15.     Charles Tozer                                                                                   1792

 


Richard Cowl, a prominent Devon surveyor had already published a survey of Plymouth in 1778 and was proceeding with a map of Exeter and a county map when he died in 1789. His assistant, Charles Tozer, continued with the survey and although he did not finish the county map he did complete that of the City in 1792.

Tozer was employed as a surveyor and drew plans of estates for the Palk and Kennaway families besides producing a plan and a map of Tiverton for Martin Dunsford´s Historical Memoirs of the Town and Parish of Tiverton. 

Title: Plan of the City & Suburbs of EXETER 

Size:  269 x 335 mm with A Scale of Poles each 16 ½ Feet - 80 Poles or One Furlong (80 = 68 mm or 1 Mile = 272 mm).

Signatures: Surveyed by C. Tozer and Engraved by Thos. Yeakell. Imprint: Publish’d by C.Tozer April 20th 1792.

There is a dedication in a plain ellipse: To the Right Worshipful THE MAYOR, Receiver, Sheriff, Aldermen & Commonalty of the CITY of EXETER, This plan is humbly dedicated by their most obedient humble Servt. Chas. Tozer.

 

The title is on a rock pointed to by a goddess with a shield bearing the City Arms. This is a plain block plan, similar to Donn, but with gardens and fields in the style of Rocque. The principal buildings are dark and titled. Churches are also dark and lettered with the key Names of Churches &c under the Bishop’s Arms (note that U & V are exchanged). There is little development in the suburbs apart from the New Road or Howells Lane, house and gardens along Longbrook Street, the New Gaol for Devon County, the bowling green off Southernhay is now a Racket Court, and the City Bridewell is in Paris Street. The Bridewell in Cowick Street is named for Devon as is the Sheriff’s ward opposite.

More serge racks can be seen: west of the river in Barn Field and behind the Devon Bridewell at St. Thomas; and on the city side of the river extensive areas such as those at Cullver Park (3 fields), at Bull Mead, and Fryers Hay (3 fields), at Bonhay and Shilhay (2). But the old city is no more and the feel of the City has changed: the New Bridge, opened in 1778, leads directly to Fore Street with a new opening through the walls and the resulting demolition of All Hallows on the Walls. Both North Gate and East Gate have gone. The Russell family, after acquiring a convent on the site in 1538, finally decided to demolish the house and lease the land to a local builders company who began to develop it and Bedford Circus is now half completed, with a road through the walls. The old theatre in Waterbeer Street remains but there is now a New Theatre (opened October 1787) in Bedford Street. The close New Cut breaks through the wall as does Maddox across the City and the Barings have built Mount Radford. The New Road (Howells Lane) now winds round the New Goal for the County of Devon (commenced in 1790 but not ready until 1794) but there are no signs of the new cavalry barracks to be built there (completed in 1792).

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Illustrations Reproduced by kind permission of Devon Archives & Local Studies - OM B/EXE/1793/TOZ.

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