So from pubs to houses, of which some are historic. Keeping the A-Z theme going, we will start with B.

Badlake House

Myrtle Cottage, Badlake Hill, Dawlish (Google Maps)

It is likely it was built in the early 17th century and was part of a small farm and fields.

The first known tenant was Robert Painter in 1722.

After his death, the Penson family took over the farm.

However, a fire broke out in the barn in 1852 and the family lost a horse, two pigs and some chickens.

The fire was probably caused by a spark from his lantern while he checked his animals.

The house was renamed Myrtle Cottage and occupied by a series of curates. 

By 1909, the property was in poor condition with a report saying there was rubbish in the garden and no down pipes and was owned by Robert Hambly.

He owned nine houses on Badlake Hill, of which three were condemned and demolished in 1945. No 5 Badlake Hill offered a tearoom in 1933. 

In 1919, Hambly sold Badlake House to a relation of the Queen Mother, Miss Cavendish-Bentinck.

Controversially, the house was narrowed by one-room width when the adjacent Weech Road was widened.

Brook House

Brook House, Church Street, Dawlish (Google Maps)

Built in approximately 1789, Captain Robert Keen was its owner.

By 1848, Rear Admiral Thomas Dick had taken over. Dick fought in the Napoleonic Wars, having joined the navy aged 11.

One of his daughters, Charlotte, had the fountain in Old Town Street.

The inscription says 'Praise God from whom all blessings flow. CD March 1877'. This fountain can still be seen.

It was latterly owned by doctors one of whom made it his surgery.

It was then purchased by Elizabeth Osborne of Red Devon Housing in the 1960s, providing non-profit housing for the elderly. It has expanded with extensions to the house and across the brook with 16 self-contained units.

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Ed: This article is part of local historian Ray Bickel's series on Dawlish history. Use the links below to read previous articles:

Part One: What were the origins of Dawlish?

Part Two: The origins of St Gregory's Church

Part Three: The history of Dawlish's churches

Part Four: The origins of the Lawn and Tuck's Plot

Part Five: Tuck's Plot, the Lawn and the swans at the turn of the century

Part Six: The origins of Brunel's railway

Part Seven: Blowing up cliffs and Brunel's Atmospheric Railway

Part Eight: The early days of the railway

Part Nine: The 2014 storm and plans for a Dawlish avoiding line

Part 10: Pubs of Dawlish, past and present

Part 11: Pubs of Dawlish, past and present part II

Part 12: Pubs of Dawlish, past and present part III

Part 13: Pubs of Dawlish, past and present part IV

Part 14: Pubs of Dawlish, past and present part V