LYNMOUTH, a hamlet in this parish, has been ecclesiastically annexed to Countisbury.

LYNMOUTH, so called from its situation at the confluence and mouth of the East and West Lyn, on the outskirts of Exmoor, is well known as a popular and beautiful watering-place, occupying a level site, near the seashore, at the entrance of an immense gorge, into which the magnificent ravine of the East Lyn and the densely-wooded but sequestered valley of the West Lyn abruptly descend, the twin streams, after heavy or long continued rains, assuming formidable proportions, and rush down to the sea with extraordinary speed and great uproar; within the circuit of a few miles inland there is every variety of hill and dale, with woody tracts and moorland of vast extent, and valleys of extreme beauty traversed by mountain streams dashing impetuously over their rock-strewn beds; the coast scenery here is also very fine and extensive: the Welsh coast is generally visible, and sometimes the hills of South Wales may be very distinctly made out. The nearest railway station is at Lynton, the terminus of the Lynton and Barnstaple railway, and about 1 mile distant. By an Order in Council, dated July 6, 1886, Lynmouth was ecclesiastically annexed to Countisbury, and is in the rural deanery of Sherwell and archdeaconry of Barnstaple. The church of St. John the Baptist, a chapel of ease to Countisbury, erected by voluntary contributions at a cost of about £2,000, is a building of stone in the Early English style, consisting of vaulted apsidal chancel, nave, south aisle, north porch and a western turret containing 2 bells: there are 220 sittings. The living is a perpetual curacy, annexed to the vicarage of Countisbury, and held since 1886 by the Rev. Albert Richards Hockley. There is also a Gospel mission hall. The Lyndale, Tors Park and Lyn Valley hotels afford every convenience for visitors. Here is also a public reading room; and a life-boat and life-saving rocket apparatus are maintained. Among the chief places of interest in the neighbourhood are Brendon Valley, Bossington hill, Culbone, Dunkery beacon, 1,668 feet above the sea level, Exmoor, about 14 miles square and largely uncultivated; Glenthorne, with a delightful coast path winding round the cliffs; Heddon’s mouth, the entrance to a romantic valley, Lyndale, Lee bay, the Valley of Rocks, and the valleys of the West Lyn and Watersmeet. The Valley of Rocks is a wild region, in which the Castle ruck, rising in a sheer precipice from the sea of 500 feet, is the most prominent feature. Watersmeet, up the East Lyn, which is crossed by rustic bridges, receives the Combe water; the narrow gorge is well wooded, and there is good fishing. A lighthouse was built in 1900 by the Trinity House authorities at a cost of £10,000, including the making of two miles of approach roads; the lighthouse stands about 200 feet above the sea, and has a keeper’s residence attached. The population in 1901 was 402.

Parish School (mixed), for 100 children; average attendance, 70.