The Form & Growth of the City

From the 1760s, Exeter people believed, until the early 19th century, ‘a spirit of improvement’ spread across the city. The previous generations had witnessed a great growth in population, and the old walled area was densely crowded with houses. The old medieval streets still served the Georgian city, and were unable to cope with the rise in wheeled vehicles, whilst problems of sanitation encouraged the spread of disease among the poor .

In 1750 Exeter still ranked among the leading English cities and was still the centre of one of the country’s most important industrial areas. By the 1830s the Devon woollen industry had almost vanished, overtaken by the industrial towns of the Midlands and the North with their great mills and factories. The years 1750-1830 saw a great change in the character of the city, and its growing popularity as a fashionable county town brought much late Georgian building.