On this day in Wembury — 22 March 1991

The Evening Herald reported a milestone in Wembury’s modern development: the village was to receive a mains gas supply for the first time. After British Gas South Western offered to extend the network, around 400 residents agreed to be connected.

Work to lay the main was scheduled to begin on 1 April 1991, with Traine Road—the main route through the village—due to close for about a month while installation took place. Access for local residents was to be maintained throughout the works.

The arrival of mains gas marked the end of Wembury’s long reliance on oil, coal, and bottled gas, and symbolised the shift from a largely rural, self-contained community to a modern commuter village linked more closely to Plymouth’s infrastructure.

(Source: Evening Herald, 22 March 1991 — “First gas supplies for Wembury.”)