Fort Efford

Efford (anciently Eppeford, Elforde, etc.) is an historic manor formerly in the parish of Eggbuckland, Devon, England. Today it has been absorbed by large, mostly post-World War II, eastern suburb of the city of Plymouth. It stands on high ground approximately 300 feet above the Laira estuary of the River Plym and provides views over long distances: to the north across Dartmoor, to the east and south-east across the South Hams. It consists predominantly of local authority and housing association properties. Before this land was built upon it was known as 'The Wilds of Efford', and was largely unspoilt countryside and marsh land. That a deer park may have been attached to the manor is suggested by the survival of the street name "Deer Park Drive".

Lipson Co-operative Academy (formerly Lipson Community College) is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form with academy status, located in the Lipson area of Plymouth in the English county of Devon.Previously a foundation school administered by Plymouth City Council, Lipson Community College converted to academy status on 1 April 2011 using the Co-operative academy model of governance. It was renamed Lipson Co-operative Academy. However, the school continues to coordinate with Plymouth City Council for admissions. Lipson Co-operative Academy offers GCSEs and BTECs as programmes of study for pupils, while students in the sixth form have the option to study from a range of A-levels, OCR Nationals and further BTECs. Some courses are offered in conjunction with Sir John Hunt Community Sports College and Tor Bridge High. The school also houses the Plymouth associate branch of the Italia Conti Academy, and is the home ground for Plym Valley Ladies Hockey Club and Plymouth University Hockey Club.

Laira Traction and Rolling Stock Maintenance Depot is a railway traction maintenance depot situated in Plymouth, Devon, England. The depot is operated by Great Western Railway (GWR) and is where their fleet of High Speed Trains are overhauled along with those belonging to CrossCountry. These will be withdrawn in 2023 but it will then become the principal depot for GWR's Class 802 InterCity Express Trains. Other trains visit for daily servicing. After sixty years as a steam depot, servicing locomotives used on the Exeter to Plymouth line that runs past the shed as well as local lines, diesels started to arrive in 1958. A diesel depot opened in 1962 and was expanded in 1981 to accommodate the High Speed Trains. The depot code 'LA' is used to identify rolling stock based there.

Compton or Compton Gifford is a suburb of Plymouth in England. Once a small village, it was developed in the 1930s and now lies between the suburbs of Peverell Mannamead and Efford. There are two parts, Higher and Lower Compton named after two farms and now distinguished by their respective public houses. Although essentially infill development between older larger areas, Compton is distinctive in character.

Eggbuckland is a suburb of the city of Plymouth in the county of Devon, England. Before the Second World War Eggbuckland was a small village a few miles north of Plymouth. During the reconstruction of Plymouth many new suburbs were built and soon a new estate was built within one mile to the south east of Eggbuckland. During the 1970s the areas in between and surrounding the old village were all developed and the whole area is now referred to by the name Eggbuckland. The development of the A38 just south of Eggbuckland in the 1980s led to the area becoming very popular with commuters. Bocheland is of Saxon origin and means "Royal land held by charter". The Domesday Book of 1086 recorded that this manor was held by the King, William of Normandy, but was granted to the Saxon Heche or Ecca, thus the land was known as Heche or Ecca's Bocheland. This was the site of a Saxon church which was replaced by the present church of St Edward in 1470. The village was held by the Royalist Cavaliers during the Civil War against the Parliamentarian Roundheads and was badly damaged. During the 19th century the area was host to new Palmerston Forts built as part of a northern defense line around Plymouth. Much of the structures remain but are privately owned and used for differing purposes. Over time the name has been corrupted and by 1685 was Egg Buckland. By 1902, it was one word - Eggbuckland although the older usage is still seen around the city. In the 1870s, the original village was described thus in John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales: EGG-BUCKLAND, or Buckland-Egg, a parish in Plympton-St. Mary district, Devon; on the Dartmoor railway, adjacent to the Tavistock railway, and near the river Plym, 3 miles NNE of Plymonth. It contains Crabtree hamlet, and part of Knackers-Knowle village; and its post town is Knackers-Knowle, Devon. Acres, with Laira-Green, 3, 304; of which 100 are water. Real property, £8, 933; of which £68 are in quarries, and £36 in railways. Pop., 1, 348. Houses, 272. The property is much subdivided. Widey Court here was the headquarters of Prince Maurice during his siege of Plymouth, and was visited by the king. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Exeter. Value, £474.* Patron, the Lord Chancellor. The church is ancient: consists of nave, south aisle, and chancel, with a tower; and is in fair condition. Charities, £28.The suburb is home to Eggbuckland Community College and several primary schools.

Fort Austin is a former 19th-century Fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. It was built to defend the landward approaches to the North East of Plymouth. This was part of an overall scheme for the defence of the Royal Naval Dockyard at Devonport. They were known as Palmerston Forts after the Prime Minister who championed the scheme. Designed by Captain (later Maj General) Edmund Frederick Du Cane, it was built by George Baker and Company and finished by the Royal Engineers. It was armed with fifteen guns and five mortars. To house part of the Forts' Garrison a barrack block to house 60 men was built within the rear section of the Fort.By the early 1900s the Fort had become obsolete as a defensive position and was disarmed. During the Second World War it was used by the Devon and Cornwall Auxiliary Unit. It was sold by the War Office to Plymouth City Council in 1958. It was Grade II listed in 2008.It is now a Thai Buddhist temple, established by Chao Khun Laow Panyasiri.

Laira Battery is a former 19th-century Fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. It was built to defend the landward approaches to the North East of Plymouth. This was part of an overall scheme for the defence of the Royal Naval Dockyard at Devonport. They were known as Palmerston Forts after the Prime Minister who championed the scheme. It was designed to be armed with 13 guns and overlooked the River Laira. To house part of the Forts' Garrison a barrack block to house two officers and 30 men was built within the rear section of the Fort. Some of the gun positions were in protected Haxo casemates and a vaulted magazine stored the ammunition for the guns.By the early 1900s the Fort had become obsolete as a defensive position and was disarmed. It was sold by the War Office in 1961. It was Grade II listed in 2003. It is now used as a plant hire yard.

Laira – previously recorded as Lare (1591), Lary poynte (1638), the Leerie (1643), and the Lairy (1802) – was originally the name given to that part of the estuary of the River Plym from the Cattewater up to Marsh Mills in Plymouth, Devon, England. The name may derive from a Brythonic word corresponding to the Welsh llaeru, meaning 'to ebb'.The A379 road and the disused Plymouth to Yealmpton railway line cross the estuary just above the Plymouth suburb of Cattedown by two bridges both known as Laira Bridge. The name Laira now also refers to the area of Plymouth surrounding the Laira Traction Maintenance Depot. Much of the housing here was built around 1900 for employees of the depot. There is a memorial plaque to the men of Laira who died in the Great War along Old Laira Road. Also situated on Old Laira Road is the old Police / Fire Station which is currently used as a library. Laira Green Primary school is situated in the area, as well as a disused United Reformed Church. Until the beginning of the 19th century, Old Laira Road had constituted the northern shore of Lipson Lake (or Bay), an extensive tidal inlet on the western side of the estuary. This area – on which the railway depot and Lipson Co-operative Academy now stand – was reclaimed from the estuary and drained, together with Tothill Bay on the south side of higher ground at Mount Gould, upon the completion in 1802 of an embankment along the whole western shore of the Laira. A new road, laid along this embankment shortly afterwards, from Laira Green to Prince Rock, soon became the main highway into Plymouth from Plympton, Exeter, and beyond, avoiding the often steep and narrow way via Old Laira Road and Lipson – even though the new route was to remain a toll road until 1924.

Egg Buckland Keep is a former 19th-century fortified barracks, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. Part of an extensive scheme known as Palmerston Forts, after the prime minister who championed the scheme, it was built to defend the landward approaches to the north east of Plymouth, as an element of the plan for the defence of the Royal Naval Dockyard at Devonport. The keep was designed to house the garrison for the nearby Forder Battery, Bowden Fort and Fort Austin. Designed by Captain (later Maj General) Edmund Frederick Du Cane, it was built by George Baker and Company and finished by the Royal Engineers. The fort was connected by a tunnel to the nearby Forder Battery. It could accommodate 230 soldiers and provided storage for both shot and shell. It was not designed to be armed, though five 7-inch Rifled Breech Loading guns were recommended in 1875, but never fitted.It was sold by the War Office in 1947 and has been used as for retail and storage purposes. It was sold again in 2018 into new ownership. It was Grade II listed in 1973.

Forder Battery is a former 19th-century fort, built as a result of the Royal Commission on National Defence of 1859. Part of an extensive scheme known as Palmerston Forts, after the prime minister who championed the scheme, it was built to defend the landward approaches to the north east of Plymouth, as an element of the plan for the defence of the Royal Naval Dockyard at Devonport. Designed by Captain (later Maj General) Edmund Frederick Du Cane, it was built by George Baker and Company and finished by the Royal Engineers. The fort was connected by a military road to the nearby Fort Austin and Bowden Fort, which both provided overlapping fire. It was originally designed to be armed with 16 guns. By 1893 it mounted four 64 Pounder Rifled Muzzle Loading Guns, one 7-inch Rifled Breech Loading (RBL) gun and two 32 Pounder Smooth Bore Breech Loading (SBBL) guns.By the early 1900s the fort had become obsolete as a defensive position and was disarmed. It was subsequently disposed of by the War Office, with much of the fort being redeveloped for housing. Some of the expense magazines and gun positions survive.

Lucas Terrace railway station, also known as Lucas Terrace Halt railway station, served the area of Lucas Terrace, Plymouth, England from 1905 to 1951 on the Plymouth to Yealmpton Branch.

Eggbuckland Community College is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form with academy status, located in the Eggbuckland area of Plymouth, Devon, England. The school converted to academy status on 1 September 2013.