START POINT
Start Point is the most Southerly headland in England (Lands End is the most Westerly), near the small town of Kingsbridge in Devon. It marks the western side of Start Bay which extends eastwards to the River Dart estuary.The name “Start” derives from an Anglo Saxon word "steort" meaning a tail. This word also appears in the names of birds with distinctive tails, like the Redstart. The rocks of this point are green schist and mica-schist, formed by metamorphism of Devonian sediments during a period of mountain building towards the end of the Carboniferous period. The jagged ridge of this headland is mirrored by dangerous rocks lying under the water including Black Stone Rock. These rocks, combined with the strong tidal race around the tip of the headland, make Start Point a very dangerous spot for shipping. Following countless shipping disasters and heavy loss of lives, the lighthouse flashed its warning for the first time in 1836. However, this didn’t stop the heavy loss of life associated with great storms. One such storm which had a catastrophic outcome was the Great Blizzard of 1891, during which at least seven ships were lost at Start Point alone with very few survivors. The worst occurred on March 9th 1891 during the ‘great blizzard’. Late that afternoon the steamer ‘Marana’ struck the Black Stone at full speed. 26 crew took to lifeboats but only 5 reached the shore below East Prawle, 2 of these died shortly after from exposure. Less than 12 hours later the sailing ship ‘Dryad’ with a crew of 22 was driven ashore above Hallsands and broke up within minutes. 2 schooners were wrecked in the same gale. In total this short stretch of coast claimed 52 lives that day.
During a storm in March 1866 Samuel Popplestone from Start Farm, who was later awarded the first Albert Medal for gallantry, rescued survivors from the ‘Spirit of the Ocean’. She hit a reef 100 yards offshore and was driven onshore by a southerly gale. Sending someone to alert the coastguard Samuel lowered himself down the cliff on a rope and managed to save 4 men.
As a consequence of these shipping disasters, the boom in ship building and repairs in the Port of Dartmouth flourished.
For 6.5kms off Start Point stretches The Skerries (from the Old North Sker meaning rocky reef). This is a bank made up of sand and shell running underwater from just off Start Point, in a north east direction. At low water the bank is only just over 2m below the surface and affects the way the waves run in the bay. The bank acts as a barrier to sediments and forces the energy of the waves into the southern part of the bay, towards south Slapton Sands, Beesands and Hallsands. It is well known as a good fishing spot and equally an additional hazard to shipping.
During a storm in March 1866 Samuel Popplestone from Start Farm, who was later awarded the first Albert Medal for gallantry, rescued survivors from the ‘Spirit of the Ocean’. She hit a reef 100 yards offshore and was driven onshore by a southerly gale. Sending someone to alert the coastguard Samuel lowered himself down the cliff on a rope and managed to save 4 men.
As a consequence of these shipping disasters, the boom in ship building and repairs in the Port of Dartmouth flourished.
For 6.5kms off Start Point stretches The Skerries (from the Old North Sker meaning rocky reef). This is a bank made up of sand and shell running underwater from just off Start Point, in a north east direction. At low water the bank is only just over 2m below the surface and affects the way the waves run in the bay. The bank acts as a barrier to sediments and forces the energy of the waves into the southern part of the bay, towards south Slapton Sands, Beesands and Hallsands. It is well known as a good fishing spot and equally an additional hazard to shipping.