Finger Post at Gammaton Cross
Gammaton Cross, Gammaton Road, Bideford, Devon, EX39 4QE
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1460098
- Date first listed:
- 05-Feb-2019
- List Entry Name:
- Finger Post at Gammaton Cross
- Statutory Address:
- Gammaton Cross, Gammaton Road, Bideford, Devon, EX39 4QE
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Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1460098
- Date first listed:
- 05-Feb-2019
- List Entry Name:
- Finger Post at Gammaton Cross
- Location Description:
- NGR: SS4904624466
- Statutory Address 1:
- Gammaton Cross, Gammaton Road, Bideford, Devon, EX39 4QE
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- Gammaton Cross, Gammaton Road, Bideford, Devon, EX39 4QE
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Devon
- District:
- Torridge (District Authority)
- Parish:
- Bideford
- National Grid Reference:
- SS4904624466
Summary
Finger post, thought to date from the 1880s.
Reasons for Designation
The finger post at Gammaton Cross, thought to date from the 1880s, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
Architectural interest:
* for its intrinsic interest as an example of a cast iron finger post with four direction arms and good quality detailing.
Historic interest:
* as an example of an increasingly rare survival of a once-common type of street furniture.
History
Legislation was enacted in 1697 which enabled magistrates to place 'direction posts at cross-highways'; the earliest surviving example is believed to be Joseph Izod's post of 1669 in the Cotswolds. In 1773 the General Turnpike Act required trustees to erect signs informing travellers of the distance to the nearest town, and often to London. After the Local Government Act of 1888 which established county councils, many finger posts were erected throughout the country of varying designs. The Motor Car Act 1903 passed responsibility for the provision of all traffic signs to local authorities.
The first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1887 depicts a guide (finger) post at the cross roads at Gammaton. The existing post may be the original, or it may be a slightly later replacement, as its style is more akin to later examples.
Details
Finger post, thought to date from the 1880s.
MATERIAL: cast iron.
DESCRIPTION: the finger post is situated at the cross roads at Gammaton, and stands on the verge on the west side of the cross.
The post is circular and has 'GAMMATON CROSS' down its shaft. It has four posts which point to Newton Tracey, Bideford, Torrington and Horwood, with the respective distances to each in miles. The post pointing to Newton Tracey has been damaged. The finger post is surmounted by a pyramidal finial, which bears the letter B, which may stand for Bideford Parish.
Sources
Other
First Edition Ordnance Survey of 1887
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 22-Jun-2026 at 11:22:18.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.