company. Later he set up his own coaling company, followed in 1911 by the Wilton Steam Shipping Co. He was twice elected Mayor of Dartmouth, and in 1919 he was knighted for his services during the First World War. Written by his grandson, the book describes his career and contribution to the town.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £1.00
Dartmouth Industry and Banking 1795–1925
By Ivor Smart
This was the last book Ivor Smart wrote for the Dartmouth History Research Group. As with all his other publications, it was meticulously researched, and contains quite an astonishing amount of historical detail, describing the business of banking in Dartmouth over 130 years, including dramatic events such as the sudden failure of the Dartmouth General Bank in 1824.
Available to view or download free.
River Dart Pilotage
By Dave Griffith
Dave Griffiths encountered many tense moments during his years as a River Dart pilot, piloting commercial vessels over 200 feet in length up to Totnes, and moe recently manoeuvring 500-foot cruise liners in and out of the harbour. He recounts his stories here with a sense of humour that makes the book an enjoyable read.
Available to view or download free.
The Newcomen Road
By Ivor Smart
In 1861 the Dartmouth Corporation agreed to go ahead with an ambitious plan prepared by engineer William Bell to build a new modern highway sweeping down from Southtown as far as the Quay. The eventual implementation was far more modest, but nevertheless the Newcomen Road vastly improved Dartmouth’s accessibility. Ivor Smart’s inimitable account of the political and commercial wranglings that beset the project provide a fascinating insight into how Dartmouth was run 150 years ago.
Available to view or download free.
The Development of Dartmouth Millpond to 1846
By Ivor Smart
Ivor Smart’s diligent and thorough research provides a detailed account of how the area around where Market Square is today, originally a tidal creek and later a mud bank and mill pond, gradually – over more than 700 years – became a major part of today’s town.
Available to view or download free.
A Wrens-Eye View of Wartime Dartmouth
Compiled by Ray Freeman
Ray Freeman tracked down nearly 30 Wrens who served in Dartmouth during the Second World War, and persuaded them to contribute their own personal recollections. Their tales range from the hilariously funny to those describing the shock and horror of war. Together, these memories provide a vivid account of wartime Dartmouth.
Available to view or download free.
We Remember D-Day
Compiled by Ray Freeman
Compiled for the 50th anniversary of D-day, Ray Freeman gathered together the memories of people who were involved in the great events of June 1944. She included contributions from civilians, British servicemen and women, people of the South Hams who were turned out of their homes and farms to allow practice landings to take place on Slapton beach, and members of the US and Allied forces.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £4.99
Wrecks off the South Devon Coast
By Tony Aylmer
Diver Tony Aylmer’s enthusiasm for the underwater world enabled him to write this fascinating little book about wrecks that lie on the seabed between the mouths of the rivers Erme and Dart.
His tales of local shipwrecks cover nearly 200 years, from HMS Ramillies, which foundered off Bolt Tail in 1760, to the English Trader which came to grief at the mouth of the Dart in 1937.
Available to view or download free.
Oldstone: the story of a Ruined Mansion
By Ursula Dimes
“As a descendant of the last family to live at Oldstone before the fire of 1895, I have felt inspired to gather together what information I could as to the history and lives of the generations who have lived there.” In this booklet, Ursula Dimes charted the long story of this site from the mid 13th century, when it was gifted to Torre Abbey, to the ruins that remain today.
Available to buy in hardcopy. £3.00
The Story of Warfleet
By Ray Freeman
Warfleet Creek and the land and houses immediately surrounding it, including Gallants Bower, were once part of a manor and parish quite separate from Dartmouth. Ray Freeman’s story spans the period from the 14th century to the comparatively recent acquisition of Gallants Bower by the National Trust.
Available to view or download free.
The Newcomen Memorials in Dartmouth
By Ivor Smart
Ivor Smart’s research was as meticulous as ever in this account of the town’s attempts to commemorate one of its most famous sons, engineer Thomas Newcomen. None of these proposals came to fruition until the 1960s when one of Newcomen’s original steam engines was carefully reconstructed in a purpose-built engine house, ensuring that Thomas Newcomen and his association with Dartmouth are not forgotten.
Available to view or download free.
The Free French at Kingswear
By Tony Higgins
This book contains a detailed account of the activities of the 23rd MTB Flotilla (motor torpedo boats), one of several Coastal Forces Flotillas based in Dartmouth and Kingswear during the Second World War. Manned by the Free French navy, the flotilla would cross the Channel at night to attack enemy shipping off the French coast and around the Channel Islands.
Available to view or download free.
The Guildhalls of Dartmouth
By Ivor Smart
The present Dartmouth Guildhall dates from 1849, as the stone over the entrance proclaims. There have been no less than four previous sites to which the term “Guildhall” is applicable. Ivor Smart traces their history, providing a great deal of information about Dartmouth’s development over many centuries.
Available to view or download free.
Dartmouth Cottage Hospital
By Dr W. G. Kean
The late Dr Giles Keane wrote this history of Dartmouth and Kingswear Cottage Hospital starting from its beginnings in 1887 to 1991. A second edition of this booklet, published by the League of Friends to bring the history up to 2014, is available from Dartmouth Museum.
Available to view or download free.
The Holdsworth & Newman Families
By Ray Freeman
Ray Freeman’s first booklet for DHRG tells the stories of the Holdsworth and Newman families, interrelated by marriage, who had a major influence on the affairs of Dartmouth and the surrounding areas from the 17th century onwards. Both contributed immensely to the development of Dartmouth.
Available to view or download free.