Stover, Teigngrace

Stover is a historic estate in the parish of Teigngrace, about half way between the towns of Newton Abbot and Bovey Tracey in South Devon, England. It was bought by James Templer (1722–1782) in 1765 and passed through three generations of that family before being bought by Edward St Maur, 11th Duke of Somerset in 1829.

The Georgian mansion house known as Stover House was built by the first James Templer. It is a Grade II* listed building. Since 1932 the house and part of the former estate have been occupied by a private school.

114 acres of the former estate situated south of the A38 now forms Stover Country Park, a nature reserve owned and managed by Devon County Council and open to the public.

James Templer (1722–1782) was born in Exeter, the son of a tradesman. He made a fortune in India and married Mary Parlby, the sister of his business partner Thomas Parlby in 1747. In 1765 he purchased the estate of Stover which included a ruinous house known as Stoford Lodge. Between 1776 and 1780 he built a new house, probably to his own design, on an elevated site about half a mile from the ruins. The house, named Stover House or Stover Lodge, was constructed of granite from the quarries at Haytor. A stable block in Italian Baroque style, dated 'J.T. Built 1779', is situated north of the house.

His eldest son and heir, James Templer (1748–1813), built the Stover Canal in 1792. In 1786, together with his two brothers, he rebuilt St Peter and St Paul's Church, the parish church of Teigngrace, as a memorial to his parents, which contains many mural monuments to the Templer family. He married Mary Buller, the third daughter of James Buller.

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