East Dartmoor Baptist Church

The East Dartmoor Baptist Church was built in 1824, although some sources suggest 1823. It was constructed with solid walls, likely of stone, covered in roughcast except for the front wall which is rendered. The building has a slate roof, hipped at the rear. The church has a three-window front and four-window side walls.

The front of the building features a projecting ground storey with a flat roof and a simple block-crenellated parapet. A cornice and gable form a pediment-like feature, inset with a square, moulded plaque inscribed "A.D. 1824". Windows and the doorway are round-headed, set within shallow round-headed recesses. The ground storey’s recesses are further set within larger round-headed recesses, incorporating stucco mask key-blocks. The two outer bays on the front have blind windows; the central bay contains a pair of three-panelled doors, each with a glazed fanlight featuring radial bars. An area railing and gates of cast-iron are located in front, with each standard displaying a spear-head with trefoiled open tracery. The upper-storey windows on the front are similar; the two outer are blind, and the centre window has an original eight-paned sash, with the glazing bars curved to follow the round arch. The upper-storey windows on the side walls follow the same pattern. Lower-storey windows on the side walls are flat-headed with original wood sashes; the lower sashes have eight panes, and the upper sashes have four. A door with six flush panels is located in the second bay from the right on the left-hand side wall, with a flat wooden hood on shaped brackets above.

Inside, a front foyer has a granite staircase leading up to galleries on three sides. The galleries are supported by cast-iron Doric columns with plain shafts and feature wood panelling with Grecian decoration. A complete set of original, plain panelled seats are within the galleries. At the east end is a raised platform encompassing a central pulpit; it is carved in a medieval style, with decorative ironwork panels, probably dating to the mid-to-late 19th century. Behind the pulpit is a large organ, likely of a similar date and reputedly relocated from a church in Dawlish. The organ’s wooden casing is carved with Gothic detail and painted pipes. The original financial support for the church came primarily from workers at Bovey Potteries.