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This church here is noted in a Saxon Chronicle as St Petroc's stow - the church of St Petroc- which confirms a link with that important Cornish Saint. By the time of Domesday in 1086, the church was recorded to be held by Buckfast Abbey and until the Reformation the Abbot was responsible for appointing the parish priest. Such an ancient Christian foundation might be expected to have a well nearby and indeed in the old lane route to the church there are a number of springs and wells. The best preserved of these is adjacent to the lane and is a stone and brick wellhouse which the owner confirms has been used for many generations as a water supply to the nearby cottages; he recalled that each year it the inside was painted with lime-wash and a bag of lime was sunk into the 2m deep water to purify it. It is not possible to claim any traditions associated with this well but it justifies its place in this survey by proximity to a Celtic church foundation and an undoubted long period of use to recent times.
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