Roy Hayter writes:

A few years ago, my wife and I did a week of walking on Dartmoor.  We stayed near Hay Tor Rocks, which has been a traditional place for family photographs for as long as I can remember, seeing that my paternal family name is Hayter, which means “high place.” Our family oral history says that the Hayters came from near these rocks many eons ago. 

Hayters at Hay Tor Rock

During this visit, we discovered that my mother’s Stentiford ancestors had lived on the northern edge of Dartmoor, in the villages of South Tawton, Drewsteignton, and South Zeal.  Now I could claim that both sides of the family had roots in Devon.

South Zeal

Drewsteignton

While walking on Dartmoor, we saw several leats and were told of their importance since ancient times, as a means of carrying water to tin mines and gristmills.  

They were similar to Drake’s Leat that was dug to supply Plymouth with the first system of municipal water in Britain.  This was yet another achievement of my hero, although accompanied by controversy, since his motives may have been personal gain rather than the public good.

A Dartmoor Leat

Bronze age village on Dartmoor

In addition to supporting tin mining on Dartmoor, the leats had the adverse effect of sweeping waste matter from the tin mining process downstream into Plymouth, silting up the estuary of the River Plym.