#1Writing & Arts
Richard Carlile
1790–1843British publisher and social reformer
12 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Famous people · Ashburton, Devon
9 famous people were born in Ashburton, most of them in the Georgian era
The best known is the British publisher and social reformer Richard Carlile, with articles in 12 languages. Births span 1717 to 1943, from Robert Palk to Athel Cornish-Bowden. The list comes to 26.7 for every 10,000 residents, against 4.7 in the typical town in Devon. The longest list of any town in Devon belongs to Plymouth, with 565.
Born here
9
notable people
Best known
Richard Carlile
in 12 Wikipedia languages
First
1717
Robert Palk
Youngest
1943
Athel Cornish-Bowden
Most common field
Writing & Arts
2 people
What stands out about Ashburton’s famous people
★ What stands out · Through the years
When Ashburton’s famous people were born
Count by decade and the 1750s come out on top, with 2 births.
Writing & ArtsScience & MedicineFaithPolitics & LawSportsMilitary
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
The best known
Born in Ashburton
Two of the three are writers and artists.
#1
#2Politics & Law
John Dunning, 1st Baron Ashburton
1731–1783British politician
10 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Writing & Arts
William Gifford
1756–1826English critic, editor and poet (1756–1826)
8 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Known for
What Ashburton is known for
Writing & Arts leads the fields, with 2 people.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Ashburton
6 more, best known first.
John Swete
1752–1821Clergyman, artist, antiquary, historian, and topographer (1752-1821)
FaithWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Close by, the fullest list is Totnes’, at 18 names.
Questions about famous people from Ashburton
Who is the most famous person from Ashburton?
Richard Carlile (British publisher and social reformer) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 12 languages. Next come John Dunning, 1st Baron Ashburton and William Gifford.
How many famous people were born in Ashburton?
9 people born in Ashburton have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 11 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Ashburton known for?
Among its famous people, writers and artists: 2 of the 9. That is 22% of the town’s list, against 12% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Ashburton?
Robert Palk, born in 1717. The youngest on the list was born in 1943.
Who counts as from Ashburton?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Ashburton’s built-up area (the ONS 2022 boundary), a hospital or district within it included, whose English Wikipedia article agrees. People who only lived here, adult performers and people known mainly for crimes aren’t listed.
Why is someone missing?
Their Wikidata birthplace may be a bigger area (“London”), another town, or missing, or their article may give no birthplace. We only list people both sources agree on; editing Wikidata or Wikipedia changes this page at the next refresh.
From Wikidata (CC0: birthplaces, descriptions, years, occupations) and English Wikipedia (each person’s article confirms the birthplace; linked, not quoted). Birthplaces are placed in the town by the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary (Office for National Statistics, Open Government Licence v3.0). Ranked by how many Wikipedia languages cover each person. Fields are read from Wikidata’s description and occupations. “The usual town”: everyone listed across UK towns. Portraits: each person’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (8)
- Richard Carlile: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- John Dunning, 1st Baron Ashburton: Fielding & Walker (n.d.), publisher, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- William Gifford: John Hoppner, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Robert Palk: Thomas Beach (1738-1806), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Athel Cornish-Bowden: Ricercatore, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Charles Tucker: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Ian Bryce: Mass Communications Specialist 1st Class Steve Owsley, USN, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Lettice Curtis: RAF, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.