Nostalgia: A century of change in Hele Village

Tucked between Barton and Watcombe, Hele has always felt a place apart — a small valley community that grew alongside, but never quite lost itself within, the larger town of Torquay.

The name “Hele” comes from the Old English healh, meaning a nook or sheltered place, and that still fits today: a village built in a fold of land, full of resilience, laughter, and stories.

Victorian Beginnings

As Torquay rose to fame as a Victorian resort, nearby villages like St Marychurch and Watcombe were drawn into its orbit. Hele began as a ribbon of cottages along Hele Road, with small orchards and gardens. By the mid-1800s it was known for its clay-rich soil — perfect for pottery.

Just uphill at Watcombe, the famous Terracotta Works opened in the 1860s, employing many from Hele. Then, around 1875, the Torquay Terracotta Company built its own works at Hele Cross, producing decorative pottery, busts, urns, and architectural fittings. The kilns glowed red across the valley at night, a sight locals remembered for generations.

Hele Cross and the Pottery Years

The Terracotta Company closed in 1905, but a successor — Torquay Pottery — took over around 1908. It made the hand-painted motto ware still seen at collectors’ fairs today. For nearly sixty years, pottery, and clay shaped Hele’s working life. The last buildings disappeared under post-war housing, but fragments still turn up in gardens and sheds, silent witnesses to the craft that once defined the district.

Trams and New Connections

Hele’s link to town came with the electric trams in 1907. The St Marychurch route ran right past the top of Hele Road, taking passengers to Torre Station and the Strand until the tramways closed in 1934. The service changed everything: Hele folk could reach work, shops, or the seafront in minutes, while visitors could discover a village of their own just beyond the resort hotels.

A Proper Village High Street

Between the wars, Hele Road blossomed into a true high street. There were the Co-operative Store, the butcher, post office, fish shop, and a few cosy pubs and clubs. The Royal Standard was the best-remembered of all — the place for darts, skittles, and music — while the RAOB Buffs Club and Hele Conservative Club provided meeting rooms, snooker tables, and somewhere to celebrate weddings and football wins.

Old photos and memories describe Hele Road as a lively social strip where you could do your weekly shop, meet friends, and catch the latest gossip before walking home with your groceries in paper bags.

Post-War Years: Prefabs and Community

After 1945, Hele became part of Torquay’s great rebuilding effort. Rows of prefabricated houses appeared at Shrewsbury Avenue, giving returning servicemen and young families somewhere to start anew.

People remember those prefab years with affection — street parties, children’s games, and Christmas gatherings in makeshift halls. They created one of Hele’s strongest community spirits, a legacy still felt today in the friendships that endured long after the prefabs were replaced.

Churches, Schools, and Daily Life

The Hele Road Baptist Church, founded in the 19th century, has always been a cornerstone of village life, offering youth clubs, Sunday School, and community events. For the wider parish, St Martin’s Church in Barton, opened in 1927, brought Hele, Barton, and the Willows together under one parish roof — another example of how faith and fellowship helped shape these neighbourhoods.

By the 1950s and 60s, Hele Road was a bustling thoroughfare. Families remember the Hele Fish Shop at 117 Hele Road — run by the Land family — the hardware store, off-licence, and the small cafés that appeared in the 60s. The Co-op remained the anchor store right up to the early 2000s before becoming Farm foods, which still trades today.

What’s Left of the Old Days?

Little remains of the pottery buildings, though the nearby Longpark chimney reminds us of that era. What does survive are memories — the sound of trams, the smell of fish and chips, the hum of conversation from the Buffs Club on a Friday night. Hele may have changed in appearance, but its spirit is unchanged: friendly, practical, proud.

Quick Timeline

• 1860s–1890s: Hele expands along Hele Road; Watcombe Pottery thrives.
• 1875–1905: Torquay Terracotta Works operates at Hele Cross.
• c. 1908–1930s: Torquay Pottery continues the craft.
• 1907–1934: Electric trams connect Hele to Torquay town centre.
• 1940s–50s: Prefab housing and council estates grow; the village high street flourishes.
• 1960s–2000s: Buffs, Conservative Club, and Royal Standard keep village life social; Co-op remains the main grocer.

Hele Road — The Heart of It All

For a century, the half-mile between the Baptist Church and the Farm foods corner held everything a community needed. Here’s a glimpse of that stretch as remembered:

Address

Place / Type

Notes

45 Hele Rd

Baptist Church

still active, long-standing chapel

70 Hele Rd

Royal Standard Inn

famous local pub, now gone

101 Hele Rd

Conservative Club

active mid-century social hub

117 Hele Rd

Hele Fish Shop

still trading today

133 Hele Rd

RAOB Buffs Club

key meeting place for generations now gone.

141–143 Hele Rd

Co-op → Farm foods

village supermarket through the decades

Each shop front told a story — families who ran them, friendships formed over counters, and a rhythm of everyday life that defined Hele for more than a hundred years.

Hele Today

The valley still feels like a village. The church remains, the fish bar still fries, and locals are working together to preserve Hele’s memories through photos, pottery pieces, and personal stories.

Collectors keep the pottery heritage alive — Torquay motto ware, Hele Cross terracotta, and even the occasional shard unearthed by a gardener. These fragments are reminders that Hele was once part of an industrious, creative belt that stretched across north Torquay.

Share Your Memories

We’re gathering stories, photos, and memorabilia for a Hele Road History Project — to rebuild, online, what the trams, pubs, and potteries once connected in real life.

Do you remember the Buffs Club or the prefab Christmas parties? Did your parents shop at the Co-op or work at Hele Cross? Do you still have a jug or plaque marked “Torquay Pottery” or “TTC”?

Post your pictures.

Share your memories.

Tag any pottery finds.

Together, we can piece back the story of Hele — a Devon village that’s changed with the times, but never lost its heart.

(Compiled and written by local historian David Maddick — “Hele, Torquay: A Century of Change.”)