Burrough Farm near Northam

Burrough Farm on the edge of Northam was given to the National Trust in 1967 by Northam Urban District Council, with further parcels of land given by individuals or bought with Enterprise Neptune funds.

It consists of several fields, some with historic boundaries of stone and earth, which slope down to the low wooded cliffs along the Torridge estuary, giving access to a small cove with an area of ancient tidal marshland. Wrecks can be seen in the estuary mud at low tide but the Torridge is a dangerous tidal river with strong currents so should not be entered.
Burrough was the home of Charles Kingsley's hero in his famous novel 'Westward Ho! - or the Voyages and Adventures of Sir Amyas Leigh, Kt, of Borrough in the County of Devon'.

A family named Leigh did once live here but later than the Elizabethan times in which Kingsley's novel is set. The original owners, the Borroughs, gave their name to the estate, although the house has long since gone.

Contributed by: Bob Jones