East Budleigh’s first blue plaque, January 2023

For many years a millstone lay outside East Budleigh’s Church Hall, with no notice to say what it was or where it had come from. 

So the approaching 400^th anniversary of Salem, Massachusetts, the city that Roger Conant founded was a good opportunity to say something about him and his family.  

It has long been thought that Roger’s father was the village miller, but recent research has proved otherwise. However the Conant family may have owned a nearby mill along with other properties in the East Budleigh area. 

The blue plaque was unveiled by two of Roger’s descendants along with Simon Jupp, former MP for East Devon. He is pictured centre, together with Prof Stan Roberts, left, and the Revd Martin Jacques, vicar of East Budleigh.  

 

If you are interested in the history of early America, and Roger Conant as a peacemaker in troubled times you can join the Devon Peacemaker Festival Facebook group at 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/700424602802079