The cost of burial prevented much of the catacombs from being filled, and by 1874 the cemetery was closed with much of the catacombs empty. However, the Exeter City Council noted in 2009 that should a significant pandemic arise, the catacombs would be called into use once more as a morgue.
Originally standing at the corner of Frog street and Edmund street, the house was first built between 1420-1450. It was a late medieval merchants house with classical large ground floor windows built into the three stories (and a loft) of timber framed
building.
The move garnered extensive coverage in the newspapers and on camera. At present, the house is still used as a shop, highlighting how historic buildings can adapt with changing times.
Stay tuned as we bring more updates from the conference soon!
Stripped to its timber frame, placed inside timber scaffolding, raised and rotated, the house was moved 70m uphill to its new position across four days, earning its new name: The House That Moved.
Today’s spotlight post looks at Exeter’s Catacombs! As cemeteries within the relatively small city of Exeter filled over time, a need for new burial spaces arose. Eventually, the cholera epidemic of 1832 precipitated the construction of the first publicly funded cemetery in England: the Catacombs.
Exeter used to be filled with such houses, reflecting the wealth of the city during the later middle ages. However, much of medieval Exeter was lost in the first half of the 20th century as clearance schemes, WW2 bombing, and urban replanning saw historic buildings destroyed en masse.
Opened in 1837, the design of the Catacombs was influenced by Egyptomania. Interestingly, many of the earliest examples of British Egyptomania come from the southwest, other examples being the Egyptian House in Penzance, Cornwall (1830s) and The Ker Street Social Club in Devonport, Devon (1823).
This was a fate that awaited the Merchant House in 1961 when plans were made to construct a bypass road.
Given its historic value, a plan was hatched to save the house.
Thanks to those who have already submitted session proposals!
We have extended the deadline for submission of session proposals to 5 pm, Friday 22nd May, to give time for a few final proposals to come in.
Submit your proposals using the form link here:
tag2026.square.site/sessions
What happens when the historic fabric of a city comes into conflict with urban development?
Today, we look at the story of the Merchant House, a 15th century Tudor house in Exeter, which became a subject of a remarkable act of preservation as the medieval city around it was lost.
