The story of the Brixham Angels – a storm at sea, fires lit by families on the beach to guide the boats home formed the wings of an angel.
Entered into our audience book at the Brixham Folk Club on 2nd September 2022
The Story of the Brixham Angel
”Local legend has it that during ‘The Great Gale’ of January 1866, the lights of the town being dimmed by the inclemency, and fearing for the lives of their sons, husbands, brothers and fathers, the womenfolk gathered and hauled their furniture and mattresses to the shore and set ablaze in a bonfire to guide the remaining sailing trawlers home to port. Some said the flames were in the shape of an Angel. These women became known locally as ‘The Brixham Angels’. Such was the destruction of the fishing fleet, and with it 100 lives lost, that after the storm it was said that one could walk almost to Paignton on the broken flotsam of wrecked boats. To this day, on the darkest, stillest nights above the Port of Brixham, amongst the cries of ever circling gulls, there can be heard the flap of the Angel’s wings that look over the souls of all below.”
From https://sites.google.com/site/silverparty2/the-brixham-angel
Milton Hide have written a song based on this legend, incorporating the story of the Brixham wives, formidable women who fought for their right to raise their voices in the fish markets. To be released soon on the Your Stories In Song album.
You can see images created for the Brixham Heritage Museum by Jo Salter here: https://josalter.org.uk/portfolio/the-fish-hawker-women-of-brixham/
Read all about the fish hawker women here: https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/angels-brixham-hidden-history-women-5857564