John Pedder

Born in 1935 John grew up in the twin towns of Lynton and Lynmouth. One side of his family had been Postmasters since 1886 and the other butchers in Lynton since 1820. John himself was the fourth generation to go to sea; his great grandfather had been a photographer who was lost at sea, his grandfather had owned six ships and traded from Lynmouth, and his father had been in the merchant navy and was torpedoed – but survived – in the first world war. John joined the merchant navy himself as soon as he left West Buckland school and spent six years at sea. On returning home he took over the post office, co-founded the Exmoor museum and became very involved in public life.

John Pedder’s chapter includes the following topics and many more:

• Lynmouth as a busy harbour
• Granfer Pedder’s sailing ketches
• beaching ketches at high tide
• unloading cargo
• coal, pit-props and limestone
• running the post office from 1886
• marching the staff to church
• overland lifeboat launch and the ‘Forest Hall’
• Lynton butchers from the 1820s
• Lynmouth agent for Campbell’s paddle steamers
• organising the boats to row out and pick up the passengers
• what the day trippers would buy
• telegrams and the poste restante service
• growing up in a hotel
• small-boat herring fishing
• sea swimming in the open air pool
• the lime burner and Lynton blacksmith
• evacuees and military personnel
• Valley of the Rocks coast guard
• the Lynmouth flood
• town on wheels
• Myrtleberry and the Exmoor museum