One many ancient farms skirting the perimeter of Plymouth yet to be swallowed up by modern development is Blaxton, off Blaxton Lane, north of Tamerton Foliot. Recorded in the Domesday Survey as Blachestane. Literally and most likely interpreted as Black Stone this was once a much busier spot than it is today. As early as the thirteenth century we have reference to the “ferry at Blakeston” and Blaxton Quay sits at the end of Blaxton Creek to the north of Blaxton Marsh.
All of this is to befound on the southern bank of the Tavy, directly opposite Bere Ferrers and a short distance north west of its meeting with the Tamar.
There is, incidentally, another Blaxton in South Yorkshire, in the borough of Doncaster, and the wapentake of Strafforth and Tickhill. With a population of just over 100 in the mid-nineteenth century it is now home to 1,000 souls – one can only wonder how long our local Blaxton has got before its population explodes.
