Overbeck's

About

Overbeck's Garden at Sharpitor is an Edwardian 2.75 hectare (7 acre) subtropical Grade II registered garden at Sharpitor, Salcombe, Devon, England. It is named after its last private owner Otto Christop Joseph Gerhardt Ludwig Overbeck (1860–1937). The original house on the site was "Sharpitor", a small villa by Salcombe builder Albert Stumbles. In 1901 it was bought by Edric Hopkins, who also bought a further 2 acres (8,100 m2) of land, and laid out the garden, creating terraces and planting exotic specimens on the sheltered site. In 1913 the property was bought by Mr and Mrs George Medlicott Vereker who demolished the original house and had the present one built. Otto Overbeck acquired the house in 1928 and lived there until his death in 1937. Wishing the house to be used after his death as "a public park and museum and a Hostel for Youth" Overbeck bequeathed it to the National Trust or Salcombe Urban District Council on condition it be used as such and not as a brothel as so many properties in the surrounding area had become. It was accepted by the National Trust. Until 2014 the house was divided between a museum and a youth hostel. The youth hostel closed in 2014 when the agreement between the National Trust and the Youth Hostels Association ended. The museum closed in 2020 when the house was shut for repair and maintenance work. The National Trust aims to start re-opening part of the house in 2026.

Coordinates

50.2227, -3.7831

Opening

Su-Th 10:30-16:00

Sources

• wikipedia: Overbeck's (CC BY-SA 4.0)