麻豆社

On 26 January 1917, the village of Hallsands was washed into the sea.

All 79 residents in the South Devon village that night survived. All but one of the 37 houses were abandoned and 25 fishing families were left homeless.

The shingle, which might have protected the village, had been dredged to extend Plymouth鈥檚 naval dockyard twenty years earlier. Controversially, 660,000 tonnes of shingle had been removed. This left the village vulnerable to the sea and to storms.

The villagers were rehoused all over the South Hams. The Trout family was displaced to Bickerton, but continued to fish off Start Bay.

On 8 September 1917, Ella Trout was fishing with her young cousin Willie. They witnessed a steamer: the SS Newham hit a mine and sink into Start Bay. Rowing a mile towards the danger, they rescued one of nine crewmen to survive.

The heroism secured Ella Trout one of the first OBEs. She walked to Kingsbridge and caught her first train to Plymouth for the award ceremony on 18 April 1918.

Within weeks of receiving the award, the Board of Trade announced compensation for the villagers who had lost their homes in the storm. But the money was limited, and even after a newspaper campaign to raise more, only half of the 37 homes were replaced.

Ella Trout and her sisters built their own home on the cliffs above the ruined village. Prospect House was once known as Trout鈥檚 Hotel. Today the Trout home is holiday apartments.

Location: Prospect House, Hallsands TQ7 2EY
Image: Ella Trout in Hallsands, courtesy of Cookworthy Museum

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